I AM HELD Gentle Sleep Coaching

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗜 𝗛𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵?

There are hundreds of reasons to need extra help when you’re raising a family – and I believe sleep challenges can be one of them! No matter what your family’s unique needs are, a Gentle Sleep Coach can create a customized plan and support you thru the process so your whole family can have better sleep.
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𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂’r𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝟳 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽:
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1️⃣ If your newborn is not ready for sleep training but is struggling to sleep well, then a sleep coach can be just the person to talk to. One that does not recommend sleep training before a baby is developmentally ready.
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2️⃣ If you are very concerned about how much your child cries, you may be focused on finding a way to sleep coach them that is gentle and gradual. This is when to hire a sleep coach who fits your parenting style.
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3️⃣ Maybe you tried sleep coaching before without success. Maybe you hit a speed bump and didn’t know what to do or you tried CIO with no success.
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4️⃣ Bedtime has become a battle. Toddlers and preschoolers can be, let’s face it, significantly more challenging to sleep coach than babies and they are experts at stalling and procrastinating.
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5️⃣ You want to gently night wean or stop co-sleeping but don't know where to start.
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6️⃣ You have unique circumstances. You may travel a lot, have a unique work schedule, have multiple caregivers for your baby or your child has medical needs that require a customized sleep plan.
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7️⃣ You are exhausted or overwhelemd and would like the extra support. You don't have to go through this alone. A Gentle Sleep Coach can see the light at the end of the tunnel even when you cannot and can help.
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𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝘆 𝗯𝗶𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀. 🌜💤

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝘄𝗲'𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗱𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀. Yes, you read that right! Early bedtimes can be a game-changer, and I'm here to share the secrets behind this sleep-enhancing practice 🌟 T𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗱𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼:

💤 If your child is taking a 5PM nap and it's throwing their bedtime back to 9PM or later, it is time to drop the late nap!

🌟 Keep in mind that your baby's bedtime may shift by 30 minutes some nights, especially as they get older and their wakefulness window increases.

🌞 Putting your child to bed later does NOT mean they will sleep in. In fact the later you put your baby to bed, the more you run the risk of night waking and early rising.

🌞 Make sure to watch for signs/sleep cues that your little one is ready for bed. After a few days you should be able to get ahead of their signs and start their bedtime routine before they're overtired.

🌟 Getting your child to bed early AND using something like The Shuffle Method to teach your child to put themselves to sleep GREATLY increases your chances for your child sleeping soundly through the night.

Share your own early bedtime discoveries with us! Or tag a friend who might find this helpful 💬💤

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗚𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝗲𝗱

You need to factor in your child's age, the average amount of sleep they need for their age and what time your child needs to wake up in the morning in order to get to preschool or daycare or just to begin your day at home.
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𝗟𝗲𝘁'𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗱𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝗴𝗲 ✨
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🎨 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝟶-𝟲 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀: Newborns do not have an ideal bedtime as their circadian rhythm (or internal clock) has yet to be established. Also, their need to eat is quite frequent. So your baby will eat and sleep at will. Keep watching your baby's sleep windows for a few weeks until you notice a consistent time at night emerging that they tend to get sleepy and make that their bedtime.
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🌟 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝟲-𝟭𝟭 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀: Often babies between 6-11 months old have an ideal bedtime between 7-7:30pm but wake up time and naps must be factored in. In general babies need around 11 hours of sleep at night. Consider picking a consistent time to start the day to help regulate the nap times and therefore bedtime.
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🌿 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝟭-𝟮 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀: Find your toddler’s ideal bedtime by determining how many hours of nighttime sleep he needs (between 10 and 11.5 hours, typically). To find his ideal bedtime, work backwards from the time you want him to wake up each morning and arrive at his ideal bedtime.
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🌙 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝟯-𝟱 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀: Preschoolers typically need 10 to 11 hours of sleep at night. If your preschooler wakes at 6 a.m. then he needs to be heading to dreamland about 7 p.m. If he seems to wake up too early (before 6 a.m. consistently), consider using a “wake up clock” which lights up when it is ok to get out of bed in the morning.
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You may find that even though you now know your child’s ideal bedtime, he struggles go to sleep well on his own, even after a soothing bedtime routine and then wakes frequently. You may need to create a sleep coaching plan and start gentle sleep coaching. I offer both group workshops and private consults that can support you in that.

