#ferber method

I know I’m preaching to the choir and a broken record but I CANNOT get over this weather. It’s like every year I’m surprised by the drastic shift in comfort and pure joy that arrives with the cooler temps.  I’m also extremely surprised to see how much my pace has improved just from a week ago.  A woman on my walk today asked me if I was chilly without a jacket but I told her I was walking fast enough to stay warm.  Love that having proper attire (or lack there of) is now something to be questioned.  

My little erp is NINE MONTHS OLD today!  Whaaaaaat.  ALSO, just noticed this morning that she has two new teeth popping through up top!  Four teeth!?!  Man, she’s growing up too fast. A photoshoot is definitely taking place later today to commemorate this milestone of a day.  

In other erp news, as of three days ago we started implementing a nap schedule due to the fact that letting her lead her naps wasn’t working anymore. She would get overly tired and cranky and fight naps so hard that it was a battle every day. 

My friendbor mentioned the Ferber Method so I tried it out and even though it was extremely painful the first few days as she SCREAMED in fury at not being held or rescued, she quickly conked out and now she cries slightly but then moves onto playing in her crib until she falls asleep.  This feels so much healthier for both of us as she now has even more independent play time and I now have two time periods a day that I can count on where she’s down, plus the 12 hours she sleeps a night. 

In fact, I just had to buy overnight diapers since she was sleeping too long she’d leak through her regular diapers. Here’s hoping these make a difference. And despite Kevin’s offer to change her during the night, I’d far rather change her sheets every day than disrupt her sleeping. 

I started modified sleep training for B last night.  B’s naps have been AWFUL recently, and his handling of the pacifier is completely different than C’s was. C would keep it in his mouth and be calmed by it almost instantly.  B CONSTANTLY spits it out and any sleep time becomes an endless cycle of running back in to replace it.  So, obviously, it was NOT serving its purpose. . .unless its purpose was driving me crazy--in that case it was 100% effective. 😬  So, goodbye pacifier.

The book says to wait until a time when you and the family can afford to lose some sleep. . .well, since B stays with me and the husband is downstairs and C has a sound machine and never wakes up for anything anyway, I thought ¯\_(ツ)_/¯--why not just start NOW.  It definitely SUCKED allowing B to cry for those intervals, but I just sat there staring at my timer and rereading the part of the book about studies showing that babies suffer no ill effects and that learning to self-sooth is a gift to a baby (and to me).  It took 30 minutes for B to fall asleep and he STAYED asleep until his middle of the night feeding (we’re doing a modified model because I really think B needs that feeding--he’s huge and he eats a ton).  He went immediately back to bed after the feeding with no fuss at all! He did wake up at 5am this morning (happy). . .which wasn’t ideal, and he still looked pretty tired, but the book said that starting at 5am on--even if it’s early for your child to wake up--it’s unlikely the child will go back to sleep so continuing the intervals is not advised. So, we got up and started the morning.  B is currently napping.  We read a story in his dimly lit room and then I put him fully awake (but tired) in his crib.  He fussed for seven minutes--I didn’t even have to come in again at the second interval because he was already asleep!   And, he’s taking a REAL nap!  He’s been in there for an hour and five minutes already!  I got to do some chores AND do a workout!! *praise hands*  My workouts have really been suffering with these super short naps recently, and it’s had me so frustrated.

In the pursuit of peaceful nights and well-rested babies, exhausted parents often turn to sleep training methods. Among the prominent techniques, the Ferber Method emerges as a worthy sleep coach, offering a gradual approach to nurturing self-soothing and independent infant and toddler sleep. This is not a cry-it-out method.

As modern technology transforms the landscape of parenting, a plethora of sleep training apps have surfaced, each claiming to be a valuable aid in implementing the Ferber Method. In this in-depth examination, we will closely scrutinize the top sleep training apps, with a particular focus on the standout performer – the "Sleep Trainer-Ferber Method" app.

Understanding the Ferber Sleep training and Its significance 

Before we delve into the realm of sleep training apps, let's reacquaint ourselves with the Ferber Method. Devised by the esteemed pediatrician Dr. Richard Ferber, this method places emphasis on establishing a structured sleep routine and imparting infants with the skill of self-soothing. It is very efficient for independent toddler sleep thus acting as a sleep coach.

The process involves gradually extending time intervals between parental check-ins, fostering the development of babies' ability to sleep through the night autonomously like a baby sleep timer. Beyond promoting healthy baby sleep habits, this method nurtures the essential capacity for self-soothing – a pivotal facet of infant growth by inducing a timer for sleep training. It further helps to maintain a sleep training schedule.

