The Complete Guide to Helping Your Baby Sleep Through the Night So You Can Too: 101 Tips and Tricks Every Parent Needs to Know Book

Preface 15

Introduction 19

Chapter 1 Baby Sleeping Facts 25

Understand Basic Sleep Facts 26

Understand Your Baby's Sleep Needs 28

Set Realistic Expectations 31

Sleep Patterns Will Change as Your Baby Grows 36

Do Not Expect Too Much Too Soon 37

Healthy Sleep Habits are Taught, Not Naturally Acquired 41

Healthy Sleep Habits are Vital to Good Daytime Functioning 43

Babies Need Practice to Develop Healthy Sleep Habits 44

Crashing is Not a Healthy Sleep Habit 45

Remember Safety When Sleep Training Your Baby 47

Chapter 2 Current Sleep Habits 51

Create a Sleep Log 51

Analyze Your Completed Sleep Log 53

Use Your Sleep Log to Determine the Best Plan for Your Child and Family 56

Use Sleep Logs to Analyze the Success of the New Sleep Plan 57

Chapter 3 Causes of Sleep Problems 63

Identify Whether Medical Issues are Affecting Your Baby's Sleep 64

Identify if Anxiety or Psychological Disorders are Affecting Your Baby's Sleep 67

Identify Trained Behaviors that are Affecting Your Baby's Sleep 71

Identify Other Factors that Affect Your Baby's Sleep 72

Some Babies will Take Longer to Learn to Sleep Well Than Others 73

Starting Sleep Training Early Can Prevent Problems From Arising 74

Parents Can Contribute to a Child's Sleep Problems 76

Understand Nighttime Behavior, and Deal with it Appropriately 78

Remember: Almost Every Baby has the Ability to Sleep Well 79

Chapter 4 Strategies for Getting Your Baby to Sleep 85

Recognize Your Baby's Drowsy Signs 105

Do Not Give Up on Sleep Training if the First Strategy Does Not Work 106

Decide if Co-sleeping or the Family Bed is Right for You 107

Know When Your Baby Needs You 115

Avoid Strategy Jumping 116

Gradual Approaches are More Prone to Cause Relapses 117

Parental Inconsistency Often Leads to Bad Sleep Habits 118

Combat Stalling Tactics Before Your Child Tries Them 121

Pick a Sleep Strategy that Both Parents are Comfortable With 123

Do Not Make Decisions About Sleep Strategies or Change Sleep Strategies in the Middle of the Night 124

Chapter 5 Setting the Mood for Sleep 127

Understand that a Baby's Environment Can Enhance or Detract From Her Sleep 128

Pick the Right Room and Furniture 130

Pick the Right Bed 132

Pick the Sound 134

Pick the Right Sleepwear 135

Pick the Right Crib Accessories 136

Pick the Right Bedtime Story 139

Pick the Right Lighting 140

Pick the Right Temperature 141

Pick the Right Smell 142

Pick the Right Position 143

Pick the Right Feeding Times 144

Chapter 6 Establishing a Routine 151

Plan Your Baby's Bedtime Routine Before Bedtime 151

Maintain Your Routine Even When Life Gets in the Way 153

Make Sure Your Baby Knows She is Safe, Cared for, and Loved Before Bed 156

Establish a Realistic Bedtime 160

Establish a Realistic Wake-up Time 161

Getting Your Baby to Sleep Well Starts First-thing in the Morning 162

Establish Appropriate and Consistent Naptimes 163

Do Not Stimulate Your Baby Before Bed 167

Remember: Routines Will Change as Your Baby Ages 168

Do Not Give in to Pleading 169

Chapter 7 Breaking Bad Habits 171

Recognize Your Child's Sleep Associations 172

It is Not Too Late to Change Sleep Associations 173

Replace Bad Sleep Associations with Good Ones 175

Taper Off Nighttime Feedings as Your Child Ages 176

You Baby Should Fall Asleep in the Same Place He Will Sleep Throughout the Night 177

Your Willpower Must be Greater Than Your Baby's 178

Ask for Help 179

Put Yourself in Your Baby's Shoes 181

Do Not Take Frustration Out on Your Baby 181

Exercise Your Child or Stimulate Your Baby During the Day 182

Chapter 8 Napping 187

Know How Long Your Baby Should Nap for His Age 187

Identify Your Baby's Naptime Associations 189

Remember: Almost all Babies and Children Need Naps 189

Keep Naptimes and Lengths Consistent - Even When Nighttime Sleep is Not 191

Put Your Baby to Sleep for Naptime Using the Same Method You Use for Bedtime 192

Do Not Let Your Baby Nap Too Late in the Day 193

Do Not Rush to Comfort Your Baby if He Stirs During Naptime 195

Not All Children are Impacted the Same by Naptime Discrepancies 196

Do Not Skip Naps in Order For Your Baby to Sleep Better at Night 197

If Your Baby Refuses to Nap, Insist on a Rest Time Instead 198

Chapter 9 Older Siblings and Multiple Births 203

Pick Appropriate Bed Times for Each Child Separately 203

Do Not be Afraid of Waking Older Children 204

Involve Older Children in the Process 205

Ensure Healthy Sleep Habits of Older Children Before the Baby's Arrival 206

Mold Older Children in to "Heavy" Sleepers 212

Separate Children During Bedtime if Necessary 214

Teach Twins to Fall Asleep Separately 218

Consider Using Separate Cribs or Rooms for Twins 219

Chapter 10 Changes in Routine 221

Milestones will Impact Your Child's Sleep Schedule 221

Stress Can Impact Your Baby's Sleep 222

After a Temporary Routine Change or Illness, Resume the Normal Schedule ASAP 223

Do Not Disrupt Your Baby's Sleep Schedule to Accommodate Visiting Family or Friends 224

Do Not be Discouraged if Old Techniques Stop Working 225

Be Patient and Know that Temporary Periods of Disrupted Sleep are Normal 226

Chapter 11 Sleepless Parents 231

Identify Root Causes of Sleepless Nights 231

Create Order and Structure in Your Own Life 233

De-stress Before Your Bedtime and Create a Bedtime Routine for Yourself 234

Give Yourself Time to Relearn How to Sleep Through the Night 236

Exercise Daily 237

Avoid Caffeine or Other Stimulants Late in the Day 238

Eat Healthy During the Day and Avoid Big Meals Before Bedtime 239

Create a Relaxing Environment Conducive to Sleep 240

Chapter 12 When All Else Fails 243

Take a Break 243

Do Not Play the Blame Game 244

Remind Yourself that Sleep Training is Worth the Effort 245

Get More Help 245

Conclusion 251

Appendix A Checklists, Sleep Logs, and Charts 255

Average Sleep Needs of Babies and Toddlers 255

Weekly Sleep Log 256

Weekly Daytime Sleep Log 257

Weekly Daytime Feeding Log 258

Weekly Diaper Log 259

Setting the Mood Checklist 260

Appendix B Expert Biographies and Contact Information 263

Appendix C Additional Resources 273

Books on Babies 273

Books on Adult Sleep 274

Books on Baby/Toddler Sleep 275

Books on Co-Sleeping 276

Web Sites 276

Helpful Organizations 279

Other SIDS Web Sites/Articles 280

Bibliography 281

Author Biography 283

Index 285