Link in bio.
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𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗗𝗼 𝗜 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝟵 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻?

The best and biggest piece of advice for weathering a developmental milestone or sleep regression is to remember they are temporary. Your baby WILL get back to their usual sleeping and eating routines soon. 🛌✨ What you can do to help your child sleep better and weather this phase smoothly:
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🌼 Be flexible. You may not be able to count on long daytime naps to give you a break or for bedtime to be smooth and relatively quick. Recruit some help — or even just moral support — from your partner, family, or friends to give yourself a break. Its ok to have a nap in the stroller if it offers you both some fresh air and a change of scenery.
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🌞 Respond to your baby. It’s good to cuddle and feed them more and to take more time at bedtime or meals right now.
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🏃 Be patient and supportive while your baby is frustrated or out of sorts — especially given how hard their brain and body are working.
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🎶 Stick to your GOOD habits. While it’s important to be supportive and responsive to your child, try not to fall back on old sleep habits or create new sleep crutches out of desperation. Ask yourself, is what I am doing sustainable, can I keep doing it in the future?
⠀ Use The Shuffle strategies to comfort and calm them if they are having a tough night
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It might be hard to imagine it when your baby’s sleep challenges are difficult, but this sleep regression will pass just like the others before it. 💤

𝟱 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗧𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻𝘀

"✨ 𝗗𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘆 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵! 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝟱️⃣ 𝗴𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝘆-𝗟𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻:

1. Swaddling: Mimics the womb's coziness, providing a sense of security.
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2. White Noise: A gentle hum can drown out background noises and sound like the womb, ensuring undisturbed slumbers.
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3. Night Feeds: Keep them calm and dimly lit. The less stimulation, the better!
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4. Follow the 3pm Rule: quiet the environement from 3pm to their bedtime to avoid overstimulation.
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5. Create a soothing pre-nap and bedtime routine and do that consistently.
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Let go of sleep training your newborn! They are operating from their primitive brain and don't yet have the capacity to regulate themselves so they need YOU to soothe them. You are not creating any bad habits! You are teaching them what a calm, regualted state feels like so that when their brain is developmentally ready to self soothe it will seek out this regulated state. 🌙💤

🍼🌌👶🏼"

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜𝘀 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗲𝘀?

"Ever wondered about Gentle Sleep Coaching for babies and toddlers? It's a responsive parenting approach where you stay with your child offering reassurance as they learn the new skill of putting themselves to sleep.

No Cry-It-Out alone, just love and understanding. Sleep is essential, not just for the baby but for the entire family. Let's coach our l'il ones to put themselves to sleep while still feeling safe and loved. 💤✨

Link in Bio

🌟💭👶🏽"

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟭𝟱 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻

🌟 T𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗱𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝟭𝟱 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀: 🛌💤

👶 Give your child extra time to settle down in the evening with quiet activities

🌛 At this age in particular toddlers are highly attached to their rituals and routines. Predictability and consistency make them feel safe and secure. Even better if you can create rituals that they can participate in like, putting away the groceries together or a favourite song you sing together for diaper changes or a special way to say hello and good-bye when parting.

👶 Be flexible about naps. Some days they’ll need one, some days they will need two

🌛 Keep a predictable pre-nap and bedtime routine

👶 If your toddler needs sleep coaching, don’t transition them to one nap until they are sleeping through the night

To get through the 15 month sleep regression smoothly, try to be flexible. You may not be able to count on long daytime naps every day and you may have to move bedtime earlier on days your toddler doesn’t nap well. 🌙✨

🦷 𝗦𝗼 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽? On one hand, it may not change your baby's sleep at all. However, if your child is uncomfortable, you may find that both naps and nighttime sleep become a bit of a fight. Luckily, there are a few things that you can do to help soothe your teething baby both during the day and when they go to sleep:
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🍼 Find your go-to trick! Some of the most popular options are simply frozen toys or foods. You can put frozen breastmilk in a mesh teether.
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💊 Avoid Benzocaine. The FDA has issued a warning about benzocaine (found in Anbesol and Orajel), stating that it should not be administered to babies under 2 years of age.
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💤 Talk to your pediatrician about the best pain relieving option for your baby.
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➕ When you administer your baby’s pain reliever, save yourself a headache and do a little bit of math. If your baby still wakes at night for feedings, time their first dose of pain reliever 4-6 hours before normal feeding time so they will already be awake for the second dose.
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👶 This advice may shock you, but if you have a child who no longer wakes at night, you may want to consider approaching it like a Dream Feed and partially wake them when it’s time to administer a second dose of pain reliever. This may be better than the alternative of your baby waking fully in pain and having to wait 30 minutes for the medecine to kick in.
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🦷 Remember, teething is temporary!
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😄 𝘁𝗮𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀!
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𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗧𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗦𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴

