Solutions for Baby Waking Early in the Morning

How To Change Your Baby's Early Waking

Starting your day at 5 am is most likely NOT ideal for you and your baby. But for some reason, your tiny little boss is stuck at an early morning wake time! Do you feel like you’ve done everything right, but you can’t seem to get your baby to sleep in any later?

Well, you’re in the right place! And you are most definitely not alone.

Having a baby who keeps waking up too early in the morning is a very common sleep struggle for little ones. And we know they'll be able to function and thrive so much better off a full night's rest. That's why we're offering our top solutions to get that little babe back to sleep for another hour or 2 of precious shut-eye.

Why It's Common for Babies to Wake Up Early

So, what causes early morning waking in babies?

The main reason babies wake up much earlier than you'd prefer is that their sleep drive is so low between the hours of 4 - 6 am. They just clocked a solid 8+ hours of sleep and the sun is rising. This makes for a difficult situation in which to fall back asleep. This is especially true if a baby has not mastered the skill of falling asleep independently yet.

• If your baby is waking at 6:30 am, that is not considered an early morning.
• 6-7 am is actually a very common and natural timeframe for your baby to wake.
• If your baby is waking up at all before 4 am, this is considered a night waking.

So, how can we fix these early mornings that occur between 4 and 6 am?

There are some questions you’ll want to ask yourself and investigate to help get to the bottom of your early morning riser!

Read through and take note of everything you’ve said yes to! You’ll want to pay close attention to the solution that follows each question to help you take steps to fix the problem.

Work towards the recommended changes and give it a few weeks for the resolution. Your baby’s early mornings will most likely not be fixed right away since we need to reset their biological clock. With good practices and consistency, they should work themselves out.

The Culprits and Solutions for Early Morning Wake-Ups

If you're pulling your hair out trying to figure out how you can keep your baby from waking up at 5 in the morning, it's time to fix it.

1.) Sleep Environment Changes

Ask yourself:

Are there any changes in my baby’s sleep environment that occur during these times?

One of the biggest culprits of early mornings is the rising of the sun. Even a tiny bit of light coming into your baby’s room can cause them to stay awake during the 4-6 am timeframe. Especially in the summer months when the sun is streaming into your little one’s room, sleeping in can be difficult.

Solution to too much light:

The best way to combat this is to get really good blackout shades or curtains. To test if your blackouts are dark enough, turn the lights out and close the door during the brightest time of the day. You should barely be able to see your hand in front of your face. That’s how dark you’ll want it! Blackout curtains will also allow your little to settle at bedtime even if it’s still light out. Win-win!

Additionally, think about if there are any outside noises occurring at this time. Maybe even set an alarm for yourself and get up and sit outside of your baby’s room to see if you notice anything. This could be a garbage truck going by, the HVAC kicking on, a plane flying over, etc.

Solution to outside noise:

If this change is sound related, consider using a sound machine to help block out that external noise. Always make sure the sound machine is placed safely 6-7 feet away from your baby’s crib. 

Environment changing due to travel or being moved to a different room? You can help your baby by keeping the comforts they are used to such as using the same sound machine, weighted sleep sack, or pacifier.

2.) Not Enough or Too Much Sleep During the Day

 Ask yourself:

Is my baby not sleeping enough during the day? Is my baby sleeping too much during the day? What about bedtime...does it make sense for my baby's age?

This can be tricky to figure out! First, take a look at your baby’s wake windows according to their age. The wake window is the ideal time that a baby can stay awake before needing sleep again. If you’re keeping your baby awake for too long, this can cause them to have difficulty falling asleep because of their body becoming overtired. When your baby hasn’t taken great naps and they’re overtired at bedtime, this causes issues falling asleep and staying asleep.

On the other hand, if your baby is sleeping too much during the day, this could be causing early morning wakings because your baby is simply not tired anymore. If this is the case, you can begin by capping naps. Typically, babies over 5 months of age, should have around 3-3.5 hours of daytime sleep. For example, if your baby naps for 2 hours in the morning, then you won’t want to let the afternoon nap go any longer than 1 hour.

Solution to getting the right amount of sleep:

Make sure your baby is not staying awake for too long before a nap or bedtime while giving them enough awake time to build their sleep pressure up. Sounds confusing, doesn’t it? To help, here is the Quick Reference Guide to Your Baby’s Sleep from Rest is Best Sleep. You can use this to determine how many naps your baby should have and how to schedule their day. This will help to avoid your baby becoming too tired or napping too much during the day.

The first wake window is usually the shortest of the day and they gradually get longer throughout the day.

