Sleep is the word
“Most of the consultations I have – about 98 per cent – are about sleep” Nanny Robina explained to me when we chatted about an upcoming article that will be out in the Spring issue of Together Family. Here on TogetherFamily.ca we have also hosted guest writer and sleep expert Pam Nease (see her articles here, here and here) to talk about some of the most controversial and challenging aspects of getting young children to sleep. Of course there are many hot-button issues about parenting (breast feeding, nutrition, education etc…) but sleep seems to be the most common, day to day challenge that every parent struggles with at least for a time.
This is why we wanted to put our resident sleep expert Pam Nease to the test! What actually makes her a sleep expert? As a licensed Sleep Sense sleep therapist, can she really guarantee a solution to your sleep problems. Well we will explore this in an upcoming article in the print version of Together Family magazine. Pam Nease teamed up with Vancouver based radio show host Amy Beeman (who also happens to be a mother of twins who struggle with sleep) to see if they could remedy their troubles with sleep together.
Stay tuned for this story filled with tips to get your tots to sleep (and to help bring your sanity back!). Until then, here are a few tips to help you get through tonight:
1. Beware of crutches! you want your children to get back to sleep but they will quickly become reliant on whatever your soothing mechanism (thumb, car ride, song, etc…)
2. Routine is key! Sleep will come more easily when children are expecting it. Keep their routine throughout the day pretty regular but pay special attention to their before-bed routine.
3. It’s all about you! Have faith that your children can get back to sleep without your help. Although there are exceptions to the rule, sometimes children and babies need to be left to their own devices to get settled back to sleep.
Want more advice from Pam and Amy’s experience? make sure to subscribe for your holiday issue of Together Family magazine.
