I'm not really sure how many other moms (or dads!) read my blog. And maybe it will be sort of depressing if no one is reading, but I have a question.
What are your thoughts on "sleep training"? Jay and I have not tried any sort of sleep training method as of yet. We noticed that sleep has improved both with time and with the introduction of regular naps in the day. But that is it. Our best nights will start with an initial 5-5.5 hour stretch of sleep from Joaquin (which usually begins about 2 hours before we go to sleep) followed by 2.5 stretches until about 7 am. This is not a regular occurrence but it does happen every once in a while.
Meanwhile, I have heard stories of babies sleeping through the night or only waking once in the night at Joaquin's age. And it makes me wonder if those parents are just lucky or if they have done something to help their baby sleep.
I have heard of the Babywise/Ferber methods and feel uncomfortable with them. But I'm open to hear what people say who have tried these or other methods.
So, please share your experiences and opinions!
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With our first I was very against sleep training, thought I would never do it, etc etc. Then I had a baby that demanded lots and lots of bouncing to get her to sleep for every nap and at bedtime. I gave in and did sleep training at 4 months. It was the best decision for us and has, in my opinion, created a great sleeper as a baby and now a toddler. Yes, she did cry, but the crying lasted 3 days. And then we were done and she could put herself to sleep and stay asleep.
ReplyDeleteI have a 2 month old now and will probably sleep train her as well in a few months, although she is not nearly as difficult of a baby. I do not want to have a toddler who still needs to be rocked to sleep...
i understand why moms do it
ReplyDeletebut i cant stand to hear my son cry at all
its not for me..the way i feel
is of course they will fall asleep crying anyone would get tired of screaming for
someone who isnt coming ..
since babies have no concept of time
20 min seems like an eternity and if you
dont show up they feel abandonedb ut
do what you feel is right.
but like i said that is just how i feel
sleep training is not for me.
This is only *my* opinion on my child: I don't think it's right for us. Babies are not mini adults and I don't expect my child to sleep as such. I don't really understand the nuances of sleep training b/c I'm not interested in it. So I can really give an opinion on the tactics.
ReplyDeleteI'm just following my child's natural sleep-wake pattern. Do I get a full night's sleep? No, but it has gotten better and when I embraced the attitude of 'he'll sleep when he wants' I've been so much less stressed. We go to bed at 9 (Well he's out by 8) and wake one or two times a night and are up by 7. I feel well rested so I'm in no hurry to change anything.
I feel like we are just lucky. A started STTN at about 7 weeks. A few things we started doing that I noticed helped is regular naps and dream feeding. Once we started laying her down for naps when we noticed her cues and not waiting until she was fussy. Also making sure she goes to sleep (for naps and bed) on a full stomach. If she falls asleep within an hour of eating she sleeps longer.
ReplyDeleteI agree with SSM that sleep training is not for us so when we go through patches of wakefulness we just ride it out and usually she just needs to figure out her own adjustment.
For example a couple of weeks ago she decided that she was going to go to bed an hour earlier -- with no warning. So we adjusted our routine and after a few rough nights figuring it out it works now.
Here is our routine:
6:30pm - feeding
7pm - bath
7:30pm - bed
10:30pm - dream feed
11pm - down for the night
2am - wake for paci and we move her into our bed
7am - wakeup
Thanks ladies! I tend to agree with the general sentiments above and am not going to try any training using the CIO method. Maybe I will reevaulate if sleep is still bad when I go back to work in the beginning of April...
ReplyDelete