Too often families are led to believe that sleep training is a necessary part of the parenting journey. It can be a really contentious issue in parenting groups, families, and even between partners.

Often referred to as Ferberization or "crying it out", sleep training is a behavioural method used to help children learn to sleep independently. ⁠Behind the term ferberize, Richard Ferber is best known for his 1985 book Solving Your Child's Sleep Problems. His approach focuses on having a child practice falling asleep on their own and in some cases that may require leaving them to cry. Historically, the cry it out (CIO) method was used as a quick way to get infants or children falling asleep independently and consequently sleeping longer stretches. This became especially important for parents who had to go back to work shortly after a baby was born, in some cases as early as 9 weeks. With longer parental leaves and more parents working from home, I think now is a good time to examine this idea that in order to get more sleep we have to sleep train.

When working with families, I don't promote behavioural sleep training BECAUSE:

It does not take into account other contributing factors to sleep disruptions, such as parental stress, age-appropriateness, timing, emotional wellbeing, or nutrition.
Children pick up on our energy, so if we're feeling unsure or nervous about what we are doing, our babies will sense this, often leading to more upset or confusion.
It can be confusing and emotionally exhausting for everyone.
Most often sleep training comes out of nowhere; when families are desperate and at a breaking point and so maintaining consistency can be challenging.

I suggest learning as much as you can about infant and child sleep before starting any changes. Find out what is age-appropriate and determine whether or not you can maintain consistency over a prolonged period of time. Trying one thing for a day or two and then something else, doesn't mean that what you are doing won't work, you may just have to tweak things slightly and be consistent for at least a week, to see positive change. Have conversations with your family about healthy sleep habits and most importantly understand that we are always more successful when we make small, incremental steps towards big goals!

Thanks for reading!

Jessica