Avoid the Pitfalls of “Fall Back”

On Sunday, November 6th, most of us in the U.S. will be turning our clocks back one hour. Just the thought of this change instills panic in parents who have just gotten their little one on that great routine!

This fall time change is more challenging than our “spring forward” change. Changing our clocks even one hour disrupts our circadian rhythms, the natural cycles that control many of our bodies functions, including sleep, hunger, elimination, acuity, dexterity, and more. It will take our systems several days to adapt to the new times, often longer for children. Continue reading…


We’re on TV and Radio!

Last week, the San Francisco CBS affiliate ran a story on the 11pm news featuring the work we do at Sleep Sisters. One of our fabulous clients graciously agreed to participate by talking about her experience working with a sleep consultant and allowing her darling baby to appear on camera (going down for a nap, no less!). Melissa also shared some thoughts about our role as certified sleep consultants. Continue reading…


SIDS Awareness – A Few Reminders

October is SIDS awareness month and we wanted to make sure that we didn’t let the month pass by without spending some time discussing this very scary phenomenon. As moms, we know that the unknown or unexplainable can be the most frightening and SIDS is one of those things. Often, pediatricians say, “We just don’t understand why this happens,” and that means that we feel out of control – a horrible thing for parents with newborns. While this is true, we do know that there are things we can do to reduce the risk of losing a child to SIDS. Continue reading…


The Use of OTC Drugs and Sleep

I just read an article on Salon.com about parents who use Benedryl (and cough syrup) to help children sleep–especially when traveling. The article was written as a follow-up to a previous article about a family who was kicked off a JetBlue flight when their toddler was too disruptive. As parents, we are frequently desperate to prove to others that our children are well-behaved and that we are super-hero parents. (How else would we have perfectly behaved children?) Besides wanting peace and quiet ourselves, we don’t want to disrupt others with a screaming child in a restaurant, on an airplane, on the train. To what end are we willing to make that happen? Continue reading…


Sleep Milestones | A Complimentary Whitepaper!

When is a ‘normal’ time for baby to start sleeping through the night? Should you change anything when your child starts to potty train? What can you expect at 3 months? 6 months? 8 months? There are some important sleep milestones to keep an eye out for. These serve as general sleep guidelines for children and should give you a good foundation. As Moms ourselves, we wanted to put together something simple and useful to share with all of you.

Please download our complimentary whitepaper on Sleep Milestones. It’s a PDF–just download, open and print!

Free Sleep Guidelines Whitepaper

And please, if you found this useful, leave a comment. We’d love to hear that you enjoyed it.

 


Sleep Sisters’ Rules to Sleep By:

Babies have a biological need for sleep–Our bodies create hormones that help us fall asleep (melatonin) and ones that keep us awake (adrenaline and cortisol). We want to encourage our babies to produce these hormones at the right times…otherwise, we risk them developing “jet-lag syndrome” and become extremely overtired.

Sleep Begets Sleep–When babies are overtired, they have trouble falling asleep and STAYING asleep. Although many people will tell you to “keep your baby up” so that he gets tired, the opposite is in fact true. If your baby is having trouble sleeping, it is because he is overtired.

Make Sleep a Priority–Having your child get the sleep she needs is the same as making sure she’s getting enough nutrition. A child’s developing brain needs sleep to function at its best. You may have to alter your own schedule to fulfill the needs of your baby for a while.

Sleep in motion is not restorative–Having your child sleep in the car or in a stroller is not the same high-quality sleep that he will get in his crib. After 3 months or so, your child should be sleeping in his crib (or co-sleeper/bed) for most of his naps and at night.

A dark and cool room is the best sleep environment–Babies like to sleep in a “cave-like” environment. Don’t YOU sleep better when it’s dark?

Quality beats Quantity and Timing of Sleep beats Length of Sleep–High quality sleep (motionless, without music, dark, and at the right time) is more important than how long the sleep lasts.

Consistency is Key–Decide on your plan as a family and stick to it. When changes have to occur (a family vacation, a holiday meal, a doctor’s appointment) it will be easier to get back on track if your routine is well-established.

Questions about anything you see here?  Don’t hesitate to contact us!  We’d love to hear from you.