I sleep trained both my daughters because I wanted to sleep. How can I pour from an empty cup? I decided to start with Isla because I was going back to work and the idea of staying up all night stressed me out. With Ellie, I knew I couldn’t function on zero hours of sleep taking care of a newborn and a rambunctious toddler.
I personally used Taking Cara Babies to guide me, with the help of support groups on Facebook. It wasn’t easy but I needed to do it. In the end, she started sleeping “through the night” which means 6-8 hours straight by 2 months. And sleeping 12 hours around 5.5 months. Listen to me when I say it’s a work in progress. I don’t use a rigid schedule, rather a flexible one using her cues and wake times. (Read my article on how I sleep trained Isla with in depth explanations here.)
How to Set Healthy Sleeping Habits
- Start a bedtime routine early. Give a warm bath, go to the nursery, read a book, nurse/bottle, and then put to bed. It doesn’t have to be elaborate, something simple will suffice
- Implement a sleep, eat, wake cycle. This will teach them not to depend on eating to fall asleep.
- Teach your baby to fall asleep on their own. This means putting the baby down when he/she is awake but drowsy. In the future, when he/she wakes up in the middle of the night they can put themselves back to sleep. Also, babies need to fall asleep in a familiar space and it’s soothing to wake up in the same space they wake up in.
- Set the scene. Invest in a noise machine or a fan to drown out the noise in the house. Make sure the room is dark, no lights seeping in.
- Next, research if there’s a sleep training method you’d like to try. I used Taking Cara Babies and I’ve read Moms on Call. There’s also Babywise and the Ferber method.
Whatever you decide, that’s good enough.
Remember, every baby isn’t the same. Some will take it easy and some won’t. Sleep training is not for all but it’s worth a shot to try and get some healthy sleep habits instilled.
Ask your pediatrician for their advice, always!
