My husband and I just started using the "Sleep Lady" book a few days ago with our 9.5 month old baby boy. Are there fellow moms out there who have tried it too? I would love to hear success stories or challenges you had with it. It would greatly encourage us. The last 2 days have been VERY excrutiating.
God Bless,
S.
I'm so happy to report that my son now sleeps for 11+ hours uninterrupted. He goes down at 7:30pm and doesn't wake until 6:30 or 7:30am. We used both Kim West's "Good Night, Sleep Tight" book and Marc Weisbluth's "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" book. I can't believe the change in my son. He is so much happier, curious, less anxious and a joy to be around. I wish we would have done this sooner. Oh-and he's teething too! But, the sleep habits he now has have helped him fall quickly back to sleep when he awakens (less than 2 min. of fussing!). All this from a boy who woke every 2 hours for 3 months straight!
I have not gone by that book, but if the last few days have been "VERY excrutiating" I wouldn't support it. What are her qualifications? Why do so many people insist that babies should sleep just like us? There are so many other ways to go about it, I hope you research them.
Are you doing cry it out? Recent studies have shown that it can cause psychological problems later in life. I will try to find the link for you.
You can help your baby sleep through the night without cry it out. Check out the No-Cry Sleep Solution. Within 30 days, your baby will be sleeping through the night, with no crying!
Hi,
I hate to be another naysayer, but I agree that crying it out (or slowly increasing crying periods from a few minutes to larger periods of time) is a bad idea.
We don't do "cry it out"... we help our little one get to sleep, and then help her stay sleep as often as she needs it. She is getting better at staying asleep longer on her own, without our help. It just takes time (she's 18 months now, and we just started to see some real sleep maturity about 16 months).
The Sleep Lady Shuffle was the BEST move we ever made!! Unlike the other posters, we were ALL for ANYTHING that would work to get our son to sleep. After 10.5 months of very little sleep...we were at our wits end. We tried every method under the sun and nothing worked but this. I've encountered MANY other people that used this method as well and have nothing but great things to say about it. It took a good week and a half for us. It's stressful at first...but keep the big picture, end result in mind. This method felt much better to us than the straight CIO method. It's much gentler. Keep a journal while you're going along...it will be a lot of fun to read a couple months later!! Our son is now 18 months old (we did the SLS at about 10.5 months)...he's a great sleeper! We didn't want to have to rock and soothe him to sleep every night, and wind up using us as a crutch to get to sleep...and we didn't want to get in the habit of him sleeping with us. We were able to successfully help him learn to get to sleep on his own, without feeling totally abandoned. Give it a shot...stay consistent...that is absolutely KEY! Patience helps too! You can do it! It worked for us!
K.
I have 2 yr. old twins and a 6 yr. old and her techniques helped out alot! I didn't do everything by the book but did follow her guidelines in most areas. The book does not give you a cookie cutter approach. It has various chapters based on age group as well as training the co-sleeper & multiples. The key to the method is CONSISTENCY. If you start off using her methods then give up after a couple of nights (ie, put your child into bed with you), you are undoing everything your child has learned those first nights.
Kim West's (The Sleep Lady) approach is "A gentle approach to helping your child get to sleep". Right on her homepage it says, "West has developed an alternative, effective approach to helping children learn to put themselves to sleep without letting them 'cry it out' – an option that is not comfortable for many parents." So for those who are criticizing this woman before even knowing out what her method is all about, read on. Her website is www.thesleeplady.com and the library carries her book. That's how I found out about her & I've recommended her book to many new moms.
S. M - check out the message board link on her site. I'm sure you will find useful advice there. The first while will be tough as your child is used to a certain nighttime routine and will take him a little while to get used to the change. It's good you are starting now because it will become more difficult as he gets older. Give us an update! You may have to add your own little twist but stick to your guns and things will get better!
What's the author's name?
Not all kids will allow you to "train" them.
I just want to give you encouragement. I have two children 4 and almost 2. My younger daughter who is now 21 months didn't sleep well, or really at all, until she was 14 months old. I tried EVERYTHING and remember those days of excrutiating feelings and frustrations. My reason for responding is to tell you that no matter what you do, even if you just hold your child ALL night, eventually, at some point, he will sleep and well. I find that once they are able to run and burn energy and eat ALL foods until they are stuffed, they sleep like champions and you will be so much happier and more content. Hang in there, he will sleep, on his own, he mught just need to get out of the baby stage first. Just do what you can to get through the night right now, and the day!
God Bless YOU!!
K.
