QUESTION:
Has anyone read the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth?
If you have read it, just wondering what your thoughs are on this book.

• ANSWER:
  The best book on sleep. I think 90% of his stuff is right on the money.

QUESTION:
Has anyone read Healthy Habits, Happy Child? Did it work for you?
I recently purchased and read Dr. Marc Weissbluth's book on a recommendation from a friend who swears by this book! I read the whole book in a matter of hours and wanted to know if anyone else has read this book and sleep training worked for them!

I do agree that an infant my daughter's age (10 weeks) shouldn't be kept awake for more than 2 hours and that their naps should be at least 45min-1 hour long BUT
he mentions "crying it out" and i'm not sure about this just because i've heard mixed opinions about letting your child "cry it out". Before purchasing the book i read some reviews and it seems as if his method worked for tons of people and their kids are sleeping at least 10 hours straight a night!

anyone have any opinions on the book?

• ANSWER:
  If they are crying for more than 5-10 minutes most likely they are not going to calm down on their own anytime soon. I did this with my son and when he wouldn't stop crying I would go over to his bassinet and rub his tummy in a little circle, but not pick him up and that usually did the trick. He is 3 years-old now and sleeps pretty good most of the time.

QUESTION:
trouble putting 5 month old down for naps ....?
Hi -- I am just recently having trouble putting my 5 month old baby down for naps -- he used to go down very easily when tired during the day, but recently every time I place him in his crib he wakes up, even though he is tired, and then cries .... I am currently reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth, but I am looking for any additional advice / help / etc .... If I put him in his swing he will fall asleep, but that is habit I don't really won't to start .... Thank you in advance!

• ANSWER:

QUESTION:
Question for moms who use the CIO method?
I had tried both the "no cry" and "maybe cry" methods and nothing seems to work. My 5.5 month old just refuses to fall asleep by herself even though she's been rubbing her eyes and face 2 hours ago, she would just cry and cry until I go pick her up. I bought this book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr Marc Weissbluth, and decided to try to let her learn another way to fall asleep.

So first nap in the morning, 1.5 hr, no problem.

Second nap happens around 1pm. Let's say second nap should take about 1.5 hr as well (so until 2:30pm). What if she cries from 1pm to 2pm and finally falls asleep. Should I wake her up at 2:30? So just 1/2 hr and then tomorrow try again at 1pm and hope she cries less?

What time should the third nap start at and how long? Her bedtime is around 7pm.
I appreciate all your input but my question is for the mothers who use CIO method. If you don't, please don't reply. Every child is different and like I said I had already tried the "no cry" method but it's not working. So you can keep your rules to your own child. Thank you.
She doesn't like to be swaddled or rocked to sleep. When she's tired and cranky and needs to go sleep, she doesn't like to be cuddled. That's why I said every child is different and you can't use the exact same way to teach everyone.
Also, I had checked with her ped about the sleeping problem and he did suggest me to leave her alone for no more than an hour and soon she will learn to fall asleep by herself. Her ped was recommended by my ob and he also works at the sick kids hospital so I'm sure he knows what he's talking about.

• ANSWER:
  I used to rock and cuddle my son to sleep every time until he was around 4.5 months... one day he just started fighting me. After an hour of trying to comfort him, I put him down and he fell asleep by himself. Since that night, he just preferred to fall asleep now and any attempt at rocking and cuddling just frustrated him.

  He then he went through a phase of not falling asleep alone OR with cuddles at around 6-7 months, even though he was obviously tired. I noticed he always fell asleep in the pushchair and so just started putting him in his pushchair for naps. Our yard has a 7 foot fence and padlocked gate so no one can get to him, plus I'm always in the kitchen with the backdoor open (he's right there) or in the next room near the window so I can see him. He slept great out there... no idea how or why, but it worked. Then from around 10 months, he suddenly napped fine in his cot!

  I'm telling you this because I have experience with a baby who doesn't like cuddles! And because I believe there is always a way without resorting to ignoring your baby. Can't you take her for a walk in her pram? Or a drive? Just for a week or so to create a routine?

  It's up to you who you trust when it comes to your child, but you can never be too careful. Qualifications/experience don't always mean they know what's best... I've learned that the hard way several times since my son was born.

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book by Weissbluth?
Has anyone used this book to sleep train your child? Of so, how old was he/she? What technique did you use? Did it work? If it did, how long did it take? I recently bought the book and wondering about its success in other households. Thank you.

• ANSWER:
  This was the best baby gift we were given!!!!

  We started using this technique when our baby was maybe 3 or so weeks old. He took to it right away, and at that point he was more or less sleeping through the night, with maybe one brief wake up a night for a bottle. Then he would go right back to sleep. By about 7-8 weeks, he stopped needing the middle of the night feeding all together.

  The best part of all of it is that Robbie is 11 months old now, and he is absolutely a joy when it comes to his sleep habits. He takes a short nap in the morning , a long one in the afternoon, and is in bed by 6:30 pm. This is hard for us because my husband and I both work full time and don't get as much time with him as we would like. BUT it is completely worth it.

  He falls asleep on his own (no rocking, etc. required!) and stays asleep for 12-14 hours EVERY NIGHT. And he is a happy, cheerful little guy all day long. I love it. Plus, Mommy and Daddy get their evenings to themselves to rest!

  The one hard part is that any disruption to the schedule is really hard. That means we really HAVE to be home and ready for the evening routine on time every night, no exceptions. And we can ABSOLUTELY NEVER skip naps. But I think it's completely worth it because he is so happy and we are, too!

QUESTION:
Which book is better: Happiest Baby on the Block or Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child?
I'm looking to learn how to get my 2 month old to sleep through the night so that I can have some sort of routine/schedule in place before I go back to work in 3 weeks!

• ANSWER:
  unfortunately, babies sleep through the night when they're good and ready. I've heard good things about happiest baby on the block but from what I gather it's just about creating a routine for your baby so that they know when bedtime is. 2 month olds do not, nor should they, sleep through the night. they're still growing and needing nutrition throughout the night because their bellies are so small.

QUESTION:
Healthy sleep habits, happy child book?
Did this work for you?

• ANSWER:
  I would just get tapped on the back very lightly and i fell asleep.

QUESTION:
Has anyone read the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth?
If you have read it, just wondering what your thoughs are on this book.

• ANSWER:
  The best book on sleep. I think 90% of his stuff is right on the money.

QUESTION:
What do you think of the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby?
I have heard good things from a few different friends. If you read this book did you feel that it was a helpful guide to teaching sleep habits for you and your child?
Thank you!

• ANSWER:
  Great book, it was really useful for our family!

QUESTION:
Did anyone use Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child/Extinction Method/Cry it out for a second child?
I read the book, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, for my first son (now 20 months). When he was about 9 months old, he was waking up about every 1-2 hours during the night so we tried the extinction method. He cried for 1 hr 15 min the first night, 45 minutes the second night and ZERO minutes from then on. He has slept extremely well at night since then. He goes to bed without a fuss and wakes up very happy. His naps even became longer and more consistent after implementing the book's strategies.

Anyway, my 2nd son is now 4 months old and seems to be following the same early sleep patterns as my 1st son: naps are only 30 min long and sleeps for only 1-2 hours at a time during the night. I can handle this for a little while, but I am returning to work in 2 months and I would really like to try to get him on a consistent nap schedule during the day and sleeping longer intervals at night.

SO, finally my question is - any suggestions on how to sleep train my 2nd child without disturbing the 1st child? Do I just sacrifice my older son's good sleeping for a few nights (and daytime naps) in order to let my younger son cry? I would really rather not do this ... so if there is any way around this, I would love to hear it.

Side note: I'm not looking for opinions about the 'cry it out' method. I'm looking for people who have used this method on more than one child. Thank you!

• ANSWER:
  I've used this method and it worked, it didn't even bother my older daughter she slept right through it. As long as your baby isn't waking up hungry then start trying this method. If he still needs to eat in the middle of the night then put it off for a few more months.

