Sleep solutions for your baby, toddler and pre-schooler

“Sleep is a lot like sex. If you are not getting as much you’d like, it can become a bit of an obsession. Suddenly, all you can think about is when you last had it, how great if felt when you had it, and what you can do to get some again.”

 It is no wonder there are a million sleep books out there – sleep, or lack there of, is one of the hardest things about parenting. As many people have said before me, there is a reason sleep deprivation is used as a method of torture. It is enough to make the strongest person crack.

 As part of her cyber book tour, I am reviewing Ann Douglas’ book “Sleep solutions for your baby, toddler and pre-schooler”. Yet another sleep book you say! What makes this one different / unique / any better than the rest?

 There are several things I like about this book: the first is that there is no guilt – no judgement, no moral high ground, just an acknowledgment that different solutions work for different sleep problems in individual children. Ann has done her homework by speaking to hundreds of mothers about what worked for them, and combines this practical experience with the facts behind the science of sleep. I also love Ann’s voice in the book. She is funny, friendly, warm and this comes across in her writing. 

 Ann covers all the different issues relating to sleep as well as the schools of thought around solving your sleep issues: from co-sleeping, to sleep aids, to moving your toddler into his big boy bed to night terrors. She presents each view objectively, giving you sufficient information to decide what will work for your child. 

 If you are pregnant, then I highly recommend you get this book. As Ann says in the book, all the reading we do when we are pregnant is about pregnancy and giving birth, when instead we should be reading about the issues we will be dealing with once the baby is born. And believe me, sleep will be one of the biggest issues you will have to deal with. 

 In closing, I leave you with this paragraph from the book on “New mom sleep debt”, in which Ann quotes Faulkner Fox. I could so relate to this:

 “A friend of mine started referring to herself as ‘the sleep accountant’ soon after her son was born. She took to asking friends, colleagues at work and veritable strangers how much sleep they’d gotten the night before. ‘What were you hoping,’ I’d ask, ‘that no one would have gotten less sleep than you, or that someone would be down in the bottom percentile keeping you company?’ ‘I was just so jealous of people who were sleeping,’ she’d replied. ‘I just wanted to know who they were so I could hate them.’”

Comments

[Jodie]

Oh I loved that sleep accountant quote. With my first I added up every hour of sleep I had. I would say "I had 2 hours straight last night, 5 hours in total...plus 2 half hour naps today". I would ask people what time they went to bed, what time they got up, if they slept in on the weekend. I was obsessed.

Now I have 2 excellent sleepers at 5 and 2 years old. Those blurry days are behind me. And all I can say is THANK GOD!!!

As for sleep solutions, I truly believe, as Anne said, different methods work for different people. I think talking to loads of mums is such a great idea. Eventually you find one that seems to strike a chord with you.

[Rachel]

Your posts make me laugh sometimes because it seems that at times it's like you are inside my brain!
I'm just here on the computer with a little 6 week old babe here swinging....swinging....oh, but she's still awake! Having the time of her life while I am dreaming of that sweet sweet elixir of sleep.
Man, lately I could fall asleep sitting up, and the moment my head hits the pillow it's the deepest sleep I have ever known. It's like my body knows that the window for it is so small that it had better enjoy that deep REM when it can and get down to business.
You are right, without the right amount of sleep the hard outer shell cracks, and there is nothing worse than a woman with no sleep.
Ok, maybe a woman with PMS and no sleep but thank goodness I'm not there yet.
Wow, this is the longest post I've ever written on your blog.
I'm delirious. She just yawned, is that a good sign? :)
Wait, don't answer that!

[Woody's Girl]

I don't know if Ann covers this point in her book or not, but I personally have found that there is a substantial difference in missing sleep by CHOICE, versus missing sleep against your will!

For instance, nights that Scott and I stay up late watching a movie, I may not get many hours of sleep, but I'm not terribly grumpy about it. Nights that I am deprived of sleep because of "unforseen events" (child waking spontaneously, bad thunderstorm, etc.), I am MUCH more inclined to be grouchy the next morning.

Now, if I can just teach my children (and pets!) about WEEKENDS (i.e. sleeping in), I'll be happy - and better rested - camper. LOL

[Shan]

This is a great book. I sent my husband out to buy it one weekend when I was at the end of my rope on how I was going to get my 7 month old to finally sleep through the night. It gave me lots of options to try and I'm happy to say we finally found something that worked. I highly recommend this (and all of Ann Douglas' books) to everyone. My sil had given me her Mother of all Pregnancy books when I was expecting my first and I loved it. I actually ended up getting rid of the other pregnancy books I had. Ann's book was easy to read with lots of helpful advice from lots of different Moms. I think her books are the best on the topics of pregnancy and parenting.

[Kirsty]

You know, my son is 14 now and I STILL monitor how much sleep I'm getting, not because he keeps me awake anymore but just because he slept so badly in the first three years that it became a total habit to count up my hours of sleep first thing in the morning. Of course, now I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome which has given me sleep issues of my own.