Intensity, persistence, sensory sensitivities, and the other alert baby traits can make for a perfect storm that not only makes sleep harder and more scarce, but it can really throw parents for a loop. Believe it or not, there are some specific “hacks” that you, as a parent of an alert baby, need to know about:

🌛 Stay ahead of the second wind. Alert children often seem like they don’t need as much sleep, but this is typically because they are living full-time in their second wind. Get naps and a solid, early bedtime.🌟

🌟 Be more consistent than you've ever been. It’s important to pick something that you know your child can handle and that you can handle (just bedtime?) and just do exactly the same thing for at least three nights to see if a consistent approach will kick in.

💤 Push through the pushback. When baby sleep and temperament meet, sleep has to win. If you’re inconsistent, your child will not overlook this. You cannot sneak this past them. Set your mind to whatever you are choosing to do and try not to waffle.

😴 Try the Sleep Lady Shuffle. A gentler, gradual approach always works better for these alert kiddos! The Shuffle allows you as a parent to methodically reduce what you are doing. It also allows you to keep your alert baby from getting hysterical. We don’t want that! Done correctly, The Shuffle really, really works for alert babies.

Getting better sleep with livewires is possible—if you know about the ins and outs of temperament. 💬 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 ❤️

➡️ 𝟯 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝗳 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝗪𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 ➡️

🌞 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗹𝘆, 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀, 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.
🌟Usually the issue is: they are NOT awake ENOUGH at bedtime.
🌟Make sure you are putting them down within their ideal sleep window and not over tired.

🌞 You should of course, rule out any underlying medical problems, just to be sure.

🌞 Start sleep coaching your baby at bedtime. If they learn the skill of putting themsleves to sleep at bedtime, the easiest point of the day for them, then they will be better able to apply that new skill in the middle of the night. Make sure that you start bedtime sleep coaching after a great day of naps.

𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗮𝗽𝘀! 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲? 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴? 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗻𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽:

☀️ Newborn to 5 Months: Nap coaching is rarely advised — or successful — with babies this young. Often, parents of newborns find that their babies are taking a lot of naps — 4 to 5 naps per day is not uncommon. Don't stress too much or worry about 'bad habits' get them sleep any way you can!

🌟 6 to 8 Months: At this age, most babies need between 2 and 3 naps per day. They’ll take a morning nap, an afternoon nap, and a one hour (maximum) late afternoon nap to help them bridge the gap between naptime and bedtime.

☀️ 9 to 12 Months: Additionally, you will find that your baby’s morning nap — no more than 90 minutes — will shorten, and will be supplemented by a longer afternoon nap. Total average of 3-3.5 hours.

🌟 13 to 18 Months: Sometime between 13 and 18 months, most babies make a natural transition from two naps to one. This one nap is usually a 2- 2.5 hour afternoon nap, usually beginning between 12:30 and 2 p.m.

☀️ 18 Months and Beyond: Baby and toddler naps continue with this decreasing pattern until they are ready to transition to quiet time. The average child will stop napping somewhere between 3 and 4 years old.

A gentle sleep coaching method like The Shuffle allows you to stay with your child while they learn the new skill of putting themselves to sleep while also protecting their secure attachment. We do this by responding to your child's frustrations with your voice and touch and picking them up to calm if it all becomes too much. ⁠
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💕Your child will know they can count on you to support them through this learning. ⁠
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Tag a friend who you know may be feeling guilty for wanting to sleep train their child and could use a little support. ⁠
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If you would like to know more about my philosophy and approach as a Gentle Sleep Coach, you can find a whole page dedicated to it on my website. ⁠
Link in Bio.⁠
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