Here at Sleeper Teachers®, we are all about the “you do you” parenting movement. We firmly believe that we are each doing our very best to provide exactly what our families need. If you want to breastfeed, bottle feed, pump, formula feed or combine all of the above, great. If you want to work from home, work at an office or stay at home with the babes, great. If you want to parent with discipline or choice or positivity, great.
We don’t pass judgment for mamas that choose to co-sleep. We don’t care if you rock your babe to sleep for every single nap until they are 3 years old. We know there are parenting styles that match exactly your preference and we truly love that you do for your family what you believe is best!
But we have been doing all of this long enough to know that when you are ready for sleep to change in your house, you are ready… Like now. Errrrr even yesterday.
And just like that…
Sleep is one of those things that can change at the drop of a hat. One day your newborn is sleeping great, and the next day they are waking up EVERY SINGLE TIME you try to gently lay them down and then ninja walk your way out of the bedroom.
Or your toddler who used to go down so great in their crib is now in your room, starring at you with creepy beady eyes wanting you to come lay with them.
And when things get bad, most parents are ready for sleep and willing to make a change immediately. No one wants one more sleepless night or one more day held hostage on the couch while holding a little one to sleep. Most parents would give just about ANYTHING for better sleep.
“For any doubters: This can work for you and whatever current sleep situation you are in! The Sleeper Teachers’s plans are completely customizable to accommodate you. 10/10, would wholeheartedly recommend. An investment in sleep is totally worth it!” – Ruby, 4 year old, Wisconsin
Hitting rock bottom
We all come to the point of something’s gotta give and something’s gotta change in our own time before we are truly ready for sleep. For some families, it is frequent middle of the night arguments between parents that is the bottom of the barrel. For others, it is realization that you can’t work from home if your baby doesn’t nap. And others are fine with their sleep scenario until their kiddo realizes that they can’t attend a sleepover if they don’t know how to sleep without being next to mama.
Whatever the “final straw”… When you know, you know!
“I reached out to Sleeper Teachers when my 4.5 month old rejected his pacifier and stopped falling asleep in his smart bassinet. I found myself rocking him to sleep 4 times per day and he was still waking up 4-5 times per night either to be put back to sleep or nursed. This wasn’t sustainable and my back was in bad shape.” – Ashley, 4 month old, New York
The truth about sleep consulting
We know that not every single parent we talk to is going to be ready to make changes ASAP, and we also know that not every single parent will need coaching during the implementation. There are many parents out there who find success when they read a book about a sleep teaching method, follow an online course or gather tips from other mamas in a FB group. AND WE LOVE THIS. We are all about the DIY movement. We believe that if you can take some sleep education and move forward on your own, you totally should.
However, there are other parents who do better with expert sleep guidance when they are ready to sleep. Some parents don’t have time to read all the books or search all the blogs. They might have tried SO MANY THINGS already that they just want something that will work. Or maybe, they know themselves well enough to know that a third party expert will help them to stay accountable and argue less in the middle of the night.
This tired mom is so ready for sleep that she is resting her head on the couch while playing with her child.
3 expert steps when you are ready for sleep
The following three steps are what we suggest you do BEFORE you make sleep changes. Please note that these recommendations have come after three years in business and chatting with THOUSANDS of families about their sleep struggles.
Step 1- Get a plan
It is harder than heck to know what to do in the middle of the night when your babe won’t fall back to sleep without you. But it is even harder if you don’t have a plan for how you are going to comfort them without the paci (or feed or rocking). So — find yourself a plan (on Google or Pinterest or in a sleep book) that feels comfy to you!
“We felt really empowered in the skills we were taught to be able to support our daughter so she could learn how to fall asleep and stay asleep on her own. By night 7, just ONE WEEK after starting the program, we were putting her into her crib and she was just… going to sleep!” – Breanna, 19 month old, Oregon
Step 2- Be consistent
Once you are ready for sleep and have selected a plan, stick with it! It is most fair to your little one and yourself to leave any mixed-messages behind and focus on one consistent plan! Consistency can look like: a bedtime routine that is the same from day to day and night to night, an on-going method of intervention when baby gets upset and following a daytime schedule that allows baby to be in their own “sweet spot” of sleep need.
The bottom line here is we want to prevent overtiredness, but we also want to be sure littles are sleepy enough.
Step 3- Get yourself a buddy when you are ready for sleep
Accountability really does help, especially when the going gets tough. Think about why people with workout buddies are more likely to complete a training program. If there’s a mom on your street that is about to sleep train, team up! Or get your hubby on board. Or even consider hiring a trusty sleep expert from Sleeper Teachers®️! Your long nights won’t seem quite so bad when you have someone cheering you on. We promise!
“There are so many variables to keep track of and their sleep needs change so quickly! It is so worth it to have someone knowledgeable to make goals, provide the tools and answer questions along the way. This is one of the best investments we’ve made.” – Allison and Ian, 12 week old, Colorado
Ready for sleep help?
If you want to learn more about how we can take you from a state of exhausted and sleep deprived to well-rested and revived… Let’s chat!
We would love to learn more about your family’s sleep struggles and your dreamy sleep goals, so let’s hop on a free sleep evaluation call which you can book HERE. By the end of the call, you’ll know exactly how we can help you meet your goals as quickly and low stress as possible!
Cheers to being ready for sleep,
Brittney and the Sleeper Teachers®