QUESTION:
healthy sleep habits happy child nap/bedtime/feeding schedule?
hi all .those who are following the suggestions from the book "healthy sleep habits happy child " for a routineed bedtime and nap schedule and also feeding schedule,can you please share the timeframe or ideal schedule for 1 4 month old .my baby goes to bed around 10.45 pm/11.00 pm and wakes up at 9.00 am .then breakfast, playtime till 11.00 am, then a nap till 1.00 pm, wakes up and eats at 2.00 pm, plays and takes a nap from 3.30 pm to 5.00 ish.then wakes up, eats arounf 6.00 /6.30 pm depending on how long she is sleeping,then plays with us, errands, a 15 mins cat nap at 9.00 pm, wakes up screming and crying, (generally she is in bad mood that time and seems tired I guess), bath, lotion,bottle , then bed at 10.45 pm.her doc is insisting to change the bedtime to 7.30pm.otherwise it will be difficult later on. my questions are 1) now she doesn't wake up at night, if she goes to bed at 7.30 should I feed her at 10.00 pm or the entire cycle will change from 9 am-11 pm to 6.00 am- 7.30 pm. I am not a morning person and I go through a real hectic schedule every day. That's why I am asking this question 2) if babies go to bed that late (11.00 pm), what problems are anticipated later on as faras their sleep routine is concerned. 3) I really have no time to go through the book "healthy sleep habits happy child nap schedule " as recommended by her doc, but i wanna implement the routine asap.please share with me the napschwedules and bedtime and feeding schedule given in the books.thanks in advance

her growtyh and development is perfectly fine, she is a happy baby otherwise.But I feel embarrassed when everytime her doc asks me if I have tried imlementing that schedule referred in the book.
sorry my baby is 4 months old, not 14.

• ANSWER:
  That is a very good book, but it is a hard read.

  Dr. Weisbluth insists in his book that if you put a baby to bed earlier they will sleep longer. It may seem counterintuitive, but sleep begets better sleep. That's why your doctor is recommending you try an earlier bedtime. Dr. Weisbluth suggests that bedtimes between 6 and 7:30PM are more appropriate for babies who need to sleep 10 to 12 hours at night.

  An overtired baby can be very cranky and difficult to manage. This is why he also recommends not allowing a baby to stay awake longer than 2 hours at a time and to watch for their "sleepy" cues (glossy eyes, sudden decrease in interest or activity, etc.). When you put a baby to bed (or nap) when they are "sleepy" instead of overtired, they will have an easier time falling asleep. So the 7:30PM bedtime is a suggestion, but if you notice your baby having "sleepy" signs at 7PM, that might be the better time to put them to bed.

  When you put your baby down in the evening at their "sleepy" cue, do not wake them up. A baby between 4 months and 9 months may need to be fed 2 times at night when breast fed, but they may just sleep through the whole night.

  Your schedule will turn into something like this...

  7:00 PM - Notice sleepy signs, start getting baby ready for bed with consistent bedtime routine. Last bottle
  7:30 PM - Put baby to sleep.

  If baby wakes during the night, give the baby a chance to self-soothe back to sleep before tending to her. If you must, treat night time wakings in a boring fashion if you need to wake up to feed your baby. Keep things dark and quiet with minimal talking, etc.

  7:30 AM - Wake up baby, feed, play time.
  9:30 AM - Nap (1 - 2 hours)

  11:00 AM - Feed, play time.
  1:00 PM - Nap 2 (1 - 2 hours)

  3:00 PM - Feed, play time.

  5:30 PM - Short nap (30 minutes)

  6:00 PM - Feed.

  7:00 PM - Get ready for bed. Last bottle.
  7:30 PM - bed time

  Obviously, you'll see what kind of new nap schedule she'll adopt, but you will still want to aim for a morning nap, an early afternoon nap, and a short evening nap before bedtime.

  That last short feed at the 7PM time is called a cluster feed. It's when you feed sooner than usual to get in an extra feeding to help the baby sleep longer afterwards.

  I hope this is what your were looking for. I had a friend just a couple of weeks ago who moved the baby's bedtime earlier by one hour and it made a world of difference along with using a velcro swaddle. That baby went from waking up every 2 hours at night to sleeping 9 hours straight, which was an amazing achievement for them. That baby was only 3 months old.

QUESTION:
If you did Graduate Extinction (Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child), I have Questions for you?
I'm reading Dr. Marc Weissbluth's book, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and I am going to implement the Graduated Extinction method today. The book stays avg. people saw results after 4-9 nights.

My child is just over 3m and she is a horrible napper. I'm wonder if I can use the Graduated Extinction on naps too.
The GE method is not a fully-bore cry it out, but a soothe to a sleepy state, let them be for 5 minutes. If they cry soothe again and if they cry either stick with the 5 minutes for a day or two or gradually extend the time they are left by 5 minutes.

Per the book, it can be started in the 3-4th month. I'd do anything to get her to sleep for longer than 20 minute increments during naps or for the first hour I put her to sleep each night. And yes we have a nighttime/nap time routine.

• ANSWER:
  I'm not quite sure what graduated extension is, but I believe 3 months is too young for any kind of sleep training. I know with Ferber there are strict guidelines, including the appropriate age of the baby. Does the book your reading make any mention for what age you can begin using the method? I definitely wouldn't start any younger than 6 months, but that's just me.

QUESTION:
Have you read "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child"?
I haven't, to be honest, and have a very happy child.
I'm just asking b/c I saw a question on another forum about nursing to sleep and someone just said to read that book, but not why or the gist of that author's view on the subject. Can anyone fill me in?

• ANSWER:
  I've read bits of it.
  Like most books of it's type, it has some logical, valid advice. But that is buried in a lot of ridiculous stuff, about how babies *must* sleep in a certain pattern (go to bed at the time that Weisbluth thinks is right for them, not what works for your baby and your family).

  I don't recall exactly what he said about nursing to sleep, but I'd bet that he says "Dont' do it." Babies must learn to 'self soothe' at an early age ....

  And the bit where he says that you should leave a baby to scream himself to sleep -- if he vomits you leave him to lie in it until he passes out, at which point you can go in and clean him up ... any author who recommends THAT is beyond the pale.

QUESTION:
Have you read "Healthy sleep habits happy child"?
My son is 9 weeks old. I'd like to read this book but it is so long!!! I've started to read it, and plan to finish it, but would love to get some new practices in place ASAP. I really wish I read it before he was born since now I barely have any reading time!

So the question is, what are the main ideas/principals in the book? What are your suggestions for getting a child into healthy sleep patterns? I'd love to hear from experienced parents.
first 2 answers are so not what I expected.......but hey, if the pattern of answers continues like this, this is one less long boring book for me to read!
I didn't even know that "crying it out" was the basis for this book. No way, not for me.

• ANSWER:
  Yes, I've read it. That book is nonsense. He makes ludicrous claims -- breastfeeding isn't protective against SIDS (it is, a lot, according to actual research), outright lies about his detractors, and...oh, throw it out the window, please. The worst part are all the little anecdotes that try to manipulate mothers into going against their instincts.

  Please, do some reading about the lack of research behind books like that: http://talaris.org/pdf/research/CIOPoster.pdf

  Also see http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/04.09/ChildrenNeedTou.html
  http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/handout2.asp

  I would suggest, after throwing it out the window, "Nighttime Parenting" (Sears) or "The No-Cry Sleep Solution" (Pantley) if you are really worried about dealing with baby sleep problems, but baby is only 9 weeks old...what's the worry or rush? I mean, do you expect sleep problems?

  Good sleep advice: http://kellymom.com/parenting/sleep/index.html

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child?
In this book, does Weissbluth mean that when an infant under 4 months cries, no matter what, you have to soothe the child back to sleep? Or is it OK to sometimes let a young baby (say 5-6 weeks old) cry for a little while?
Umm....if you haven't actually READ this book, please don't comment. I've noticed a lot of people tend to have a lot of opinions about things like day care and crying and breast feeding... NONE OF WHICH do they know anything about. So keep your uninformed opinions to yourself, thanks!
Seriously, all you people who think you know so much about sleep habits yet don't like this book: you're ignorant. You know who told me to read this book? My pediatrician! You people are freaks.

• ANSWER:
  Ok, so why ask this question in a PUBLIC forum to ALL USERS, and then say only ppl who have read the book should answer.....Well, i think you should let a baby cry for a little while- its good for the lungs and good exercise, but only for 2 mins or so and definitely not at night time - only during the day...i dont let my baby cry at night, as soon as i hear her stirring i pop my breast in her mouth and she drinks up whilst asleep.

