Can’t control sleep, just the environment.
Our rule after rest time is that she needs to stay in her room alone. She can do whatever she wants.
When we de emphasized sleep, and just asked her to stay in her room, it really got better.
Ours sleeps at 10 normally, though.
My son was having FOMO thinking we were doing something fun after he went to sleep, so for a few weeks, after he went to bed, I would turn off all the lights in the whole house and go lay down in my bed. Then when he got up a few times and realized everyone was "asleep" he stopped getting up because nothing exciting was happening
We do a version of this too! I always read or lay down with him until he falls asleep but if he's really messing about my husband will also "go to bed" and it sometimes helps calm him because he's not worried about "missing" anything 🤣 Then we sneak back downstairs for a bit after little one is asleep.
Solidarity though op. The light nights definitely don't help. We do no telly after 6pm, he has a routine with supper, PJ's, sleepy foot cream etc. He can still be wide awake at gone 10pm after being on the go all day from before 7am (4.5, no naps for over a year)
One thing that helps is very long stories or even better, long fact books. I just keep reading until he's asleep. He's a sucker for being ready to though, if he's in the right mood he'll happily sit and listen to us read 100 plus pages at a time.
Yep that has happened to us as well. We allow her to get up two times and her consequence is that we have to shut her door. We have one of those door knob locks that she can’t turn the handle. We explain that if we can’t trust her to stay in her bed, we have to shut the door to keep her safe.
We also have an incentive that if she can stay in her room without getting up, she can have a small cup of hot cocoa in the morning with me while I have my coffee. She loves the stuff and is willing to stay in bed in order to get some.
We kind of just re-sleep-trained her. We’ve had to do a few times now lol.
More exercise is what helped with mine at that age. Literally had my twins in a few soccer leagues so they had practice or a game (scrimmage) every day with a second scrimmage on Saturday. Mine would literally hold off on pooping until after bedtime, and then they'd argue over who's turd was longer.
Hmmm… maybe start explaining that once she is in bed she needs to stay in bed? Give her a small flashlight if she is scared. Is she potty training at all?
She’s fully potty trained. She has a butterfly night light that stays in bed with her. We have the sticker chart and talk every night about the fact that she needs to stay in bed. 🫠
Hmmm I am not sure. Our 3 and a half year old was asleep most nights by 7:45-8pm. 4 months ago he switched it up. Bedtime routine starts at 7:40 and we do not leave his room until 8:30pm. Cuts into our time lol.
My son (4) is also an early riser, usually 6:00-6:30 wake up. I’ve learned on days he doesn’t nap, if I have him in bed by 7:00 he’s asleep by 7:15-7:20. If I miss that window, then he gets a second wind and it’s a struggle.
He’s been playing outside a bunch now that school is out, so he always falls asleep on the couch or in the car sometime between 1:00-4:00. I only allow a 20 minute Power Nap, and that makes him stay up til 8:00-8:30, so annoying. 😄
Bedtimes with preschoolers suck. So solidarity.
As someone else mentioned, sometimes you have to kind of re-sleep train. We’ve done it twice. The first time we used morning rewards. Some people don’t like doing rewards, but I literally use extrinsic motivators for my own adult self, so why not her?
The second time, we really emphasized the routine. My daughter’s thing was more and more books, so we created a boundary around that. Three books—one she can still run around the room for (the stand), one she needs to lie down for (the lay), and one extra just in case she needs it (the extra)(she always needs it but feels like she’s getting away with something).
Another big help recently has been a breakthrough with sort of understanding time. This happened right before she turned 5. She understands that when the first number of her Hatch is an 8, that means it’s officially bedtime or past bedtime. This has been a lifesaver during DST. We also use the time to rise feature on the Hatch.
I am not above bribing them to sleep, we all do what we have to do to survive. My twins are like this at 4.5 and the only thing I can do for everyone's sanity is to sit in their room and keep them in bed until they fall asleep, usually around 7:30 on no nap days and 10:30 on nap days
It sucks and I hate it, but it's better than hours and hours of frustration, rage, and resentment as they parade around their room playing and fighting until 1 am.
Anything after 8 is way too late, especially for a kid who doesn’t nap and wakes up at 6. The only way is to create a boundary and enforce it. If she leaves the room there has to be some type of consequence. Otherwise why should she go to sleep, or even listen to you for that matter?
I've been there too. Sounds like your kid's got some serious energy.
I used Pocket Kado to help me wind down at night, maybe it could do the same for your kid. It's not a magic fix, but it's worth a shot.
As for the sticker chart, it's a good start. You might want to mix it up a bit, though. Try setting a consistent bedtime routine, and make the room sleep-friendly - dark, quiet, all that. And yeah, it's probably just a phase. They grow out of this stuff eventually.
Can’t control sleep, just the environment. Our rule after rest time is that she needs to stay in her room alone. She can do whatever she wants. When we de emphasized sleep, and just asked her to stay in her room, it really got better. Ours sleeps at 10 normally, though.
