Hello parents and readers,
The following blog addresses the question of
How do I begin sleep training or crib training?
I have provided my readers with a glimpse of what a sleep training routine may look like. For this particular family, they came to me in a state of crisis. Mom was breastfeeding and working full time with hardly any sleep at night. Their 5 month old did not know how to stay asleep so she constantly cried out every 1-2 hours throughout the night for mom to rock her back to sleep. The parents had not shared a bed in over 3 months. They wanted a big change.
Sarah has Difficulty staying asleep between 7pm-10pm:
This will be the first phase of crib training. She needs to learn that once she is asleep in her crib and fed, she needs to put herself back to sleep.
If she wakes up…
1st time: one of you may go into her room, pat her belly, say “time to sleep Sarah” “shhhhh” after 5 min. Walk out of the room and let her cry up to 10min. If she does not fall asleep….
2nd time: do not speak to her. Pat her belly say “shhhhh” after 5 min. walk out of the room. Let her cry up to 15 minutes. If she does not fall asleep….
3rd time: do not speak to her. Pat her belly no longer than 5 min. “shhhhh” walk out of the room. Let her cry herself to sleep. (maybe between 20-45 min)
This is hard for all parents. Your family is in crisis mode and Sarah needs to know that she can fall back to sleep on her own as soon as possible. She will only learn this through time and practice. The main goal with infants is to develop trust within the first few months so that their brains understand that you will meet their needs and they are safe. She cries when she wakes up because she does not know how to put herself back to sleep. She has only been rocked, nursed, and coddled back to sleep since birth. Now she knows she is safe and she knows you will come to her. But now she is in control. Your goal as parents is to get back the power. Set boundaries for her. Support her through kind words and soft touches as she learns to put herself to sleep, by first crying herself to sleep. She will be ok. It is harder for parents to hear their infant cry than it is for her to cry. Just remember…She knows she is safe. She knows you both love her. This is teaching her a valuable tool, self soothing. This is important for your family. You need your bed back for the marriage. You need to have family time for Luke before bed. Give this routine 1-2 weeks with consistency and I promise you will be happy with the results. Babies need a routine and they need to be taught how to sooth themselves to sleep. You can do this.
Good luck:)
Sincerely,
Michelle
Michelle Chrastil, MA CPD NCC
Honest Family Services, LLC.
www.honestfamilyservices.com
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
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"Michelle is truly a dedicated therapist. She has found her calling. Michelle is a patient and insightful and has a way of gently facilitating seismic shifts in family dynamics. She has helped my 14 year old daughter, and in turn me, so much. I am really grateful we found you!"
-Adrienne
"Michelle was such a blessing to our family. My oldest girl Rachel absolutely loved her. Michelle was able to incorporate learning into playtime and she has an amazing ability to manage little ones. As a working mom, I couldn't have made it without her when my second child was born. I don't know who she took better care of, me or my girls!"
-Dana
"Coming home from the hospital, as a new mom of twins, was both excited and intimidating. My husband and I hired Michelle initially, as a night nanny. I can honestly say that she was a complete wealth of information and so wonderful with our twin daughters. Being new to this all and having no family in town, it was nice to have someone who was so experienced. Her knowledge of helping mothers of twins, with successfully breastfeeding, was the most important thing to me! Because of her, I was able to breastfeed my daughters until they were nine months old! She was so encouraging and I don't think I could have done it without her! Once our girls were sleeping through the night we had Michelle start helping us out during the day! Our daughters loved her, but I think we loved her more!!! "
-Linsley
"When our 4 month old was continuing to get up six or more times a night and my husband was sleeping on the couch for months, we thankfully, found Michelle. She spent time with us to understand what our schedule and routine was,or wasn't!, and helped us with a schedule and routine that really worked. Within a few weeks, Bella was sleeping through the night, and my husband and I got our bed back. Michelle's suggestions helped us so much. She was very caring and supportive. Thank you Michelle!"
-Jen
-Adrienne
"Michelle was such a blessing to our family. My oldest girl Rachel absolutely loved her. Michelle was able to incorporate learning into playtime and she has an amazing ability to manage little ones. As a working mom, I couldn't have made it without her when my second child was born. I don't know who she took better care of, me or my girls!"
-Dana
"Coming home from the hospital, as a new mom of twins, was both excited and intimidating. My husband and I hired Michelle initially, as a night nanny. I can honestly say that she was a complete wealth of information and so wonderful with our twin daughters. Being new to this all and having no family in town, it was nice to have someone who was so experienced. Her knowledge of helping mothers of twins, with successfully breastfeeding, was the most important thing to me! Because of her, I was able to breastfeed my daughters until they were nine months old! She was so encouraging and I don't think I could have done it without her! Once our girls were sleeping through the night we had Michelle start helping us out during the day! Our daughters loved her, but I think we loved her more!!! "
-Linsley
"When our 4 month old was continuing to get up six or more times a night and my husband was sleeping on the couch for months, we thankfully, found Michelle. She spent time with us to understand what our schedule and routine was,or wasn't!, and helped us with a schedule and routine that really worked. Within a few weeks, Bella was sleeping through the night, and my husband and I got our bed back. Michelle's suggestions helped us so much. She was very caring and supportive. Thank you Michelle!"
-Jen
1 comment:
As I sit here listening to my 6-month old scream for the last 30 minutes I can't tell you how helpful it is to have this info and support. I keep reminding myself that this will work! Thank you Michelle! We try so hard to keep them on a strict routine but every once in awhile they are just "off". When we get them off schedule it is tough for all of us! For the most part, when they are crying now it is because they need us vs. want us.
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