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child hasn't worked for us.?
Our 16 week old was exhausted after waking every hour to nurse. I ws so the mom that believed in attached parenting. I tried swaddling, co-sleeping, putting the bassinet next to the bed and nursing on demand but NOTHING worked. She is one of those post-colic babies the book talks about. On second thought I think she still has colic

Anyway, all in the family were dying of exhaustion so we implemented the extinction method after trying absolutely everything else (and she was crying anyway). We're on day 6 with no success. The first night she cried for 40 minutes and then slept almost the whole night but it was a fluke because she's still crying for long periods of time and now screams when we put her in her crib. I think she's started associating the crib with crying.

I want to call up Dr. Weissbluth and tell him it hasn't worked. There a lot of inconsistencies in the book especially with feeding. He says it's ok to feed every 4-6 hours but how are they to understand why you come in certain times and not other in response to their crying? And then in the same chapter he goes on to relate an experience with a post-colic baby whom he told the parents of to not go to her all night long even to feed. In fact mom should stay the night at a friends that night! HUH?

Anyway, just wondering if there's any other moms out there with similar experiences. As for us, I guess baby and I will just have to go without sleep and I'll do the best I can to figure out a way to cope because I can't bear to hear her cries anymore
Thanks so much everyone for the input. I always think these doctors know what they're talking about. He said 16 weeks is the time they start to develop adult sleeping patterns so to start them then. I realize now he's an idiot and I've been too for following it. He talked about how important consistency and a well rested baby was and so I thought I was doing what would be best for her in the long run but I was wrong. I never would wake her for feedings but always fed on demand. I love "wearing" her. I have a permanent indentation on my shoulder from having her in the peanut shell for hours on end. I'm tossing the book!!

• ANSWER:
  "I ws so the mom that believed in attached parenting"

  Oh, bullsh!t. Any sensitive mother would've instantly dismissed Weissbluth's book.

  What do you mean, "nothing worked"? You have a sixteen-week-old; you're supposed to be tired.

  "whom he told the parents of to not go to her all night long even to feed. In fact mom should stay the night at a friends that night! HUH?"

  Yeah, well, he's an asshole. The number of mom-manipulating nasty anecdotes in the book should've tipped you off.

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits...Happy Child???
Just curious..what do you moms think of this book? I just picked it up yesterday and was skimming through it...looks like it has some good advice!
Anyone read it...did it work for you??

My daughter is almost 4mths old ( 2mths corr. ) and want to start her on the right path!!

• ANSWER:
  don't know about that particular book we all need sleep though ...I'd be wary if it implies ''sleep training or cry it out''

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child BEDTIME question
In his book it says that your baby will start to want to go to bed earlier. How can I tell if he wants to go to bed earlier or is just ready for another nap?

Also, if I'm going to try out a super early bedtime for a few days, how do I do that in combination with his last nap since he is only up for 2 hours before going to bed anyway and a super early bedtime would mean going to bed right after his last nap (which he probably wouldn't be tired enough to do at this time)?

7 months old

• ANSWER:
  Don't know what age your little one is but you could try and miss out the afternoon nap altogether. baby might be grouchy until he gets used to it but will sure be sleepy at bed-time

QUESTION:
My 8 month old will not sleep through the night. What can I do to help him?
I don't have the money to buy the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Children book and I dont know what to do. He takes about 3 naps a day and eats about 3 times a day. He goes to bed about 8pm to 10pm. I don't know what to do can someone please help me?

• ANSWER:
  Im not saying your this way but some people keep the house completely quiet while the baby sleeps and this can cause a baby to awake every time theres any noise i recommend while he sleeps play very low soft music it will give him the feeling of someone there sort of like comfort

QUESTION:
Why isn't sleep training working?
I've been sleep training my six month old with the cry it out method for two weeks. She'll be okay for two nights, and then scream for twenty minutes the third night. I don't want to give up and make all of her crying and my agony for nothing, but isn't this supposed to be working by now? I don't expect her to be happy to go to bed, but she loses her mind some nights. I'm using the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book as a guideline and I had no idea it would take so long.

• ANSWER:
  Well, two weeks a little soon to see real results from sleep training. Imagine you've been rocked to sleep every night for six months, and then suddenly you have to learn to fall asleep on your own. After only fourteen nights, it's not unusual for you to still be upset that the person who used to rock you to sleep is still making you sleep on your own. To you, you're helping her learn to sleep on her own so she can develop a good sleep schedule. To her, you're the meanest and silliest Mommy in the whole world, and she's probably still upset that you're on this kick of making her sleep on her own.

  Her reaction might also be tempered by what happened during the day. If she's had an active day, she might be tired enough to sleep without complaint. If it's been rainy, lazy day, she doesn't want to go to bed. Or it might have been an active day and she skipped her nap, so she's overtired. In any case, just keep with it. Wind down with a good routine every night, and make sure she gets her naps in during the day to stave off an overtired, overstimulated child. Also make sure she goes to bed at the same time every night. If you put her to bed at 7, but she doesn't get sleepy until 8, obviously you're going to meet some resistance. Then the next night, if you put her down at 8, her schedule is thrown off.

  And be aware that the cry it out method doesn't work for every child. My brother (almost 4) took to it like a duck to water. He didn't like it, but after realizing that I would come pick him up after he took his nap or in the morning, he didn't mind it so much. My sister (20 months), however, would cry herself into hysterics and become terrified. Instead, I rock her for awhile, and then put her down while she's sleepy but not asleep. It all depends on your child.

QUESTION:
Has anyone read Healthy Habits, Happy Child? Did it work for you?
I recently purchased and read Dr. Marc Weissbluth's book on a recommendation from a friend who swears by this book! I read the whole book in a matter of hours and wanted to know if anyone else has read this book and sleep training worked for them!

I do agree that an infant my daughter's age (10 weeks) shouldn't be kept awake for more than 2 hours and that their naps should be at least 45min-1 hour long BUT
he mentions "crying it out" and i'm not sure about this just because i've heard mixed opinions about letting your child "cry it out". Before purchasing the book i read some reviews and it seems as if his method worked for tons of people and their kids are sleeping at least 10 hours straight a night!

anyone have any opinions on the book?

• ANSWER:
  If they are crying for more than 5-10 minutes most likely they are not going to calm down on their own anytime soon. I did this with my son and when he wouldn't stop crying I would go over to his bassinet and rub his tummy in a little circle, but not pick him up and that usually did the trick. He is 3 years-old now and sleeps pretty good most of the time.

QUESTION:
9 month old still does not sleep through the night, has anyone tried this method?
Background: My baby is 9 months old and is a SUPER happy baby. She is in the 95th percentile for both height and weight, weighing 22.2 lbs. She is a good eater. So there is no problem there and already has 8 teeth, and teeth have never bothered her at all.
Problem: She is still waking 1 times, occasionally 2 to have a bottle and will not go back to sleep without one. We have tried numerous methods to try to get her out of this habit, Ferber method, Sears method, Healthy Sleep Habit, Happy Child book, sound machines, etc. Nothing seems to work. I just recently read that this other method has worked for people and just want to know of people who have tried this, what was your experience
Method: Gradually watering down my babies bottle at night so eventually it is only water they are waking up for. The thought is that if it is just water they are waking up for they won't bother to wake up.
Has anyone tried this?

• ANSWER:
  if you are going to get up to give your baby water ..you might as well get up to give her what she needs..

QUESTION:
Have you used any "sleep solution" books, and have they worked?
My son is 13 weeks old right now and is sleeping 4 hours max at a time. His norm is actually about 2 hours and then he wakes up to eat/play. It's not so bad considering he used to only sleep for 1-1.5 hours, but the problem we're having is keeping him asleep for a longer period of time. I read on this board all the time about some miracle babies who sleep the whole night and I was wondering if the parents used a book or not or if they were just blessed with a good sleeper?

I've been researching, and have heard about this "No cry sleep solution" book, and "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" book, and of course the ever so infamous ferberizing book "Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems". I was just wondering if anybody actually bought, read and used methods from a sleep book, and if it worked or if it's worth the money/time to read it.

I'm not so comfortable with the whole CIO method, but I'm interested in hearing if it works or not.

