Every night it’s the same story: Five more minutes, Mom, I’m not sleepy, I’ll just finish this level. And I’m tired, looking at the clock, knowing that if he goes to bed late, tomorrow will be chaos. In the morning, it’s a different story, he doesn’t want to get up, it’s all about fighting to get changed, have breakfast, go to school. He’s in a bad mood, he cries for anything, and I feel guilty… What can I do?
Oh, I get this so much. My son is the same way. Nighttime? Full of energy. Morning? A disaster. It’s like they run on a totally different clock than us. 
You are not alone, trust me. My daughter fights bedtime like it’s her full, time job, and then in the morning, she’s practically glued to the bed. I used to battle her every night, but honestly, I was just making myself miserable. What’s helped is a really solid bedtime routine, like, the same exact steps every night. Bath, PJs, one book, and then a super boring podcast or lullaby playlist. Also, I started letting her make a sleepy, time spray with lavender water that she sprays on her pillow herself. Something about the little bit of control helped. Mornings are still rough sometimes, but at least bedtime isn’t a war zone anymore. Worth a try?
I totally get the struggle, and I’ve been there. What worked for us was shifting the entire bedtime routine earlier without making it feel like a punishment. We started dimming lights, reducing screen time at least an hour before bed (I know, easier said than done), and reading in bed instead of playing. Another big thing? We gave our son some control over bedtime. Instead of It’s bedtime now, we say, Do you want to go to bed in five minutes or ten? He still feels like he’s making the decision, but either way, he’s going to bed.
For mornings, we made a fun routine chart with stickers. Get dressed = one sticker. Eat breakfast = one sticker. When he gets five stickers, he picks a small reward. It helps cut down the whining because he’s working toward something. Maybe something like this could work for you?
Omg, why are kids like this?! My son can be falling asleep on the couch at 6 p.m., but the second I say bedtime, he’s suddenly wide awake and running laps. And then morning comes, and it’s like trying to wake up a hibernating bear. It’s exhausting. No advice, just here to say you’re not alone!
I went through this when my son was little and now that he’s older he’s now 6, I can tell you that it gets better. The trick for us was to shift his biological clock gradually. We moved his bedtime up 5 or 10 minutes earlier each week and paired it with a calming routine warm milk, soft music, no screens. Also, if he went to bed late, we woke him up at the same time, no matter how rough the morning was. It was painful at first, but his body adjusted after a couple of weeks.
Mornings got better when I made them less me nagging and more him taking responsibility. We used a visual checklist to get ready, and instead of dragging him out of bed, we bought an alarm clock with a sunrise light. Cheer up! This stage is brutal, but it’s temporary
Wow, thank you all so much! It’s really helpful to hear that this is a common struggle and not just something I’m failing at. I love the idea of making bedtime more structured but also giving him some control, maybe if I let him pick between two different bedtime stories or choose a special bedtime stuffed animal each night, it’ll help. Also, I hadn’t really thought about the screen time issue… I might need to be stricter about cutting that off earlier.
The sticker chart idea for the morning is genius, too! Right now, mornings feel like a disaster zone, but maybe if he has something to work toward, it’ll be smoother. Going to try some of these this week. Fingers crossed!
Does he seem tired at bedtime, or is he really just not sleepy? I wonder if he’s getting too much nap time during the day?
We had this problem with our daughter, and honestly, the biggest game, changer was adjusting her daytime routine. We realized she was getting too much energy late in the afternoon, snacks, TV, or just running around. So we started shifting active playtime earlier in the day, giving her a filling dinner, and keeping things calm after 6 p.m. Also, screens were a big issue. Even with just one more show, she’d be wired, so we cut screens completely an hour before bed. It was rough at first, but after a week or two, she was falling asleep way faster.
Another trick: We started a bedtime pass. She gets one pass per night, if she wants an extra hug, a sip of water, whatever, she can use it. But once it’s used, that’s it. It cut down on the constant getting up for random things. Maybe that could help you too?