Im so pleased to say that we cracked it, within just four days my baby now sleeps without needing do sooth on the breast.
After day one and it taking 26 minutes to get her to sleep day two was even better it only took 15 minutes, I decided to leave 5 minute intervals between going in to give her back a little rub to reassure her I was still nearby. Day three was 5 minutes of crying and then she was asleep, I was in shock, I had it in my head the first few days would be sleepless and heartbreaking for hours, but no she has amazed us. We are now on day four and she had a little winge and fell straight to sleep, to be totally honest though as soon as she gets near her sleeping bag and cot a little tantrum starts because she knows whats coming. She still wakes at least once through the night, I give her a little feed and take her straight back to her bed AWAKE this is the important part, for this method to work. Again she will have a little cry for a couple of minutes and then drifts off to sleep.
This is how my last 4 days of sleep training has gone.
DAY 1
I fed pippa and then I put her in her sleeping bag this helped to wake her a little from falling asleep with her feed. I put her straight in her cot and straight away she cried I use the music on her baby monitor which I believe helps soothe her (maybe wishful thinking) and then I left the room. I found the first evening very hard and this is when the timing started
2 minutes
4 minutes
5 minutes
5 minutes
10 minutes
And that was the start of the evening as I said she wakes at least once usually at night and after having a quick top up we picked her up without being over cautious like we normally would because this time we wanted her awake so she could soothe herself to sleep.
And it worked Pippa went back to sleep until the morning. Phew
DAY 2
Well after day 1 going so well I was worried it may just have been a one off and it may not be plain sailing day 2 may not go as well, all I could do was keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best. I followed the same routine of feed, sleeping bag, bed and leave the room. This time the intervals between were
5 minutes
5 minutes
5 minutes
I was going to leave her a little longer on the third interval as by around 12 minutes she was goung quiet Inbetween her cries. By 15 minutes I went into check on her and she was fast asleep. I was ecstatic, I was jumping for joy, I couldn't wait until my husband Darren came home from work to tell him that it was already working.
DAY 3
Ok so same routine feed, bag, bed and leave the room.
I knew at this point it wasnt just luck she was starting to get used to soothing herself and it was all part of her routine although she still cries as soon as she gets near the sleeping bag.
This time we started with,
5 minutes
And thats all it took she fell asleep within 5 minutes. Obviously the time it will take for your baby to fall asleep will all depend on how tired the baby is if your baby has just had a 2 hour nap then they wont fall asleep within 5 minutes.
This info is how to get your baby to self soothe and not to get them to sleep, I just feel i should mention this.
So far, so good my baby is well on the way to self soothing herself to sleep.
DAY 4
Im starting to feel so much more relaxed now when bed time comes and it was another great night, Pippa was asleep within minutes and this time it was her daddy that put her to bed, I wasnt sure how well that would go but it worked. I do believe the music really helps, she has shared a room with us for the last 11 months and been used to having some noise in the background when dozing off to sleep.
So overall it has all gone well and I highly recommend the ferber method.
If you have any questions, feel free to message me or leave a comment.
After day one and it taking 26 minutes to get her to sleep day two was even better it only took 15 minutes, I decided to leave 5 minute intervals between going in to give her back a little rub to reassure her I was still nearby. Day three was 5 minutes of crying and then she was asleep, I was in shock, I had it in my head the first few days would be sleepless and heartbreaking for hours, but no she has amazed us. We are now on day four and she had a little winge and fell straight to sleep, to be totally honest though as soon as she gets near her sleeping bag and cot a little tantrum starts because she knows whats coming. She still wakes at least once through the night, I give her a little feed and take her straight back to her bed AWAKE this is the important part, for this method to work. Again she will have a little cry for a couple of minutes and then drifts off to sleep.
This is how my last 4 days of sleep training has gone.
DAY 1
I fed pippa and then I put her in her sleeping bag this helped to wake her a little from falling asleep with her feed. I put her straight in her cot and straight away she cried I use the music on her baby monitor which I believe helps soothe her (maybe wishful thinking) and then I left the room. I found the first evening very hard and this is when the timing started
2 minutes
4 minutes
5 minutes
5 minutes
10 minutes
And that was the start of the evening as I said she wakes at least once usually at night and after having a quick top up we picked her up without being over cautious like we normally would because this time we wanted her awake so she could soothe herself to sleep.
And it worked Pippa went back to sleep until the morning. Phew
DAY 2
Well after day 1 going so well I was worried it may just have been a one off and it may not be plain sailing day 2 may not go as well, all I could do was keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best. I followed the same routine of feed, sleeping bag, bed and leave the room. This time the intervals between were
5 minutes
5 minutes
5 minutes
I was going to leave her a little longer on the third interval as by around 12 minutes she was goung quiet Inbetween her cries. By 15 minutes I went into check on her and she was fast asleep. I was ecstatic, I was jumping for joy, I couldn't wait until my husband Darren came home from work to tell him that it was already working.
DAY 3
Ok so same routine feed, bag, bed and leave the room.
I knew at this point it wasnt just luck she was starting to get used to soothing herself and it was all part of her routine although she still cries as soon as she gets near the sleeping bag.
This time we started with,
5 minutes
And thats all it took she fell asleep within 5 minutes. Obviously the time it will take for your baby to fall asleep will all depend on how tired the baby is if your baby has just had a 2 hour nap then they wont fall asleep within 5 minutes.
This info is how to get your baby to self soothe and not to get them to sleep, I just feel i should mention this.
So far, so good my baby is well on the way to self soothing herself to sleep.
DAY 4
Im starting to feel so much more relaxed now when bed time comes and it was another great night, Pippa was asleep within minutes and this time it was her daddy that put her to bed, I wasnt sure how well that would go but it worked. I do believe the music really helps, she has shared a room with us for the last 11 months and been used to having some noise in the background when dozing off to sleep.
So overall it has all gone well and I highly recommend the ferber method.
If you have any questions, feel free to message me or leave a comment.
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