• ANSWER:
  My sister recommended "Secrets of the Baby Whisperer" by Tracy Hogg. It had a bunch of good insights, and not just about sleep. We used it, and while I won't say that my daughter slept through the night right away, she was sleeping a good 7 hours by the time she was 5 months or so (until she started teething, anyway). She's never been a great sleeper - she needs a good half hour to hour to wind down, but with that book we were able to help teach her how to get herself to sleep instead of us putting her to sleep. Posting this has just reminded me... I need to get that book out and start up again with my son. He's already 6 months, and we're at our wits end on sleep issues. DUH.

  Editing to add... This method isn't CIO per se. You go in and pat them on the back if they're crying, and work your way out with longer and longer breaks. There was a point with my daughter where we realized that we were making things worse going back in, so we did let her cry a bit, but there's a huge difference between fussing and/or fake crying and a truly upset kiddo. We had to walk that line a number of times, especially as she got older and realized crying = mommy comes back. But you're nowhere near that point yet.

QUESTION:
How can I get my 7 month old to sleep better at night?
And to nap better during the day for that matter? She only naps for 30 minute chunks and I swear she wakes up every hour at night...from about 9 pm- 6 am. She's not hungry. She's typically not wet. Her room is a comfortable 70 degrees. It is dark. It is quiet. She just won't stay asleep. I have the "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" book but I'm too tired to read it. I read the "Baby Whisperer's" advice about "Pick Up/Put Down" method and I just don't have the stamina for that either (60 times a night? Are you KIDDING me???) And I'm trying to avoid the Ferber Method by letting her cry it out too long (she shares a room with my two-year-old) so I usually cave after 4 or 5 minutes.

So what can I do? I need to sleep before I lose it. Please help with any advice that has worked for you!!!

• ANSWER:

QUESTION:
How many naps should my 5 month old take during the day.?
I have been reading a book that says a child at this age should have 3 naps. 1 in the morning, 1 in the afternoon and one in the evening. When i don't give my child the morning nap she seems to sleep longer during her afternoon nap, like a good 2 hours. Other wise she sleeps only 45 min when i give her the morning nap. Any thoughts on this. The book i have have been reading is healthy sleep habits happy baby. Her cousing who is the same age as her sleeps 4 times a day and stays asleep for at least 2.5 hours for each nap! My goal is to eventually get my child to sleep thru the night only waking up once. Right now she wakes up 2 times.

• ANSWER:
  My son is 5 months and he usually takes a 2-3 hour nap about 2 hours after he wakes up in the morning. And he then takes another 2-3 hour nap around 2 o'clock in the afternoon. He is in bed by 8 PM and sleeps til 6 AM. Every child is different though, and it would really depend on how much sleep she gets through the night. Every book that I have read though said that at this age they should be taking 2, 2 hour naps a day. The best suggestion I have to get your daughter to sleep through the night is to put her on a schedule. Every night at 7 I give my son a bath, put him in his PJ's, and give him a bottle. It took a little while for him to get it, he cried for a couple hours the first 3 nights, I would go in every 5 minutes to reassure him, and tell him that he was okay, so he never felt abandoned, but I never picked him up (it is pretty hard, but you gotta be strong). He started waking up less and less during the night, I started doing this when he was 6 weeks old, and he has been sleeping through the night no problem since he was 3 months old. It's tough, but I swear by it, and it is so worth it in the end. Hope this helps, and good luck!

QUESTION:
How long did it take for your child to learn the Ferber method?
I've been following the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" for the past few weeks (2 1/2).
Sometimes, my son does beautifully. Sometimes he barely cries at all, sometimes not at all.
Other times, he completely freaks out. He cries and screams and it goes on and on for a long time, sometimes over an hour. His naps are so inconsistent. He's at a time where one nap is not enough, but two is pretty much impossible.
Before anyone jumps down my throat, we've tried several different sleep methods and nothing has worked. This method has been the most successful. Since starting this method he's only woken up twice during the night. He'll sleep for around 12 hours every single night. The big thing for me is that it takes him forever to fall asleep, and his naps vary so much.
We put him in his bed after bath, milk and storytime. We rock with him for a minute and give him cuddles and love on him. We tell him how much we love him. We say things like, "It's time to go to sleep, honey. You need your rest and so do mommy and daddy." We always give him plenty of loving on before we leave the room. After 15 minutes to 30 minutes of crying (depending on if it's freaking out crying or forced crying), we go in there and comfort him. We never pick him up, we just hug him and reinforce that it's bed time and he needs to lay down.
It just seems so inconsistent each day. Why is it taking so long? I realize that training your child to sleep isn't easy, but after we've been doing this for this long, shouldn't he just realize it's bedtime yet? Any suggestions or stories?
My son just turned 17 months old.
Up until about a month ago, we rocked him to sleep. It got to the point where we were rocking him for over an hour sometimes. That was when we decided to try this book's version. Controlled crying with lots of love. If it's going to take us an hour to rock him, we figure we might as well teach him to sleep on his own.
If you're going to leave a negative comment, don't bother. I'm not asking for rude answers or comments. I'm asking for positive input.
Thanks!
Nanook: Did you really leave a negative comment after I asked people to please not?
New Moma!: Thanks for the info about your sister in law. I plan on continuing to try this method, I was just curious what other people have gone through.
Mom to 3 under 8: Yes, I believe letting him cry for an hour is better than rocking him for an hour. It doesn't necessarily sound great when I say it out loud, but the rocking him for an hour was frustrating me and my husband, and it wasn't doing our son any good. After being rocked for an hour, he would most likely wake up after a couple hours of sleep. This method IS working. It's just working slowly. Like I said, he's been sleeping great. Also, I said that we have bathtime, story time and milk every single night. It's been that way his whole life. We've also always had a white noise generator on in the background, along with a fan. He needs those to stay asleep because we live near a highway and loud noises startle him in the middle of the night.

• ANSWER:
  Nannook: Way to go on not giving negative comments.

  Yeah at 17 months, it was about time to stop the rocking.
  I did it with my son as well. By 10 months, I was rocking him up to 30mins for each nap, at night and when we woke at night. It was getting a little ridiculous.
  I did the "cry it out" thing. At this age, they are fully aware that you are still around even if they can't see you. They are not stupid.

  I was lucky and my son cried only for 1 night. He cried to 2-1/2 hours, but he slept though every night since then. (He is now 17 months.)

  But my sister in law did it with my nephew and it took a few weeks. So be patient! Just keep it up, and don't revert back to picking him up or rocking him AT ALL. Otherwise you'll have to start the process all over again. You have to stay consistent. Just let him cry and go in every 20mins to tuck him back in. It's alot of work, but it will be worth it in the end. Like I said, it took my sister in law a good 3 weeks or so.

  Be patient and good luck!

QUESTION:
4 month old sleep routine?
My 4 month old boy is a great sleeper at night. He is on a 3-4 hour routine during the day. Goes to bed at 8pm/8:30pm, sleeps until 6:30am or 7am, has a feed, then he is up for play until around 9:30, goes down for a 2hr to 2.5hr nap from around 9:30 to 12pm. Has next feed at around 12:30pm, then he is up and we generally play , go out for some fresh air or read stories/puppets, he then only has a nap for around 45min to 1hr from 3pm to 4pm in the afternoon. He does not really sleep longer than this even if i leave him for 10-15minutes to see if he will resettle. He is just too wide awake. Then he has a feed at around 4:30pm, then plays until 7pm which is when the bath time routine starts (20minutes) and he gets another small bottle at 7:30pm and is generally in bed by 8pm /8:15pm. Sleeps until next morning 7pm when the routine starts all over again. My question is really that should he be having 3naps a day instead of just the 2? He does tend to get realy cranky aroun 6pm and i know he is tired. Most books recommend another late afternoon nap around 5pm, but that would mean I have put him to bed later for the night sleep. He has been on this routine for the past 2 months now, I did not force him into this as he just developed this cycle and i took my lead from him. I did start putting him down for regular naps around 2months as i was very concerned about him not getting enough sleep during the day. Now when he seems tired i pick him up and soothe him to some lullaby music for 2-3minutes, put him down awake and he goes off on his own to sleep. I am a first time mum and have been reading Baby Whisperer and Dr. Marc Weisbluths' Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and i would really recommend this book to all Mums out there. The only problem i have is that my little one seems to have very little sleep in the afternoon,i generally avoid going out during nap time as i don't want to encourage 20 minute snoozes in the car or pram so always make sure i am back by home when he is ready for the afternoon nap. Is this schedule OK for a 4month old? I don;t know, he generally has 4 bottles a day. The first 3 usually around 7 oz each and then a smaller bottle just before bedtime usually 5oz... Would like to hear from other mums out there. Am i doing this right?

