
#Sleep expert baby professional
Stevens is a certified child and infant sleep consultant, a professional who offers services to families struggling with behavioral childhood sleep problems. “One of the top times that I get emails from tired parents is somewhere between midnight and 2 am,” says Christine Stevens, who owns Sleep Solutions by Christine. Christine emailed me back the next morning. As his heels jabbed at my ribs (“I’m just stretching”), I directed my phone’s glow away from his face and fired off a deranged missive via online form. The lights were off but his little overtired body wouldn’t stop twitching and jerking with excitement. I pulled him out of their shared bedroom and into “the big bed” with me.

Hours since I’d gotten him in his jammies, my son was still awake and his protests were threatening to wake the baby. This particular night, my husband was out of town, leaving me solo with both kids. If we left the room, he hurled his body against the door like a moth thumping a porch light. “I’m all alone and I’m only 3 years old!” he wailed through a sheet of tears and mucus. If my husband or I didn’t stay in the room with him until he fell asleep, he would explode with panic. His routines suffered for it, and his bedtime demands had become increasingly baroque and desperate. He had faced big changes to his little life over the previous year: an interstate move, a new house, a new preschool, and the arrival of his baby sister. “Try to enjoy the sleepy snuggles and night feeds when it’s just you and him.” Take it day by day and things will improve, honestly.I remember when I reached my breaking point with my son’s sleep. “Forget about how your baby ‘should be sleeping’ and focus on what works for you,” says Emma. Relaxing your own expectations for your baby’s sleep routine can help especially if you’re little one is struggling to settle. By this time, he will probably be able to fall asleep without you even being there.
#Sleep expert baby how to
WATCH: How to get your baby to sleep longer. “This generally gets him to close his eyes but if he doesn’t, I’d gently cover his eyes with my fingers.” “Try holding him close and stroking gently from his forehead down to his nose,” says Lisa Clegg, author of The Blissful Baby Expert.

“Colicky babies really like this but all babies seem to find it soothing and many fall asleep quickly in this position.”
#Sleep expert baby free
“I do this on my left side, so my right hand is free to stroke her back,” she says. Sleep consultant Tina Southwood recommends the ‘tiger in the tree’ hold, where you lay your baby on her tummy along your forearm (with your palm facing upward), so that her chin is resting in the crook of your arm. Mums who breastfeed should cluster feed in the run-up to bedtime, to fill baby up and encourage the production of sleep hormones.” “Tryptophan aids the production of the sleep hormone melatonin.


“In the latter part of the day, breastmilk contains high levels of the hormone tryptophan,” says Andrea Grace, a children’s sleep specialist. Safe sleeping experts at Red Nose (previously SIDS and Kids) recommend a sleeping bag with a fitted neck and armholes.īreast-fed babies can often sleep better.
