My son has stopped napping at 3yo and falls asleep sometime between 6-7pm. But he's started waking in the morning between 4am-5am (we co-sleep), asking NON-STOP if he can nurse, if it's 6 o'clock (the time DH and I say we aren't getting out of bed until), and CONTINUOUS kneading/twiddling of my breasts. He has always been an early riser but this is far too early. We've tried putting him down to sleep very early and very late, neither seems to affect this early waking.
He night weaned himself a long time ago, and I don't want to go back to that, as I am sort of reaching a limit on nursing. Besides, except for when he was newborn, nursing only invigorated him.
Any suggestions to get him to go back to sleep? I'm wondering if what we've tried doing in our sleepless stupor to get him to sleep later is backfiring on us now:
1. allowing him to hold my breasts - this helps him fall asleep but keeps us both awake in the early a.m.
2. telling him he can't get up before 6am (he can see the clock and seems to wait for it to turn 6). Now he repeatedly asks if it's 6am.
3. telling him that we're not going to nurse until 6am. So he keeps asking if it's 6am and he can nurse.
4. telling him he can get up and play but we're not getting up until 6am (our place is very small, and we just lie there and listen to him). This means that he just comes into the bedroom non-stop asking the same questions as above!
Lately he doesn't want to get up alone, just to lie there and grab my breasts. I am really going out of my mind. I think I could deal with either the constant breast squeezing or the early waking but not both. I could really use some help, I'm so tired, I've lost all basic common sense on this.
Thank you!
He night weaned himself a long time ago, and I don't want to go back to that, as I am sort of reaching a limit on nursing. Besides, except for when he was newborn, nursing only invigorated him.
Any suggestions to get him to go back to sleep? I'm wondering if what we've tried doing in our sleepless stupor to get him to sleep later is backfiring on us now:
1. allowing him to hold my breasts - this helps him fall asleep but keeps us both awake in the early a.m.
2. telling him he can't get up before 6am (he can see the clock and seems to wait for it to turn 6). Now he repeatedly asks if it's 6am.
3. telling him that we're not going to nurse until 6am. So he keeps asking if it's 6am and he can nurse.
4. telling him he can get up and play but we're not getting up until 6am (our place is very small, and we just lie there and listen to him). This means that he just comes into the bedroom non-stop asking the same questions as above!
Lately he doesn't want to get up alone, just to lie there and grab my breasts. I am really going out of my mind. I think I could deal with either the constant breast squeezing or the early waking but not both. I could really use some help, I'm so tired, I've lost all basic common sense on this.
Thank you!
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