Thanks
M

• ANSWER:
  His schedule sounds amazing.. you are doing a great job it sounds like... I would try putting him to bed earlier... by 630pm 700pm at the latest.. I know it sounds crazy.. but just try it.. My 6 month old triplets I nanny for go to bed at 6-30 pm and wake up between 630-700am... if we put them to bed any later they are up all night restless and up at 530 crying... so try an earlier bed time..

QUESTION:
At my wits end with a baby that won't sleep. Any suggestions?
I know that this question has been asked countless times before, but I need to ask it with my own circumstances inserted. I have a 15 week old son. He has acid reflux that is being treated. Ever since we brought him home, he has had trouble sleeping at night. It made sense in the beginning. I think that the whole time that he has been home, we have had only a couple of good nights. For the past 4 days, he has been awake from 2am until after 10am. The worst possible time for a baby to be awake. I have tried everything that I can possibly think of. I swaddle him, I don't swaddle him, I let him sleep as much as he can during the day (to prevent him being overtired), I keep him awake most of the day, I rock him, I put him in his swing, I switched him to formula (because it takes longer to digest), I let him cry for awhile, I try to soothe him when he cries. Nothing seems to work and mommy and daddy are very exhausted and can't do this anymore. We also have a four-year-old daughter that is being affected because I am just so tired during the day that I can't interact with her the way I want to. I am easily agitated and aggravated. I just need some help and this is like a last resort at this point. His pediatrician gave us the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" and left it at that. It's not really helping. I have a feeling that I'm not going to get much because I feel like I've tried everything, but I thought I would give it a shot. Thanks in advance for any suggestions that you may have.
I posted this before, but I'm not seeing it now, so just in case, I am posting it again. When I take him for a car ride, he wakes up even if I leave him in his seat. I do think that I need to work harder on a routine, so I am going to give that a stronger go. Unfortunately, when I do try to get help from the grandma that lives close by, she can only watch him for a couple of hours and that just isn't enough of a break. The rest of my family is about an hour and a half away and that's just too far to drive to get some help. Thank you all for the suggestions. I am going to work diligently on the routine and hopefully, that will help.

• ANSWER:
  I'm a stay-at-home father who has been taking care of twins without outside help (except for the wife when she gets home from work) for just under four years. 12-13 hours every day, all by myself, so I understand how frustrating babies can be at times.

  First thing you should do: Take any and all advice you've been given from other parents & doctors and chuck it out the window. Your child isn't a text book, they're a unique individual. Take it from someone dealing with twins: what works for one child doesn't always work for another.

  Without knowing all the details, I'm not sure how helpful any advice from me will be. It sounds like you've been trying too many different approaches in too short of an amount of time, not allowing your baby time to adjust to what you're hoping they'll adjust to. My suggestion is to let your baby sleep when they want to, and try to take naps when they do. Eventually, they'll adjust to your regular sleeping habits ... it took my twins only a few days when they got home to start sleeping for six hours overnight (10pm-4am). When your baby's hungry, they'll let you know!

  As for the 4 year old, if your main concern is that you're not spending enough time with them, ask them to help you out with the baby as much as possible. Don't think for a second that they can't handle it (ok, maybe don't let them change diapers, but whatever else they can handle). Kids are incredibly intelligent and more than happy to help do anything you ask them to do. My twins are generally pretty eager to help me do dishes (they don't do a great job but it's the thought that counts), clean & dust around the house, help load the washing machine and put trash where it belongs. Also, getting the 4 year old involved with your baby will help them understand what you're going through, especially if you explain the situation clearly to them.

QUESTION:
Anyone follow DR. WEISSBLUTH'S advice on sleep? I do - question about NAPS!!?
Hi There. So far I've strictly stuck to Dr. Weissbluth's Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child sleep regemine. My son was doing GREAT, sleeping for ten hours straight at only 2.5 - 3 months old. Now however, at 3.5 months of age he refuses to nap! I stay at home with him - so we are very routine about sleep. I just hate letting him "Cry it Out". I'm wondering if it's normal for a 3.5 month old not to take day time naps. Dr. W's book says at this age he should be taking three a day! Please help with any advice or personal experience. Thanks!

• ANSWER:
  Wow, that's a long time at night. congrats! We, too, look to Weissbluth for guidance. As she sleeps longer at night, though, our girl is eating more frequently during the day, ever 2.5 to 3 hours. In fact, she just woke herself up likely b/c she was hungry. She refused to nap early on, but we started getting her ready for the nap before she got overtired. Is your son hungry due to a growth spurt? She was also waking and then falling back to sleep. We wondered about growing pains.

  BTW: Where did you find the answer to the number of naps at this age? The Weissbluth book drives me NUTS trying to find answers using the index!

QUESTION:
Sleeping questions....?
I am curious as to what some opinions are. My son is now 3 1/2 weeks old. During the day, he refuses to sleep anywhere but in our arms. Even if he is completely out, if we put him in the pack n play he starts screaming within 5 minutes. The doctor (and even the "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book) say that you can't spoil a newborn by holding them too much. As you can imagine, this makes it hard to get much done. Thankfully I have my husband home with me to help out a bit as well. But there are times when I have to put him down to make dinner and he has to just scream while I am doing that. Are there any suggestions any of you have as to how to change this? I don't feel it is right to let him just cry it out at this young. If your baby was the same way, did it eventually just get better? or are there things that you did specifically to help the process? I am going back to work in 3 1/2 weeks and don't want my husband to be stuck all day.
FYI...I do everything, Feed, Change, etc. But he just wants to be held.
Sorry more details...I swaddle him, try a pacifier (he hates them), the swing works only right after he eats when he is the most groggy. I will be trying one of the bouncy vibrating chairs soon (getting from my MIL tomorrow)

• ANSWER:
  You can get one of those infant slings and "wear" him. Lots of people actually recommend keeping young infants on you constantly.
  http://wearyourbabysling.com/

  Try a motorized swing, or one of those "bouncy chairs" that vibrate. They work like a charm.

QUESTION:
14 month old falls asleep standing up & CIO - without CRYING?!?
Hi everyone - I am hoping that people here can help me out! My son is 14 months old and we recently decided it was time for him to sleep on his own in his crib. I made the transition with my daughter at 10 months with no problems, but the problem here now is that we are in a 2 bedroom house so I have been dreading the move. Well today was a long day of no naps and not wanting to go to sleep and I decided now is as good of time as any!!

So I had decided to follow a CIO method as outlined in the Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child book. Well I took him up to bed read a couple stories and nursed him and rocked him. He latched off on his own and seemed to be out cold, but when I stood up he awoke and so I soothed him by dancing with him and he went back to sleep. Then I laid him down and of course he instantly was up and crying. He stood up and started screaming and I kissed him told him I loved him and left.

Sounds like the start to a horrible evening right? Well I closed the door and he instantly stopped crying! YAY TEAM!! So my issue is we have one of those video monitors so I can see what he is up to and he is still an hour later standing up kind of bouncing in there. You can tell he is starting to fall asleep because he ends up in a squatting position and then shortly after that he must fall or something because he starts crying and then he is back to standing and bouncing and the cycle starts again. I guess I should be happy that he is not up there screaming as I was prepared for, but I guess I am not sure how to handle the issue of him falling asleep standing because that is waking him! HELP!! Advice PLEASE and THANK YOU!!!
Ok so last night went well. He went to sleep without any crying at all. He slowly went from standing to sitting to laying down. It took him an hour and twenty minutes, but it happened!! YAY!

So now I am trying to get him to take his morning nap. He came up to me and was rubbing his eyes and it has been a few hours since he woke up so I thought ok lets go up and go down for a nap. Well now he is screaming. He was starting to doze while I nursed him, but wouldn't go to sleep. The book I was looking at says give them an hour and then give up. That seems like forever and he really needs the sleep! Anyone else deal with this???

• ANSWER:
  My daughter was sorta like that - would not could not fall asleep. She would stay awake and cry herself into a gasping froth if I let her. The thing is, the longer they're awake the more overtired they get, and the harder it is for them to get good sleep in the night time. They finally end up conked out at random times when they are in the carseat or whatever, and it screws up the night sleep.