Something else to note that Chloe Fries from La Lune Consulting reminded us of is that babies, once they hit the dreaded 4-month sleep regression, require 11-12 hours of overnight sleep. Late bedtimes will surely lead to an early morning wake up. Getting that bedtime just right will ensure your baby isn't under tired or overtired and you guess it, not waking up early any longer.

RELATED: How to Get an Overtired Baby to Sleep

3. Baby's First Nap is Too Early

Ask yourself:

Is my baby’s first nap of the day too early?

I’m sure you’re noticing a trend here… a lot depends on naps! If your baby’s first morning nap is too close to their morning wake up, this will lock in that early morning wake time. The reason is that your baby will treat this nap as an extension of their night sleep. As we talked about above, the first wake window will always be the shortest one. But it should still fall within the range of wake time appropriate for their age.

Solution to napping too early:

Base wake windows off of their desired morning wake time rather than the actual morning wake time. So, if your baby is 6 months old and she’s waking for that day at 5 am, you’ll want her first nap to be at 8am. This is 2 hours after the desired 6 am wake time. I’m not going to lie… this will definitely be a challenge at first. Your baby’s biological clock will take time to adjust. But stay consistent and it will get better with time.

4. Feeding Immediately with an Early Wake-Up

Ask yourself:

Am I feeding my baby immediately when they wake early for the day?

If something exciting is happening or baby is offered their feed right away at that early morning time, this can reinforce the early waking. Think of it this way, if you eat a brownie every morning as soon as you wake up, you’re going to be excited and incentivized to wake early and get that brownie! You may even start to wake earlier with the anticipation to get your hands on your favorite chocolate treat! The same thing happens with babies! If we offer a feed immediately upon waking, this will encourage your baby to wake up early!

Solution for feeding too early:

Treat any waking before 6 am like nighttime. Think about what you would do if your baby woke up at 2 am. You wouldn’t take them out of bed, turn the lights on, get dressed for the day, and head downstairs for coffee. So, at 5:30 am, avoid treating it like morning.

We want to send a clear message to baby that nighttime isn’t over yet and there is still time left to sleep. If your baby isn’t crying, you can try to leave them in their crib until 6 am. If your baby starts crying, go in and do whatever strategy you use to get them to go back to sleep. But, at the very least, delay that first feed by 20 minutes to help break the association of waking up and jumping right into a feed.

5. Baby is Dependent on Sleep Props to Get Back to Sleep

Ask yourself:

Does my baby need me or any other external sleep prop in order to fall asleep at bedtime?

Sleep props are definitely a big reason for early morning wakings (as well as night wakings). If your baby depends on something external to fall asleep, such as nursing, bottle feeding, being rocked, having their butt pat, etc., they are going to need you to recreate that prop each time they wake throughout the night and in the early morning hours.

If your baby is not able to fall asleep without these things at bedtime, it’s going to be near impossible for them to get back to sleep when they have a brief wake up in those early morning hours. It is immensely helpful for you and your baby if they are able to get themselves to sleep on their own.

Think about how stressful it must be to have to call out to your Mom or Dad every time you wake up! Then, you must wait for them to come in and help you back to sleep. I could imagine it’s a lot easier on everyone involved if they had the skill and confidence to do this on their own, without needing to cry out for help.

Solution to sleep props:

The best way to fix this is to put your baby down for bed wide awake. Even if they use one of the external props to get themselves drowsy and then you put them down before they’re fully asleep, this could still cause an issue because your baby may need that prop to get drowsy again. When they are placed to bed wide awake, they take the journey to sleep on their own. We recommend replacing one of these props with the Dreamland Baby Weighted Sack or Swaddle as it will relax your baby to help them fall asleep.

But what if your baby sleeps great until 4 am? Do they really have a "sleep prop" issue?

You may be thinking, but my baby doesn't have that problem because they fall right to sleep at bedtime and don't wake up until 4 in the morning! That's 9 solid hours with no problem!

Well, guess what, many parents notice their little one gets a good stretch of sleep in the first part of the night, but once 4 am hits, they are up every hour. This is because sleep is lightest in the early morning hour, which means if a baby doesn't know how to fall asleep on their own, they will most likely wake while in a light stage of sleep and look for your help to get them back to a deep stage of sleep.

Teaching your child how to fall back asleep on their own will allow them to consolidate sleep in the early morning hours and thus get them (and you!) the full night’s rest that you need. 

