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Crying It Out
What Experts Say
Many parents hear the phrase "crying it out" and shudder at the thought of it. "Do you really think I'm going to be able to put my baby in a crib, walk out of the room, and listen to him wail for hours on end?," you might be thinking. The answer? Yes and no, depending on which expert you listen to.
Most experts agree that the best time to start sleep training is when your baby is between 3 and 6 months of age. Before that, you just need to do whatever you can to get your little one to fall asleep -- and stay asleep.
Still, it's never too early to encourage good sleep habits, like having a consistent nighttime routine and bedtime. Michel Cohen, M.D., author of "The New Basics:...
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The softest of all approaches is Elizabeth Pantley's The No-Cry Sleep Solution which is for the most patient parents who have the will to work through the 10-step approach she suggests. Her most important rule for babies under one year is rule number one -- the safety check. Make sure the crib is free of toys, fluffy pillows or anything that can harm your baby. Also, however you let your baby fall asleep on his own, always go back and check to make sure that he is on his back. Children under one year are at risk for SIDS and the American Academy of Pediatrics strongly urges parents to put their children to sleep on their backs.
Write down your action plan
In the middle of the night is no time to try and remember if you decided to let the baby cry for 5 minutes or 20 before checking or whether it's mom's or dad's turn to do the soothing. A good suggestion is to write down your plan of attack before bed and then stick to it.Distract yourself & pick an amount of time
Go do something else while you are crying it out. Keep a monitor on but softly, or stay a room away. It can be very hard to listen to the crying. If you have a set time in mind to let the baby cry - stick to that but don't stand by the door or you'll want to cave and go in earlier. Talk on the phone to a friend for moral support, parents can hang out together but plan a time and go paint your toenails, read, watch tv softly but try not to listen - it'll hurt you more than it upsets baby. A video monitor is great for this - you can still see that baby is safe but mute it softly so the crying doesn't cause you to go in prematurely.
Does anyone practice sleep training? What is it? Does it work?
QueenofSpainblog: Avoid training. These are not dogs, they are kids. Both my children learned to sleep on their own and at their own pace, when they were ready. Don't get hung up on which method to use, listen to your baby and yourself and your instinct. I breastfed both my children to sleep (a huge no no according to many so-called "experts") and coslept with each for 2 years. We always got a ton of sleep and everyone went to bed without tears or feeling abandoned in a dark room. My children now sleep happily in their own beds through the night and have no sleep "issues" from any sort of "training." Just use love and instinct!
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Learning to understand the different cries can help you get through the night
My infant son was a pretty good sleeper early on, but at about 2 months there were cries in the middle of the night that my husband and I disagreed about. My husband was certain they were cries of hunger. The idea that we were depriving... read more
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July 21, 2007
"I checked her last time, YOUR TURN"
Our first child,a beautiful baby girl (Baby M) was about six-months old. We were exhausted from sleep deprivation and the battle began. How to get her to sleep thru the night?... read more
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