  We rocked my daughter. We just rocked her every time she woke up. Even if it meant going in there 3 times in a row. Sometimes I'd let her cry to wear herself out but not longer than about 15 minutes. I had a crib soother that played 10 min of music, and I'd time the rocking by that. I'd try to put her down after 10 minutes and she was usually asleep after that - and it was always surprising how it seemed like way longer than ten minutes! Anyways, I think she got good practice dozing off with music and no nursing, with the reliability of us coming in to soothe her, and that finally let her learn to fall asleep on her own. One day she would not really sleep well from rocking, so we put her down in frustration to cry it out -- and she fell asleep in about 10 minutes. It was like the rocking started to keep her up. She had learned to click on the music herself, too - we'd hear it go on when she woke in the night, and not a peep out of her.

  So I hate to say it but my advice is, when he IS crying, rock him. Just resign yourself to it and rock him - it isn't as much of your time as it seems, and it likely won't go on for more than a couple months at the outside. If he isn't crying I suggest just going in there to quickly and quietly lay him down again every time he stands up, without any other stimulation - just because if he's standing up he probably won't get to sleep. Good luck!! And I recommend those musical crib soothers if you don't have one.

QUESTION:
my 9 month old daughter is taking 1 hour to fall asleep in her crib.?
I have been using the book "Healthy Sleep habits happy child" as reference for my child sleep habits. It has been working great however recently she has been taking a good 1 hour to fall asleep in her crib. I am not doing anything differently. The book says to put your child down around 2 hours after she wakes up and then about 2-3 hours after the first nap ends. So for me that is 9:30am for the first nap and around 2:30 for the 2nd nap and then bedtime at 8:00pm. She isn't crying or anythng. Just playing around in her crib. I don't even keep toys in her crib because it will just keep her up. Has anyone else experienced this with their child. Any recommendations or should i just let her be. She does this pretty much at every nap and bedtime.

• ANSWER:
  I THINK UR DOING GOOD, JUST LET HER B. LAY HER DOWN AND LET HER PLAY HERSELF 2 SLEEP. NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT AT ALL.

QUESTION:
is 4 month old too early to let baby "cry it out" in order to teach him to fall asleep by himself?
I know that the first6 months or so, parents are supposed to soothe babies every time they cry; on the other hand, this good book I'm reading-healthy sleep habits, happy child-says that at 16 weeks u can apply this "cry it out" method of learning to sleep better
THANKS!!

• ANSWER:
  Sure. That sort of advice always works out great. With a small baby like that and Weissbluth's dreadful "extinction" advice it's a SIDS risk, but who cares? If it seems like a good idea to you to let a tiny baby sob alone I assume that's the goal anyway...

  "I tried CIO & almost killed my daughter?"

  http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=ApxfiOzDz5kN7JIC1jkEn8V77hR.;_ylv=3?qid=20090306135727AAPYzB8

QUESTION:
Has anyone read Dr Marc Weissbluth's books?
I have just read Marc Weissbluth's book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" and was wondering if anyone has implemented any of his routines? Does the 'elimination' method really work. I am scared to do it on my 5 month old for fear that her cries may be for hunger reasons.

• ANSWER:
  Yes I did it at 9 months.

  I loved it. I consider it the Baby Sleep Bible.

  I skipped the chapters for younger babies, but I can attest to the fact that it works for older babies. I think 5 months they may still need a feeding at night, so I would only use it to try to get your baby to sleep longer stretches until they are a bit older.

QUESTION:
My daughter slept from 7pm to 7am this morning.?
It is now 2:30pm and she wont go down for a nap. Do you think she had too much sleep last night. I have been reading the book healthy sleep habits happy child which has worked great for night time but naps just are not working, what do you think? Any suggestions?
She is 15 months old.

• ANSWER:
  I wish I had better news...but my oldest son was the same way...slept 12 solid hours each night and then refused to nap. UGH...it made for a long day. I finally insisted that he lay down every day...for an hour. He usually 'read' (looked at pictures in a book) or would watch cartoons quietly. That gave us both a break and it was a rest period. He's now a healthy 15 yr. old that has NO sleep problems...unless you count waking him up for school as a problem. Sigh...

QUESTION:
Sleeping through the night?
Ok I know some kids just dont do it. Right now its not too big a deal for us. At least its not bothering me but its bugging my husband who is in turn bugging me.
My son is 1, he starts off the night in his crib after nursing and falling asleep to music or rocking or both. He will wake up between 12-2 nurse for a few minutes then sleep until 5 or 6 when I will put him in our bed so he can nurse and dose for a bit because I dont want to get up yet. I know lazy me right. Well sometimes he wakes up more because he is teething. I have tried alot of the suggestions in a book I have Healthy sleep habits happy child but frankly they dont work for my son. I do not like the cry it out method, it dosnt work. All it dose it get him worked into a frenzy and scared out of his mind, yes we have tried it. I WILL NOT do it again. Any other suggestions are welcome. Or do I tell my husband to shut up? its not like he has to deal with it. He works until late and never wakes up with the baby
I am not weaning my son. He takes both a bottle and a sippy cup now. He only nurses at nap and bed times. He also eats solid foods.

I actually plan to let him self wean and I am expecting another in Feb so if he will before then great if not until after then that is fine too. I dont mind tandum nursing at all.

Also I dont think my husband is being an ass, he gets to hear alot about my breastfeeding from his mother who for some reason cannot stand it. We have only seen her a few times since my son was born so I dont care what she thinks and tend to ignore her but u know how men are with their mom's
to BEKITA and Adam C
He walks, babbles and has no teeth. I didnt ask for opinons on breastfeeding. It still provides LOTS of nutrents for my son. For info on breastfeeding please visit KELLYMOM.COM Breastfeeding is recommended until 2 years old by the world health organization.

• ANSWER:
  I feel for you, my son is a few days shy of 17 months and he is JUST STARTING to sleep all night. Thank you, JESUS! We, too tried the cry it out thing once, never again! Thought I would never get him calmed down again! My husband goes to work early and the crib is in our bedroom, I'd just get up and bring the baby in the front room and rock him back to sleep.
  Just know this, he WILL sleep through the night ONE of these days, I kept telling myself that and it did help.
  Be strong, I promise it will happen, hopefully sooner then later, right!

QUESTION:
help my 8 month old won't take naps anymore!?
my son used to take 3 one hr naps a day. now he is pulling up on things and crawling. literally days before he started to pull himself up he refused to take his naps. he was so tired but would lay in his crib and talk to himself. now that he can stand in his crib it is a nightmare getting him to take any naps. he has bags under his eyes and i miss my happy man! now it seems to be effecting his night sleep too, he is waking up more often. i know he is teething as well and i am sure that doesn't help. i read the "book healthy sleep habits happy child" and according to that book i should make his bedtime really early (5:30) and he will start to take his naps again during the day. it has helped slightly but only enough to get him a 45 min nap in the morning and a 1 hour and 15 min nap in the afternoon at max. he is going to bed so early i feel like i don't get to spend much time with him. we are about to move and i hear that throws everything off too. i don't know what to do!

• ANSWER:
  Play with him and wear him out more. My one year old goes down at 8pm waked up at 9am and gets a 2 hours nap at noon. While he's awake we keep him active.

QUESTION:
10 months old and STILL not sleeping?
And I'm not talking about once or twice a night, either! I mean, every 2 hours till 4 AM, when it starts to be about every hour or every 50 minutes! It's starting to drive me nuts. She's breastfed.

I have tried the "Cry it out" method, based on Weissbluth's book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child." I just don't even know where to start on how the book doesn't apply to my family. He acts like once you let your little one sob it out for about 3 nights in a row, she will sleep through the night. MINE DOESN'T.

If I put her in her crib, no matter how nearly asleep she was, she cries for an hour (scooting the sleep schedule because of it) till I come back in and put her to sleep.

I know she will adjust naturally EVENTUALLY --my son was premature and colicky and didn't sleep through the night till 1 1/2, but he was bottle-fed and didn't wake THIS frequently. I just want to know if others have gone through this, what they did, and how they survived.

Thanks.
I meant that she wakes up every 2 hours.

She co-sleeps with me.
Yes, I forgot to mention she does eat solids and fairly normal foods--baby food and "starter" foods.