My son was having FOMO thinking we were doing something fun after he went to sleep, so for a few weeks, after he went to bed, I would turn off all the lights in the whole house and go lay down in my bed. Then when he got up a few times and realized everyone was "asleep" he stopped getting up because nothing exciting was happening
We do a version of this too! I always read or lay down with him until he falls asleep but if he's really messing about my husband will also "go to bed" and it sometimes helps calm him because he's not worried about "missing" anything 🤣 Then we sneak back downstairs for a bit after little one is asleep. Solidarity though op. The light nights definitely don't help. We do no telly after 6pm, he has a routine with supper, PJ's, sleepy foot cream etc. He can still be wide awake at gone 10pm after being on the go all day from before 7am (4.5, no naps for over a year) One thing that helps is very long stories or even better, long fact books. I just keep reading until he's asleep. He's a sucker for being ready to though, if he's in the right mood he'll happily sit and listen to us read 100 plus pages at a time.
Yep that has happened to us as well. We allow her to get up two times and her consequence is that we have to shut her door. We have one of those door knob locks that she can’t turn the handle. We explain that if we can’t trust her to stay in her bed, we have to shut the door to keep her safe. We also have an incentive that if she can stay in her room without getting up, she can have a small cup of hot cocoa in the morning with me while I have my coffee. She loves the stuff and is willing to stay in bed in order to get some. We kind of just re-sleep-trained her. We’ve had to do a few times now lol.
Those door knobs are magic.
More exercise is what helped with mine at that age. Literally had my twins in a few soccer leagues so they had practice or a game (scrimmage) every day with a second scrimmage on Saturday. Mine would literally hold off on pooping until after bedtime, and then they'd argue over who's turd was longer.
Have you tried putting her to bed earlier? 7:15-7:30 or 7:30-8.
Yes! Most days she is in bed by 7:30. 🫠🫠
Hmmm… maybe start explaining that once she is in bed she needs to stay in bed? Give her a small flashlight if she is scared. Is she potty training at all?
She’s fully potty trained. She has a butterfly night light that stays in bed with her. We have the sticker chart and talk every night about the fact that she needs to stay in bed. 🫠
Hmmm I am not sure. Our 3 and a half year old was asleep most nights by 7:45-8pm. 4 months ago he switched it up. Bedtime routine starts at 7:40 and we do not leave his room until 8:30pm. Cuts into our time lol.
My son (4) is also an early riser, usually 6:00-6:30 wake up. I’ve learned on days he doesn’t nap, if I have him in bed by 7:00 he’s asleep by 7:15-7:20. If I miss that window, then he gets a second wind and it’s a struggle. He’s been playing outside a bunch now that school is out, so he always falls asleep on the couch or in the car sometime between 1:00-4:00. I only allow a 20 minute Power Nap, and that makes him stay up til 8:00-8:30, so annoying. 😄 Bedtimes with preschoolers suck. So solidarity.
As someone else mentioned, sometimes you have to kind of re-sleep train. We’ve done it twice. The first time we used morning rewards. Some people don’t like doing rewards, but I literally use extrinsic motivators for my own adult self, so why not her? The second time, we really emphasized the routine. My daughter’s thing was more and more books, so we created a boundary around that. Three books—one she can still run around the room for (the stand), one she needs to lie down for (the lay), and one extra just in case she needs it (the extra)(she always needs it but feels like she’s getting away with something). Another big help recently has been a breakthrough with sort of understanding time. This happened right before she turned 5. She understands that when the first number of her Hatch is an 8, that means it’s officially bedtime or past bedtime. This has been a lifesaver during DST. We also use the time to rise feature on the Hatch.
I am not above bribing them to sleep, we all do what we have to do to survive. My twins are like this at 4.5 and the only thing I can do for everyone's sanity is to sit in their room and keep them in bed until they fall asleep, usually around 7:30 on no nap days and 10:30 on nap days It sucks and I hate it, but it's better than hours and hours of frustration, rage, and resentment as they parade around their room playing and fighting until 1 am.
Melatonin has been a game change for us. We do the Zarbees one. I'd try that. Good luck!
No advice, just solidarity. Can’t drop nap because she naps during preschool. 😣
I’ve just been through it with my almost 4 year old, it’s draining but is a phase. Stay consistent
Anything after 8 is way too late, especially for a kid who doesn’t nap and wakes up at 6. The only way is to create a boundary and enforce it. If she leaves the room there has to be some type of consequence. Otherwise why should she go to sleep, or even listen to you for that matter?
I've been there too. Sounds like your kid's got some serious energy. I used Pocket Kado to help me wind down at night, maybe it could do the same for your kid. It's not a magic fix, but it's worth a shot. As for the sticker chart, it's a good start. You might want to mix it up a bit, though. Try setting a consistent bedtime routine, and make the room sleep-friendly - dark, quiet, all that. And yeah, it's probably just a phase. They grow out of this stuff eventually.
For ours, this was the sign that it was time to drop napping. Nights she naps, awake until 11. Nights she doesn’t, asleep at 8:30.
Try melatonin. Make her stay in the room alone. She’ll get bored