Well, she sounds over tired. Which you know.
Since she wakes so much. That interrupts... the actual sleep she is getting.
Kids, DO wake up at certain times. It is just them. It cannot be, tweaked much. ALL my friends and my own kids, wake at a certain time in the morning, no matter what time they go to bed at night.
Then once they hit another age change... ie: Teens, their sleep changes and their wake up times, too.
IF she is passing out on the couch... why not just let her be. Don't wake her. That is interrupting her sleep. Again.
Also, maybe she just needs to nap sometimes??? My daughter, is 8. And she will nap after school, at times. She gets tired. But she still goes to bed at her normal time. When she is this tired and naps... it is because her body and her... is basically "catching-up" on missed sleep and needed sleep. Because... lack of sleep, compounds. It accumulates like a ripple effect.
If a child never catches up with their sleep, then they will always be, over-tired.
Being over-tired, causes a host of problems. From inability to pay attention, to fussiness, to overall lethargy.
And being over-tired, actually makes it HARDER for a child to sleep, to fall asleep, and to stay asleep.
Sleep deprivation... actually makes sleep worse. And messes up a body's natural cycles.
What does she do before bed? Maybe, she needs to have a wind-down time before bed. Like 1 hour before the actual bedtime.
That is what I do with my kids. It changes, their mode. "Allowing" them, to key down. BEFORE bed. Not at, bedtime.
We make the house dark. Do quiet things. I verbally cue them. No horse-playing before bed.
Also at this age, they DO have night-time fears, which is developmental based. And they do have nightmares. And these things can wake them.
My Daughter is 8, and she and her friends, DO get scared at night or from their imagination.
There is also something called "Warm Mik" by the brand Animal Parade. They make natural kids supplements. Warm Milk, is for helping a child sleep. It has properties in it that is like milk. Milk is known to help sleep.
There is also something called "Hyland's Calms Forte-for kids." This is a homeopathic sleep aide for kids. (I use the adult version myself). It is all natural, has Chamomile in it etc. It is non-habit forming and does not create a 'tranquilizer' feel. It simply helps bring calm to a person. For me, it does help me, and so I can sleep.
You can look both of these up online like on Amazon and read the reviews of it there.
I have friends, who have used in for their kids, when sick or on a trip.
Both of these, can also be found at Whole Foods and natural food stores.
I think, no matter what, when your daughter just falls asleep, even if on the couch... just let her be. Don't interrupt her sleep and wake her.
There have been times, with my kids that I just let them sleep, where they are. And did not wake them just to move them. Because, I know that they are VERY overtired at those times. They just need to sleep. Uninterrupted.
There has also been times... when my son, has actually fallen asleep per his nap... and slept FOURTEEN hours straight, until the next morning! He is an active boy and at growth-spurts, he tends to do this. NEEDS sleep. Then he grows so much. And his development takes leaps.
My daughter also, would do this sometimes.
I NEVER EVER woke them, at these junctures. I go by my kids' cues. For sleep and naps.
No matter how old, some kids just really still need to nap. Occasionally. My son is 4, and he still naps every day. He needs it. He naps and still goes to bed at a normal time. It does not get in the way of him sleeping at night bedtime.
Per her reflux, maybe she really is feeling those discomforts. Or, does she get heartburn from it??? Even if on medication... a person can still have discomfort.
Or, let her sleep on the floor of your room.
That is what we do with our kids, if/when needed.
When I was a child, I would go to my parents room in the middle of the night. I simply got scared in my room by myself. They let me be near them and sleep. I grew out of it. They knew that. It is one of my fondest memories of them, as a child.
Kids are typically early wakers.
They just wake early.
My kids wake at 6:30 too. They were always that way, since they were babies. Its fine.
Kids don't wake, or sleep in like adults.
Anyway, just some thoughts.
Sorry for rambling.
My fingers just would not stop typing. :)
