One of the most heated topics in parenting is sleep training, and if this is something that parents should do with their infants. While there are general thoughts about sleep training, it is hard to separate the facts from the myths and break down the walls of what sleep training is and whether it is beneficial for a family. There is no real answer to this question because parenting would never be that easy, but all mom can do is absorb the information that is given to her and make an informed decision based on her family dynamics.
There are many reasons why a family may decide that sleep training is right for their family. Mom may have to go back to work and has a baby who cannot settle to sleep on their own, meaning a lot of nights spent awake. Babies and young toddlers need their sleep for growth and development, and if they are not getting that sleep that they need then it can lead to a sad and fussy baby. While sleep training may be an important decision, it is up to a mom and her child’s pediatrician to do what is right for them.
When To Start?
According to Cleveland Health Clinic, there is one consensus on sleep training that is consistent in the medical field and that is that you cannot sleep train a newborn. A baby who has just been born needs to wake up every few hours to eat and while there are newborns who sleep long stretches at night, it is an unrealistic expectation to expect that a newborn can be trained to fall asleep on their own.
The goal of sleep training is to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own. A lot of times, infants can have associations when it comes to falling asleep and this can be breastfeeding, rocking, or even just being held by mom and these environments worked when the baby was a newborn, but now that they are older, they may need to learn to fall asleep on their own. This means that when they wake up in the middle of the night, they are more likely to drift off back to sleep instead of needing their sleep association back. The suggested (minimum) age to start sleep training is about 4 months’ old.
Ferber Method
We are now going to go over some of the more popular sleep training methods. According to Today’s Parent, the Ferber method (also known as the check and console) is one of the more popular methods of sleep training, and it can be a great at breaking associations while still providing some comfort. After mom does her bedtime routine, she places her baby in the crib and walks away. She will have already set up timed intervals to go in and reassure her baby if they cry. When mom goes in, she does not pick up the baby. She can speak to them, return a pacifier and then make a quick exit. She then waits longer to go back in a second time. After every time she goes in, she waits a bit longer.
Extinction
The extinction method is one of the more aggressive forms of sleep training, and it is also the method that tends to give all methods a bad name. The idea behind extinction is that you do not want to respond to the behavior at all. For this method, mom will do the bedtime routine, place baby in the crib, say goodnight and walk away. Where this is different than the Ferber method is that you do not go back in. This form of sleep training is the most criticized methods and is generally not advised by most pediatricians.
Chair Method
The chair method may require the most discipline from mom and dad, but it can be a very gentle form of sleep training. After you have gotten your baby ready for bed, you place them in the bed and sit in a chair that has been placed next to the crib. When they fall asleep, you leave the room. Every time they wake up, you go in and sit in that same chair and do it all over again. As the nights go on, you want to move the chair further away from the crib until it is completely out of the room. This method is one that generally takes the longest, but moms are often more reassured of their baby’s comfort with this method.
Pick-Up-Put-Down
The pick-up-put-down method is another very gentle form of sleep training, but it requires a lot of patience and work from mom and dad. According to Baby Sleep Site, mom places her baby in the crib, but every time they cry, they pick them up, console them and then place them back down. This is repeated until the baby has fallen asleep on their own. This method also has a flaw that it is not guaranteed to work on every baby. The constant picking up and putting down can make an upset baby even more upset and they can find it overstimulating.
Is Sleep Training Harmful?
The argument against sleep training is that it is harmful to an infant and their development. According to Duke University – Pediatrics, this is a myth. While they are not saying that there are no risks when it comes to sleep training, they are saying that there is no evidence that it is harmful. There have not been any studies that have found any long-term benefits, or risks, when it comes to sleep training. This is reiterating the idea that sleep training is a personal decision that is made by the parents, based on their family’s situation. There have been studies done that have shown that sleep training can provide short-term improvements in both sleep quality for infants, and in maternal mental health.
There has also been concern that sleep training will ruin the attachment and bond between infant and parent, and this is a myth as well. There have been studies done that show that there are no negative consequences in a bond between parent and child due to sleep training. There have even been studies that have shown an increased bond in sleep training babies and their mothers. Having information on a subject is always the best way to make an informed decision, and mom shouldn’t forget that her child’s pediatrician is also a resource that she can use to answer all of her sleep questions.
Sources: Cleveland Health Clinic, Today’s Parent, Baby Sleep Site, Duke University - Pediatrics