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Why My 10-Year-Old Can’t Wake Up for School… But Pops Out of Bed at 6 AM on Weekends
- chevy mermelstein
- Dec 10, 2025
- 4 min read
If you’ve been following my work for a while, you already know that my sleep-coaching journey started because of one person: my daughter Brenda.
Brenda is 10 years old — your typical, fiery, opinionated, doll-loving girl. She’s creative, emotional, funny, stubborn, and has more opinions than I have coffee mugs (which is saying a lot). And her sleep story is one that shaped not only how I parent… but how I coach.
If you’ve never read her full journey, I wrote about it here:
But today, I want to share something new — something she taught me this week that blew my mind all over again.
It’s a story about motivation, mornings, school days, weekends…
and the unbelievable power of the mind when it comes to sleep.
The Monday-to-Friday Battle
Let me paint you a picture.
It’s Monday morning in Montreal.
Which means it’s probably minus 20 degrees, snowing sideways, and the universe is basically saying, “No, no, stay inside… go back to bed.”
I go into Brenda’s room to wake her up.
Her uniform is laid out.
Her alarm has been beeping.
Her room is already bright.
And yet — nothing.
It is physically impossible to wake this child.
I shake her gently.
I talk softly.
I talk less softly.
I try humor.
I try bribery.
I try every “gentle parenting” technique I’ve ever read.
She doesn’t budge.
Her school days are stressful — teachers in and out, homework, tests, social pressures, catching the bus, making sure she has the right snack, the right shoes, the right everything. She feels the weight of it. You can see it in her eyes.
It doesn’t matter if she slept nine hours or eleven.
It doesn’t matter if she went to bed early or had the perfect bedtime routine.
If it’s a school day, Brenda CANNOT get up.
And honestly? I get it.
But Then There’s the Weekend…
Now let’s jump to Saturday morning.
There’s no school.
No alarms.
No schedule.
No rushing.
No stress.
And suddenly…
POP!
She’s awake at 6 AM.
Fresh.
Happy.
Bright-eyed.
Running around the house like she’s been awake for hours.
This is also the same child who on vacations insists she wants to stay in pajamas all day and “do nothing, zero plans, don’t even ask me.” Yet on weekends she wakes up like she’s training for a marathon.
When I asked her once why she wakes up early, she shrugged:
“Why not? There’s so much to do!”
So let’s review:
Weekdays: physically impossible to wake.
Weekends: beating the sunrise with the energy of a puppy.
Make it make sense.
The Experiment That Changed Everything
Last week, my older kids came up with an idea:
“Mom, don’t tell Brenda it’s vacation next week. She’ll think it’s school. She’ll sleep late.”
I laughed.
Then I thought about it.
Then I realized… This could actually be a brilliant test of how much her mind affects her sleep.
So we tried it.
We didn’t tell her.
We didn’t say “no school tomorrow.”
We didn’t say “late start.”
We didn’t say “there’s no bus.”
We kept everything exactly the same — except the reality.
And guess what?
She slept.
Not just slept — she slept deeply. Peacefully. No early waking. No restlessness. No popping out of bed like it’s the Olympics.
Same bed.
Same room.
Same routine.
Same hours.
The only thing that changed?
Her mind.
The Mind–Sleep Connection Is Real
Brenda’s story isn’t just cute or funny — it’s important.
Because this is what I see every single day with my clients, whether they’re 10 or 50:
Your thoughts about sleep shape your sleep.
Stress about tomorrow.
Pressure.
Fear of failing.
Overwhelm.
Anticipation.
Excitement.
Dread.
Responsibility.
Burnout.
These don’t just affect your day.
They affect your nights.
They change:
how easily you fall asleep
how deeply you sleep
what time you wake up
whether you wake refreshed or drained
and how your body responds to the next day
Think about it:
Have you ever tossed and turned before a big meeting?
Or woken up exhausted even after a full night’s sleep because of what was waiting for you in the morning?
That wasn’t a sleep problem.
That was a mind problem.
Just like Brenda.
Her body was tired.
Her sleep hours were fine.
Her bedtime was stable.
But her relationship to the next day was the issue.
Our Thoughts Carry Weight
Brenda reminded me again that the mind doesn’t just “influence” sleep — it directs it.
If she believes it’s school tomorrow, her body responds with:
dread
pressure
stress
resistance
And she wakes up exhausted.
But if she believes she’s free?
She wakes bright, energized, and ready for the world.
Same child.
Same sleep.
Different mindset.
And honestly? Adults are no different.
If you’re waking up tired…
If you fall asleep well but wake up wired…
If you sleep enough hours but feel drained…
If mornings feel impossible…
Please hear this with love:
It’s not because you’re broken.
It’s because your mind is working overtime.
Your brain can be:
protecting you
anticipating something
trying to avoid something
preparing for something
worrying about something
holding emotional weight you don’t even realize
Sleep coaching isn’t just about routines and supplements and melatonin and chamomile tea.
It’s about helping you unload what your mind is carrying.
That’s when sleep changes.
That’s when mornings change.
That’s when life changes.
Brenda reminds me of this every single week.
If this feels like you… I can help.
If you’re reading this and thinking,
“Whoa… this is me,”
you’re not alone — and you don’t have to do this by yourself.
You can book a free 30-minute discovery call with me here:
Let’s talk about what your mind might be carrying — and how it’s affecting your sleep.
Final Takeaway
The mind is powerful.
Sometimes powerful enough to wake a child at 6 AM on a Sunday…
and powerful enough to keep the same child glued to her pillow at 8 AM on a Tuesday.
Sleep isn’t just physical.
It’s emotional, mental, and energetic.
And once you understand that?
Everything shifts.
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