So let's just get it out in the open right away: we're talking about the book On Becoming Babywise today. And if you've been a Baby Sleep Site® reader for any length of time, you know that's bound to create some controversy. We've written about Babywise before, and about the cry-it-out method in general. And we know all too well that this is an emotionally charged topic for many of our readers. Some of the parents in our Baby Sleep Site® community are proponents of cry-it-out methods like
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5 Things To Do BEFORE Sleep Training
You just can’t take it anymore. The exhaustion, the bleary eyes, the waking-up-more-times-each-night-than-you-thought-humanly-possible...you’ve had it! “Enough is enough!” you’ve said to yourself. It's time to take action. It's time to reclaim your nights. It is time to start sleep training! This, readers, is the point at which many parents first visit the Baby Sleep Site. They’re beyond exhausted. They know their babies are waking more frequently than is necessary, but they just don’t
How Room-Sharing Affects Your Baby’s Sleep
When a family is expecting a new baby, one thing that’s likely high on the to-do list is setting up a nursery. That’s one of the fun parts of being pregnant, after all -- buying cute nursery stuff makes up for all the nausea, leg cramps, and constant trips to the bathroom! ;) What is Room-sharing? When setting up a nursery for your baby, you’ll probably include a crib in your plans. Whether or not your baby will sleep there, though, is less certain. Plenty of parents prefer keeping their
Should You Let Your Baby Cry It Out?
When parents contact the Baby Sleep Site for the first time, they often say the same thing: "Are you going to tell me I have to let my baby cry? Because I can't handle that!" No parent enjoys the sound of their baby wailing in distress. That's why the cry-it-out methods advocated by Ferber, Weissbluth, and Ezzo are so controversial. Some parents feel like cry-it-out is a form of cruel and unusual punishment, but others are quick to point out that cry-it-out methods are fast and
Dr. Sears vs. Dr. Weissbluth in an Online Chat About Your Baby’s Sleep
A while back, Dr. Sears and Dr. Weissbluth both participated in an online chat with Chicago Tribune's health reporter, Julie Deardorff. I was thinking back to a few key points raised in the chat that still surprise me how disconnected doctors can be with parents. Perhaps doctors tend to give you a more scientific approach rather than a practical one. Either way, there are a few key points this article is raising to educate new parents on the topic of baby sleep. How much is sleep really a
What’s More Important – Naps or Night Sleep?
When you work on helping your baby sleep better, sometimes it's hard to know whether you can get even more sleep from him. Sometimes it might feel you are being greedy wanting more sleep - when you've already come so far. Or, sometimes when you work on naps, night sleep goes out the window or vice versa. This article will talk about whether napping or night sleep is more important and general guidelines to know whether you have a good balance of night sleep and naps. Do babies need naps