I am three months away from bringing a baby home from the hospital. A BABY! The reality of it all is starting to sink in...as is the rush to formulate my "plan" of attack. Will I practice Parent-Directed Feedings or feed Barrett whenever he seems to be hungry? Will I try to create a sleep schedule or trust him to be a good baby and know when it's time to nap? (Yeah right)
All this to say, I'd love some advice. One of my best friends uses the Babywise method for her sweet one and I'm very interested in this system. However, I want to be a well-informed, well-researched mom. What other methods are out there? What has worked or NOT worked for you? (I do realize every baby is different.) The more I know, the more confident I can be in my decision on how to feed and sleep-train Barrett.
But let's be honest, I'm entering the life of a parent and am already way in over my head...no matter how much research I do!
Monday, March 14, 2011
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4 comments:
I think it depends on the type of parent you want to be. Wow that sounded very judgmental, but it was so not meant to. Some people prefer a more laidback routine in their home, and some like a schedule, and then some a mix. When you know that, you can start "training" in a way that works with your style.
For some babies, it is really hard to learn to sleep. I was told by well-meaning people that when Hazel was tired, she would sleep, but that was not the case. She started getting overtired and then was too worked up to sleep. Anyway, so it is sometimes necessary to teach them to sleep. You are very right in that!
Things that worked for us:
1. Doing the same thing before each nap: Nurse, change diaper, Swaddle, pacifier. (for bedtime, add bath before that)
2. Cry It Out - we let Hazel cry for 5 min, then would go and reswaddle her, then let her cry for 10 min, repeat, adding 5 min every time.
3. I liked to be a little flexible with sleeping so my girls would fall asleep at other peoples' homes if we ever went out. This was esp. helpful for little traveling Hazel. And I also try to put them to nap not exactly by the clock but by their actions or days events. That way, for example, if we go to a friends' for lunch, I don't have to say "Oh it's twelve exactly, we must run, it's naptime!" (at the same time, babies thrive on routine, so there is definitely give and take with that!)
4. Trial and Error - sometimes Annabel just wouldn't fall asleep in her crib, so I would put her in her swing and she would sleep that way. You just sometimes never know what it is with those little turkeys.
I also read "The Happiest Baby on the Block" to mix in with "Baby Wise". Somehow between the two I had a happy baby that slept thru the night at 8 weeks. Now we will see how it works with #2....could be a TOTALLY different child. Once your IN the moment you will know EXACTLY what works and what doesn't work for you and Barrett. I would be more helpful with "tips" like Emily wrote but I am 100% worn out today...this baby better come soon! :)
We did the concept behind "Babywise": Eat, Play, Sleep, Repeat and a bath every night before bed to help baby realize that it's bedtime. I've had two babies who have slept through the night at 8 weeks, and have been happy sleepers and waker-upers (eventually with some practice). It helped me with predictability and knowing what my babies needed. I also swaddle and offer a paci at naptime, but them to bed awake but drowsy, and I let them cry it out so they didn't get dependent on me to get to sleep. This being said - it worked for "me", but you'll have to see what works for you. Do you like being scheduled or do you like to fly by the seat of your pants (not really much flying by the seat of your pants with a baby, really)? Does your schedule change from day to day or are you going back to work and going to need to pump regularly? Just some things to think about it. Just give it some time because with every "training" comes actual training and practice before it really works out. Good luck!
I'm in the middle of sleep training with Reese right now. Basically the first 12 weeks, you do whatever the baby wants to do. I think I most closely followed the recommendations in "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child." I read that one, Babywise, and Happiest Baby on the Block, and sort of picked & chose what I liked from all of them.
To get though the first 12 weeks, swaddle swaddle swaddle. Both the Miracle Blanket and SwaddleMe are great, but we prefer the SwaddleMe. We'd give her the paci and soothe her to sleep, and lay her down once she was out. Just the last few weeks we've stared on laying her down awake. She took to it very well, until today. I had to start letting her cry it out - soothe, she starts crying, let her go 5 min. Go back in and soothe her to calm again. Since it was her first day I only did 5 minute increments, and only had to do it twice. If she keeps this up, in the next time make it 10, and so on.
Feeding you pretty much just need to take their cues. Reese is wanting to eat every 2 - 2.5 hours during the day, but usually gives me a good 10ish hour stretch at night.
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