We recommend reading A Helpful Guide for Sleep Training Your Baby. But if you still are struggling knowing where to start, fill out the Rest is Best Sleep contact form or reach out to Chloe Fries at La Lune Consulting for the help you need.

Be Patient While You Fix Those Early Morning Wakings

It’s important to remember that any or all of these tricks are most likely not going to be a quick fix...don't be discouraged if you don't see progress for a few days. Early morning wakings are tiring but they will resolve with time and patience! It's all about practice and consistency to get it reversed.

You may run into notice early morning wake-ups more frequently after traveling, due to illness, or during nap transitions, but with these tips, you should be able to get your baby back on track!

Remember, a little one’s sleep needs change quite frequently in the first 2 years of life. If you do find that your baby does continue to wake early or is struggling to sleep independently we recommend you reach out to Brittany of Rest is Best Sleep Consulting or schedule a free assessment call with Chloe at La Lune Consulting. You don't have to accept poor sleep any longer!

Dreamland Baby loves working with Certified Sleep Consultants. Thank you to Brittany Levine and Chloe Fries for contributing to our blog with this post.

Baby Waking Early FAQ's

Can temperature make a baby wake up early?

If your baby is waking up in the middle of the night, chances are they’re too cold… or maybe even, too warm. Because some babies wiggle throughout the night causing their little socks to fall off, and aren’t yet able to regulate their own body temperature, it’s a good idea to use a sleep sack. With a long or short sleeve onesie underneath, depending on the weather and room temperature, the Dreamland Baby sleep sack is lightweight and breathable for year-round use and has a 0.6 TOG that is perfect for both warm and cool climates. (FYI, TOG stands for Thermal Overall Grade and the higher the TOG rating, the warmer the fabric.)

Will exercise help a baby sleep longer?

In addition to establishing a bedtime routine and creating a safe and soothing environment for baby to sleep in, studies have shown that active babies not only fall asleep faster at night, but they also tend to sleep better. Improved sleep is essential in your baby’s growth and development, so whether it’s extra tummy time or a walk outside when they’re older, an active baby makes for a tired baby… which hopefully leads to a better night’s sleep for everyone.

What time should my baby wake up in the morning?

All new parents worry about their baby’s sleep. Are they getting enough? Too much? Too little? Are they going to bed too late or too early? Parents also have concerns about what time baby wakes up in the morning. But if your little one is waking up between 6 -8am, they are likely right where they should be in terms of nighttime sleep.  Remember that sleep schedules change depending on the age of your baby. Newborns sleep the most, anywhere between 14-17 hours of sleep within a 24-hour period. As they grow and develop, their sleep schedules will shift and change (and change again!) but most experts recommend that once your baby is around 3 months old, try to stick to  (roughly) an overnight sleep schedule from 7pm – 7am.

Does putting a baby to bed earlier make them sleep longer?

Putting your baby to bed earlier does, in fact, help them sleep longer. That’s because when it comes to most of us (yes, babies and adults!) quality sleep tends to happen before midnight. So the earlier you put your baby to rest, it’s likely they’ll sleep for longer stretches during the night.

Will sleep training help my baby sleep later in the morning?

The idea is that once your baby is between 4-6 months old, they are likely ready to self-soothe and sleep for longer stretches of time. With sleep training, you’re giving your baby the tools to not just fall asleep, but also to fall back asleep on her own… which hopefully means that you, too, can sleep longer and better than when baby was more dependent on you for her middle of the night wake-up calls.

Why does feeding affect baby wake up times?

While every baby is different, once your baby is around 3 months, you should be able to cut back on middle of the night feedings. This is also the time frame during which you may start to sleep train - both have the goal of getting your baby to self soothe so that she no longer needs you for her middle of the night wakings. The good news is that whether your baby is breastfed or formula fed, both show a decrease in nighttime wakings once they reach the age of 6 months. Of course, always consult with your pediatrician if you have questions or concerns about anything baby related.

 Hey there! I’m Brittany- Certified Pediatric Sleep Consultant and Founder of Rest is Best Sleep Consulting! My goal is to help families gently guide their babies to be wonderful sleepers so that sleep deprivation doesn’t cloud the beauty of this wonderful time in our lives! To do this, I work 1 on 1 with parents to customize a plan that suits their specific parenting style, their unique and perfect child, and their schedules. We are together throughout the entire process so that parents get the support that they absolutely need during the journey! 

Brittany Levine
Rest is Best Sleep Consulting
phone: 609-828-4326
email:  [email protected]
web:    www.restisbestsleep.com

Chloe Fries
La Lune Pediatric Sleep Coach
web: www.laluneconsulting.com