Tips for moving bedtime earlier
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Following this as I want to move my baby’s bed time to earlier
I had similar timings with mine, he’s 12 weeks too. The absolute earliest I could get him to bed was 10pm and he’d be awake and so cranky for 5-6 hours late afternoon/evening because he was so overtired. I wasn’t getting much sleep so I’d catch up in the mornings when I could get him to sleep for a bit, so we’d wake at 7am then feed and go back to bed until 9/10/11. I was also just letting him nap as and when during the day without any real structure. The last week I have been getting up with him at 7/8am (even though I’m still tired lol) then getting him down for a short-ish nap (like 45 mins to an hour) at about 9/10, then next nap over lunchtime and aiming to be longer so 12-2pm, then last nap at 4/5ish for only 30 mins. I’m flexible with it because life, but since starting I’ve managed to bring his bedtime forward 🙌🏼 he’s been asleep tonight since 8.20pm xx
Tummy time, lots of activity in the second half of the day with one hour of winding down (doing nothing really). Keep wake windows short in the morning and longer in the day
@Kirsty omg yes! Now that I think about it! She would be so quiet until 11/12 and then would be so active at about 10pm-1am
@Vicky how are you managing to put him down for a nap? We really struggle with her going down for any period of time. Also! How do you keep him up in the mornings without him being really grumpy? We’ve tried it and honestly she was a nightmare so gave up because we were so tired haha! But I’ll definitely try this! Xx
@Polina thank you! X
For naps I do the same as bedtime. He’s awake for at least 1.5 hours at a time so is definitely tired by nap times (although I look out for his sleepy cues and start nap time earlier if he needs it). I put him in his Moses basket or next to me when he’s still awake, then I swaddle him, give his dummy, play loud white noise (like 80 decibels, I found an online decibel meter and tested it 😂), and stroke his head until he falls asleep. You have to be persistent and persevere even if they grumble and spit the dummy out etc. If he starts getting worked up crying, I pick him up still in the swaddle, carry him around until he’s calm then put him back down and start again. I’ve also stopped feeding him right before his nap so he doesn’t associate feeding with sleeping. I just make sure I feed him every 2-3 hours in the day and have a feed about an hour before a nap. It’s helped as well because he struggles with wind and burping so it gives time for him to get comfortable before sleeping.
Originally I was doing 1.5 hour naps during the day and it was stressful because he wouldn’t stay asleep the whole time. I find having the 2 shorter naps takes some pressure off because it’s just one sleep cycle so easier for him to stay asleep for, then it’s just the one long nap I need to worry about resettling him for. In the mornings I start with a nappy change and I chat to him and laugh etc while doing it and that tends to get him all cheerful. I open all the blinds, turn all the lights on as well. We’ve got a play mat that has lights over it and he looooves watching that, he can do that for 30+ mins 😅 I’ll let him stare at the tv a bit too as he’s fascinated by that. Oh and he likes being tickled now 🥹 I basically just talk to him the whole time and show him stuff. Sorry for the essays, hope it was helpful though! Xx
@Vicky thank you so much! Xx Will give this a go! Desperate for a normal routine 🫠
Wake her up earlier in the day, cut her naps shorter, feed her more in the day.
I’ve noticed with mine if I settle for bed earlier so does she like snuggles, darkness and tucked into bed but we cosleep so it’s kind of down to me to set the pace - could it be a similar thing for your little one? X
If I let her mine would be up till 3am and sleep till 1pm - this was her routine for WEEKS then for 2 nights she literally did not sleep or nap till 7am then slept all day and that was my breaking point haha
@Tink yes potentially! I do try to settle her properly for bed from about 9:30 but she seems so awake and happy it’s hard to get her to wind down for sleeping haha xx
Unsure on how to bring forward but wondering, when you were pregnant did you notice they were very still/asleep inside you till midday? Cause when I was pregnant my baby would without fail wake me around 6:45/7am every day moving, and now he wakes every day at 6:45/7am too! Was unsure if just a coincidence or if they’re just wired that way!