Need help with changes in sleep for 4.5mo

[rmhefner]

My DD used to sleep from 10pm-7am but for the past 2 weeks has been waking up most mornings at 5-5:30am. She still BF to sleep, as we haven't done CIO yet. I have been picking her up & bouncing her to sleep on my lap when she wakes up at 5:30am. She will cry for 5 min & then fall asleep until 7-7:30am. Believe me, I know she is a good sleeper, but I am just wanting to make sure I'm not doing something wrong!

Should I be feeding her even if she only cries for 5 min??
Do you really believe that an earlier bedtime will make her sleep longer?
Is this just normal for a 4-5 mo to start waking up like that?

[KrisM]

By that age, my kids were in bed at 7 or so. I think DS1 was even earlier. None slept completely through, but would go until 7:30 or so in the morning with 1-2 feedings. I do believe that earlier bedtimes often makes for later mornings. Not always, but a lot of times.

I would not add a feeding if he's going back to sleep so easily. If you move the bedtime up, you might add in a feeding though.

[Snow mom]

My DD (4.5 mo) has a similar sleep schedule. She typically sleeps straight through from 10 p.m.-8 or 9 a.m. I've had some worries that I'm keeping her up too late, but she seems to do fine with this schedule. Occasionally she'll wake up early and I just give her back her paci and she falls right back asleep. I figure if she has been sleeping through without night-time feeding and goes back to sleep so easily there is no need to feed her. Use your mommy gut, though.

We're going to have to start working on getting to bed earlier because she will start daycare in June and the day there starts at 7:30. I'm really hoping that it won't make my great sleeper into a worse sleeper.

[rmhefner]

I am progressively moving her bedtime to 9pm & ultimately 8:30pm. The trouble is that she has not been able to ever go to sleep by herself, so I have been doing it for the past 4.5 mos. Now I am starting to consider CIO for all sleep as her naps & nighttime sleep is getting worse. UGH!!!

[dotmyers]

Have you read Happy Healthy Sleep Habits? That book really helped us out.