She is on reflux meds and they help a little. She's been given Xrays, CAT scans and allergy tests. Could be lactose intolderant, but she can't take Neutramigen because soy seems to bug her.

• ANSWER:
  Well, move her to another room for one. Turn off the monitor for another (you will hear her through closed doors if she is desperate). You're too convenient being in the same bed... Or you could just nurse her on your side and sleep at the same time.

  It's up to you, try not to be so accessible if you want her to sleep longer, it will be hard at first but after a while it'll get better. She may just be a light sleeper and not really be totally awake when you think she is.

  All I know is that my youngest, who was breast fed exclusively until 11 months, woke up every 4 hours at 16 months and before that it's such a blur that I can't remember what he was doing but I do remember being sleep deprived every freaking day. He was in another room, on another floor, and eventually when I could stand it no longer (he was 20 months, in a different one floor home) we took out the monitor and eventually he was sleeping better as we were not rewarding him every time he made a peep and we were sleeping better because every murmur was blanketed by walls.
  I sincerely believe that some kids just take as much nurturing as they can squeeze out of you, and sometimes its too much and you run low on nurture since you haven't been able to take care of yourself. I can't tell you how I/we survived, we just did.

QUESTION:
my two month old son has stopped taking naps unless I hold him. He sleeps fine at night.?
Any suggestions on what I can do? I rock him to sleep and then he either immediately wakes up or only sleeps for about 25 minutes once he is down. 2 weeks ago he was sleeping for 3 hours at a time during the day. He's breastfed, so I try to nurse him to sleep, but he has never really done that. I also have a 2 year old, so I can't hold him all day for him to rest. I am reading a book called :healthy sleep habits, happy child" but it doesn't mention what to do with a 2.5 month old who isn't day sleeping. Crying it out was tried once, but I couldn't handle the newborn scream he let out for 8 minutes. I am not ready to do that until he is a little older. Any suggestions?

• ANSWER:
  Until 4 months old, do whatever you need to do to get the baby to sleep. At two months, it's too early to start conditioning the child to sleep better.

  At around 4 months, you should stop holding him until he's asleep: instead, hold him until he's close, then put him down while he's still awake. Work on getting him used to the idea of going to sleep on his own, without your help, but go to him if he cries, enough to reassure him that you care and you're close by if he needs you. But as for naps vs. nighttime, you have to give up on a nap if it's not working, unlike at night where you can be confident that after enough time he'll sleep.

QUESTION:
Baby Schedules!?
I am trying to get my 4 month old baby onto a schedule. I know that with her age, the schedule may not be perfect, but I want to have something to build from. What time should I be starting her bedtime routine (bath, feeding, etc)? I was thinking around 7 or 7:30, but I feel like this is too early! She is sleeping through the night usually but occasionally gets up once in about 12 hours.

Can anyone recommend a good book to read that discussed baby schedules? I have been using the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child".

• ANSWER:
  The Secrets of the Baby Whisperer talks about schedules.

  I think your baby's bedtime can depend on your schedule a little bit. Right now, we put our baby to bed around 8pm and he usually gets up around 7:30 or 8 in the morning.

  However, starting in the fall, I will work until 6pm, and my husband will work from 1pm-9pm. We will probably put our baby to bed later so he sleeps later in the morning. This will allow us to see him for longer at night and then my husband can sleep in a little bit with the baby in the morning.

QUESTION:
Question for moms who use the CIO method?
I had tried both the "no cry" and "maybe cry" methods and nothing seems to work. My 5.5 month old just refuses to fall asleep by herself even though she's been rubbing her eyes and face 2 hours ago, she would just cry and cry until I go pick her up. I bought this book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr Marc Weissbluth, and decided to try to let her learn another way to fall asleep.

So first nap in the morning, 1.5 hr, no problem.

Second nap happens around 1pm. Let's say second nap should take about 1.5 hr as well (so until 2:30pm). What if she cries from 1pm to 2pm and finally falls asleep. Should I wake her up at 2:30? So just 1/2 hr and then tomorrow try again at 1pm and hope she cries less?

What time should the third nap start at and how long? Her bedtime is around 7pm.
I appreciate all your input but my question is for the mothers who use CIO method. If you don't, please don't reply. Every child is different and like I said I had already tried the "no cry" method but it's not working. So you can keep your rules to your own child. Thank you.
She doesn't like to be swaddled or rocked to sleep. When she's tired and cranky and needs to go sleep, she doesn't like to be cuddled. That's why I said every child is different and you can't use the exact same way to teach everyone.
Also, I had checked with her ped about the sleeping problem and he did suggest me to leave her alone for no more than an hour and soon she will learn to fall asleep by herself. Her ped was recommended by my ob and he also works at the sick kids hospital so I'm sure he knows what he's talking about.

• ANSWER:
  I used to rock and cuddle my son to sleep every time until he was around 4.5 months... one day he just started fighting me. After an hour of trying to comfort him, I put him down and he fell asleep by himself. Since that night, he just preferred to fall asleep now and any attempt at rocking and cuddling just frustrated him.

  He then he went through a phase of not falling asleep alone OR with cuddles at around 6-7 months, even though he was obviously tired. I noticed he always fell asleep in the pushchair and so just started putting him in his pushchair for naps. Our yard has a 7 foot fence and padlocked gate so no one can get to him, plus I'm always in the kitchen with the backdoor open (he's right there) or in the next room near the window so I can see him. He slept great out there... no idea how or why, but it worked. Then from around 10 months, he suddenly napped fine in his cot!

  I'm telling you this because I have experience with a baby who doesn't like cuddles! And because I believe there is always a way without resorting to ignoring your baby. Can't you take her for a walk in her pram? Or a drive? Just for a week or so to create a routine?

  It's up to you who you trust when it comes to your child, but you can never be too careful. Qualifications/experience don't always mean they know what's best... I've learned that the hard way several times since my son was born.

QUESTION:
So excited to have stumbled upon!?
I am 20 weeks, 5 days pregnant, my cousin told me about this book, then my husband's friend gave it to him. It's called 'Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child', and I am so excited to be reading it. Has anyone else read it, how do you feel about it? I think it's absolutely excellent advice to have before you give birth to a baby. I recommend it to all pregnant ladies.....

• ANSWER:
  I had never heard of it, but I put it on hold at the library. Thanks!

QUESTION:
My Four Month Old Won't Nap... what do I do?
My baby fights naps. He's great going down at night but HATES napping. I've read books (i.e. Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child), I've been solid on our bedtime routine (so much so that he knows he's about to nap and starts fussing at the start of the routine) and I've even let him Cry It Out (only 30 mins for naps) and no matter what I do he won't nap. I feel like it's hindering him. Has anyone had this issue? Did you forget the whole 2/3 naps thing and aim for maybe just 1 in the afternoon? I'm at a total loss. I feel like I've tried everything. Any suggestions???

• ANSWER:
  Keep trying. Be consistent.

  Your doing the right thing by trying to help him have good sleep habits.

  Consider making the room very very dark for naps if it isn't (they have drapes for this purpose, or line the window with foil like we did!)

  Rocking them to sleep etc. usually makes matters worse, since then they can't fall asleep on their own This can lead to an inability to sustain sleep at night as well. I wouldn't wear a 4 month old for naps unless you want to wear a 3 year old for naps.

QUESTION:
Anyone believe in the "Ferber" sleep method or tried it? Is my son too young?
I have taught my son bad sleep habits already and I am so tired that his pedi said he recommend me reading the Richard Ferber, M.D. book and follow his steps. I am reading it now and I have identified my sons sleep problems but I am worried he is too young plus he has a hot temper and cries like someone is trying to kill him (he has been this way since he was 3 weeks old) so please give me some feedback or things that have worked for you.

And if you are reading this and against Richard Ferber please no comments if they are going to be nasty. Remember what your mom (hopefully) taught you, If you have nothing nice to say then don't say anything at all.

I'm just a mom that wants her child to get the right amount of good rested sleep so he will be a happy, healthy baby, Right now he stays so cranky during the day because of lack of sleep at night...not to mention I am irritable with others because I'm up every 2 hours at night and I don't have enough energy to keep up all day.
Sorry my son is 5 months old.
"K" you just couldn't resist. I bet you never read his book or had a child with a sleep problem. Your opinion isn't needed..you're the asshole for even writing. If you don't agree with it then don't put your 2 cent's in. From how it sounds your mother didn't teach you much, make sure the next time you protest something, do your research first.

