Sleep Success Story (Getting Baby to Sleep All Night)

 

I never take it lightly when a family calls me about their baby’s lack of sleep.

I have zero judgement, just lots of encouragement.

That’s exactly what happened when Katelyn & Michael Alsop reached out last month about their sweet Evy’s sleep.

Katelyn told me that Evy was a pretty good night sleeper, and was consistently sleeping about 7-8 hours each night. However, Mom and Dad both shared that naps were their biggest source of frustration and confusion. “Why is she only napping for 20 minutes at a time?”

I asked about bedtime routine, what time she started the day, what naps looked like, how they got her down for naps, and listened to their baby’s medical history.

Then, I got to ask my favorite question: What do you want to see differently?

Mom simply said, “I want to be able to lay her down in her bed and have her nap. For more than 20 minutes!” More than that, Katelyn explained she wanted to have a system that worked and to also create the flexibility needed with their lifestyle.

Like all my calls, I could almost sense from Katelyn that saying these wishes outloud was too much. Too unrealistic. Too late to teach.

But then I got to really dive into it. I asked Katelyn and Michael if they would be okay if I changed their goals from having Evy sleep 7-8 hours to teaching her how to sleep independently for 11-12 hours. They both laughed and said, “Well that would be great!!!!”

We then talked about the reality of having a baby who sleeps well. You see, when you have a baby who is on a schedule this doesn’t mean you’re in a lock-down prison every day tied to baby’s schedule. Sure, I ask that for two weeks we really focus on consistency. But once your baby knows HOW to sleep, it’s really just about the cues.

Have a bedtime routine?

Great! Doesn’t matter if you’re in a hotel or with a babysitter- they know the drill.

Have a baby who knows how to go to sleep on their own?

Awesome. Go on vacation, set up the pack ‘n play, and have sweet dreams!

Going to travel a lot?

Fun! Honestly babies totally know when things are different. They’ll conform to their surroundings and jump back to expectations when you arrive.

After a few weeks of working with the Alsop Family, we are all doing a big happy dance because Evy is sleeping 12 hours a night AND taking two seriously dreamy naps each day. They worked so hard and I’m so grateful my clients entrust me with their child’s sleep and schedule!

Katelyn shared more about her experience over on her blog, so be sure to see what Sleep Consulting is like from a client angle!

Thank you for your sweet words, Katelyn! Sweet Dreams to you

>Want to create your OWN sleep success story? Let’s go!

Sweet Dreams,

Becca Campbell