The Sleep Training Shortcut
By: Brianna Litchfield
Tags: Sleep, Parenting, Baby

The Sleep Training Shortcut

So you’ve decided you and your baby need help in the sleep department. The countless methods and the long books and even courses can be daunting. When you’re sleep deprived, you don’t want to read through fluff. This little manual gets to the point, so that you and your baby can be off to dreamland, as early as tonight!

Is your baby ready to sleep train?

If your little one is over 5 months old and weighs at least 15 pounds, sleep training may be the best gift for everyone in the home (since your baby was born, of course).

Are you ready to sleep train?

That’s a complicated question. Of course, you’re ready to sleep more than a few uninterrupted hours. But at the same time, you dread hearing your baby cry and you’ll miss rocking them to sleep.

Why Sleep train?

You know that your lack of sleep is detrimental to both physical and mental functioning. However, the same can be said for your baby! Your little one is not awake because they want to be. They simply don’t have the ability to put themselves to sleep.

Why isn’t your baby sleeping through the night?

Everyone wakes up at night, several times in fact The difference is that when we do it, we quickly put ourselves back to sleep. We don’t even remember waking up. When babies wake up, they need help getting back to sleep. Why? Because they’re waking up in a different situation from when they fell asleep, and that’s scary! They fell asleep in your arms. They were being rocked and swayed. Now it’s still! They were being sung to or shushed. Now it’s quiet! You’d be alarmed if you fell asleep in your bed and then woke up outside, wouldn’t you?

Here are the ingredients for creating consistency.

Routine

Before bedtime you want to have wind-down time. This usually consists of taking a bath and reading books. You can also have them play in their room (or in whatever room they will be sleeping in). Some parents play music that signals bedtime. Maybe you nurse them or give them a bottle before bed. That’s fine, as long as they don’t fall asleep while doing it. And whatever you do, do the same thing every night! Over time, you’ll see your baby come to expect each piece of the routine, and that it relaxes them.

Bedtime should be consistent. Your baby wants a schedule they can depend on. Make sure bedtime is always the same window of time, at least within a half an hour. For example, you want to make sure your baby is always in bed between 7:30 and 8:00 pm.

Environment

Make it dark. Make your baby’s sleeping room as dark as possible.

White noise. Sound machines are great, but a fan can work too.

The Process

What you need:

Baby monitor (or good ears)

Paper and pen

Clock

Night 1:

After completing the bedtime routine, tell your baby you’re going to do things differently tonight. Explain how this will be hard at first, but everyone will be happier soon. This will help you by saying this. Kiss them goodnight, and put them in their crib. Leave the room! Yes, this will be hard. Treat yourself to a sweet treat or do something that will keep you busy! They will cry.

Log the time! After 5 minutes, enter their room so that they can see you, and reassure them that they are doing a great job. Do not touch them, and only stay for 30 seconds or less. Leave, and log the time. Next, visit will be after 10 minutes. Do the same thing — speak to them with a positive voice (even though you’re probably not feeling so positive). Leave again after 30 seconds and log the time . Now you should wait 20 minutes. About half of babies will fall asleep before, and not require another visit. The rule is to not have them cry more than 20 minutes. Make sure you write down the time they fell asleep! They will fall asleep, even though it may feel like it took a lifetime. On average, it takes about 30 minutes for the baby to fall asleep. Although some parents report it taking close to an hour or more. This is still normal, and your baby will be perfectly fine.

Naps:

After your first night of training, you will follow the nighttime steps for the next day’s nap(s).

Night 2:

Follow the same exact routine as the night prior. Log the times. You will see that they fell asleep with less time than night 1. Babies catch on quick!

Night 3 and beyond:

Continue the process. It typically takes 3–5 nights before your baby is considered “trained”, which means you can put them in their crib and leave without any fuss at all.

You’ll find that your baby doesn’t resent you in the morning. They will probably even greet you with a bigger smile in the morning, since they are finally well rested. Welcome to your new life! Both baby and you will be so much happier.