• ANSWER:
  I think there are all sorts of good methods for putting your baby to bed and ensuring he is getting enough sleep. I commend you for looking at options and trying to ensure your child has good sleep habits.

  I think your child is old enough to try the Ferber method. Another option is Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I completely believe in Dr. Weissbluth's methods and it has worked well with our child. If one of these methods don't work, remember that you know your child best, and getting him to sleep enough is critical for both of you! Blend the methods and find what works for both you and him to maximize sleep and minimize crying!

  Good luck!

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child?
What has been your experience with this book?

I know it advocates the CIO method with no time limit... It has great reviews but some negative say that it is "cruel" etc.

Please help! Thanks!

• ANSWER:
  I think this book is amazing. I never wanted to let my son "cry it out" but he was 12 months old and still not sleeping through the night or having naps in his crib (only in my arms).
  After a week of trying everything in the book, my son has been sleeping 12 hours straight every night in his crib. He has his regular naps in his crib...he is so much happier now. He's now 22 months old and is still sleeping 12 hours a night straight. I swear it literally changed our lives, sounds a little extreme but any parents who have sleep troubles with their kid would understand what a difference it makes when they finally sleep through the night.
  As for some saying it's cruel...I really felt horrible at first letting my son cry in his crib. But as the book states : Parents feel as if they're doing good if they go to their child every time they cry. But really, it's more detrimental for parents to let their child have fragmented sleep than to let them "cry". We all know the difference too between real cries and the "I'm going to scream just loud enough this time so mama comes and picks me up." They are so much smarter than we give them credit for. The book basically says that you and your baby are both sleep deprived and that does more harm then letting your baby scream for a couple of nights. Let me mention again that after I read this book and followed it, my son has slept through the night every night for the last 10 months.
  An important part of the book states that you do not let your child cry if he's sick, or something else is wrong...If your child is full of food, has a clean diaper on, and is TIRED, let him cry it out. It is totally worth the hard first few nights of getting through the bad habit that we instilled in our kid. There is more crying in the beginning but no crying in the end. I recommended this to a friend of mine, and she called me to tell thank me so much because it only took one night and her son has now been sleeping through the night for the last 6 months.
  As you can tell, I really had an excellent experience with this book, and do not have any regrets at all for letting my son scream at me for a few nights because he wanted to play with us when he should have been sleeping... I felt horrible at the time, but I cannot explain how much it was worth it. If you are thinking of following through with this book, I would definately give it a week or two chance, it will change your family's life

QUESTION:
Why isn't sleep training working?
I've been sleep training my six month old with the cry it out method for two weeks. She'll be okay for two nights, and then scream for twenty minutes the third night. I don't want to give up and make all of her crying and my agony for nothing, but isn't this supposed to be working by now? I don't expect her to be happy to go to bed, but she loses her mind some nights. I'm using the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book as a guideline and I had no idea it would take so long.
I'm not sleep training her to have her conform to my schedule, I'm trying to teach her to fall asleep on her own and to be able to fall back to sleep on her own if she wakes up, so that she gets more quality sleep.

• ANSWER:
  I think the Ferber method says to go in every 15m offer a pat on the head and a paci, then leave again. If she is crying for 20m to fall asleep that isn't SO bad after 2 weeks starting at 6 months old.

  I did sleep-eat-play cycles at birth, so don't know about getting older ones to sleep, but I hear that is a good book, as is "The No Cry Sleep Solution", and the Ferber method seems to work to.

  Most of those involve sleep-eat-play cycles, and putting baby to bed drowsy but awake. I did babywise, but that is for younger babies.

  Having a baby fall asleep on their own is a very healthy thing for them. You're doing what is in your child's best interest.

QUESTION:
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child?
OK-- just for people who have actually read this book. Anyway, my daughter is about 5 weeks old. Her fussiness has increased lately, which I guess is normal and not sleep related. Right? I'm sort of confused. Is fussiness at this age mostly unrelated to sleep? Or could it still be sleep deprivation related?
To Babies Uber Alles: you are a strange duck. The man who wrote the book is a doctor. He's also raised for sons. He specializes in infant sleep habits. I have NO IDEA where you get the idea that his books is "research free nonsense." In the book, there are also passages by lactation consultants and child psychiatrists... but I suppose you think YOU are the expert on this matter....? Right?

• ANSWER:
  Fussiness does tend to peak around 6 weeks, which is normal. It may be exaggerated by sleep deprivation. How much is your baby sleeping?

QUESTION:
Has anyone read the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth?
If you have read it, just wondering what your thoughs are on this book.

• ANSWER:
  The best book on sleep. I think 90% of his stuff is right on the money.

QUESTION:
Has anyone read Healthy Habits, Happy Child? Did it work for you?
I recently purchased and read Dr. Marc Weissbluth's book on a recommendation from a friend who swears by this book! I read the whole book in a matter of hours and wanted to know if anyone else has read this book and sleep training worked for them!

I do agree that an infant my daughter's age (10 weeks) shouldn't be kept awake for more than 2 hours and that their naps should be at least 45min-1 hour long BUT
he mentions "crying it out" and i'm not sure about this just because i've heard mixed opinions about letting your child "cry it out". Before purchasing the book i read some reviews and it seems as if his method worked for tons of people and their kids are sleeping at least 10 hours straight a night!

anyone have any opinions on the book?

• ANSWER:
  If they are crying for more than 5-10 minutes most likely they are not going to calm down on their own anytime soon. I did this with my son and when he wouldn't stop crying I would go over to his bassinet and rub his tummy in a little circle, but not pick him up and that usually did the trick. He is 3 years-old now and sleeps pretty good most of the time.

QUESTION:
Question for moms who use the CIO method?
I had tried both the "no cry" and "maybe cry" methods and nothing seems to work. My 5.5 month old just refuses to fall asleep by herself even though she's been rubbing her eyes and face 2 hours ago, she would just cry and cry until I go pick her up. I bought this book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr Marc Weissbluth, and decided to try to let her learn another way to fall asleep.

So first nap in the morning, 1.5 hr, no problem.

Second nap happens around 1pm. Let's say second nap should take about 1.5 hr as well (so until 2:30pm). What if she cries from 1pm to 2pm and finally falls asleep. Should I wake her up at 2:30? So just 1/2 hr and then tomorrow try again at 1pm and hope she cries less?

What time should the third nap start at and how long? Her bedtime is around 7pm.
I appreciate all your input but my question is for the mothers who use CIO method. If you don't, please don't reply. Every child is different and like I said I had already tried the "no cry" method but it's not working. So you can keep your rules to your own child. Thank you.
She doesn't like to be swaddled or rocked to sleep. When she's tired and cranky and needs to go sleep, she doesn't like to be cuddled. That's why I said every child is different and you can't use the exact same way to teach everyone.
Also, I had checked with her ped about the sleeping problem and he did suggest me to leave her alone for no more than an hour and soon she will learn to fall asleep by herself. Her ped was recommended by my ob and he also works at the sick kids hospital so I'm sure he knows what he's talking about.

• ANSWER:
  I used to rock and cuddle my son to sleep every time until he was around 4.5 months... one day he just started fighting me. After an hour of trying to comfort him, I put him down and he fell asleep by himself. Since that night, he just preferred to fall asleep now and any attempt at rocking and cuddling just frustrated him.

  He then he went through a phase of not falling asleep alone OR with cuddles at around 6-7 months, even though he was obviously tired. I noticed he always fell asleep in the pushchair and so just started putting him in his pushchair for naps. Our yard has a 7 foot fence and padlocked gate so no one can get to him, plus I'm always in the kitchen with the backdoor open (he's right there) or in the next room near the window so I can see him. He slept great out there... no idea how or why, but it worked. Then from around 10 months, he suddenly napped fine in his cot!

  I'm telling you this because I have experience with a baby who doesn't like cuddles! And because I believe there is always a way without resorting to ignoring your baby. Can't you take her for a walk in her pram? Or a drive? Just for a week or so to create a routine?

  It's up to you who you trust when it comes to your child, but you can never be too careful. Qualifications/experience don't always mean they know what's best... I've learned that the hard way several times since my son was born.