The Ascendance of Ferber Method-Based Apps

In recent times, technology has ushered in a multitude of parenting and Sleep coaching apps designed to facilitate Baby sleep training as per Ferber Sleep Training. These apps harness the benefits of the Ferber Method, a sleep coach to guide parents through the often tumultuous journey of cultivating sound sleep habits in Toddler Sleep. Encompassing features such as personalized sleep schedules, timers for check-ins, and expert resources, these Sleep coaching apps aid parents in comprehending and implementing the nuances of the Ferber Method.

A Comparison of Leading Ferber Method-Based Apps 

Lullaai Baby Sleep Training: This app presents a comprehensive platform catering to parents adopting the Ferber Method. It offers a step-by-step guide, tools for tracking sleep patterns, and soothing soundscapes to create an optimal baby sleep environment. However, some users have noted a lack of real-time guidance, leaving parents feeling uncertain during critical moments of Ferber sleep training. Some users liked the fact that it is powered by a real person, others felt, that there is no automation, and you need to wait for feedback from the coach - which is also expensive

Baby Sleep Trainer: Baby Sleep Trainer boasts an intuitive interface, enabling parents to tailor sleep schedules and monitor progress. Incorporating white noise and lullabies, the app seeks to comfort babies during the self-soothing journey. Yet, it falls short in providing in-depth educational resources, leaving some parents yearning for more guidance in comprehending the Ferber Method.

Huckleberry Sleep Baby Tracker: This app distinguishes itself with its meticulous sleep-tracking capabilities, allowing parents to closely monitor sleep patterns as a sleep coach. While equipped with helpful check-in timers, Huckleberry Sleep Baby Tracker occasionally falls short in delivering the customization features necessary for a tailored Ferber Method experience.

The Pinnacle of Excellence: "Sleep Trainer-Ferber Method" 

Amidst the competition, the "Sleep Trainer-Ferber Method" app emerges as a comprehensive and user-centric solution for sleep training. Here's why it claims the forefront:

Built by Experts: The app boasts an extensive repository of educational resources, making it an excellent choice for parents new to the Ferber Method. In-depth explanations on how to implement the Ferber method, along with useful tips and tricks - empower parents to grasp the method's principles and apply them effectively.

Unparalleled Customization: "Sleep Trainer-Ferber Method" excels in providing customizable, interval timers, and check-in prompts. This flexibility caters to the distinct needs of each baby, ensuring a tailored and personalized sleep training journey. Specially the preset for “Mild Ferber Method” is quite popular.

Holistic Sleep Tracking: The app's built-in sleep tracker meticulously logs sleep progress, equipping parents with motivation as crying before sleep reduces day by day.

Comparative Shortcomings of Competitor Apps

While alternative apps offer valuable features, they occasionally fall short in critical domains. Lullaai's absence of effective timer, Baby Sleep Trainer's limited educational resources, and Huckleberry's technical constraints hinder their ability to deliver a comprehensive Ferber Method experience.

This piece was written for Studio Theatre as part of the Marketing Multimedia Apprenticeship.

Molly Smith Metzler’s Cry It Out features new mothers Jessie and Lina building a friendship over their shared experiences parenting their newborns, bonding despite their very different socioeconomic backgrounds and tackling a variety of parenting dilemmas.

While mothers of the past relied on advice passed down from female elders and their own intuition, in today’s advanced society, science has shaped more of our approach to parenting. In Cry It Out, both Jessie and Lina have an intuitive opposition to extinction-method (‘cry it out’) sleep training; but while Jessie reluctantly plans to sleep train according to her doctor’s suggestion, Lina is skeptical about the doctor’s advice. However, both women appear inclined to let each other go their own way, with their need for human connection outweighing their opinions about parenting.

Since the natural instincts of new parents are often to prevent their children from feeling any distress, the medical recommendation to avoid comforting a crying baby may seem appalling. Some parents and child advocates believe that allowing their infants to “cry it out” will cause permanent harm or interfere with a child’s attachment process. These ideas make sense, but are they backed by evidence? What does the science say?

Cry it out. It is a very controversial method these days and I was not interested in trying it out until two weeks ago we were discussing the need to do something and Tyler announced we were "going to do this!" while showing me a link to the details of how to correctly carry out the Ferber Method - which is not just let your child endlessly scream until they fall asleep as half of the internet will scare you into thinking.

So, Monday December 29th - over Christmas vacation - we started "sleep training." It was hard. Like go and cry too kind of hard at first. There were multiple points where I wanted to go rescue Conner and if Tyler had not been there with me, I would have ruined it.

The first two days Conner completely skipped his afternoon nap because he could not fall asleep in the allotted time. So he was more than ready for bed at night. The first night was also the hardest because we had to stop feeding him, picking him up and consoling him which we were doing 2-3 times throughout the night.

It took about three days before he started getting the hang of self-soothing. He could finally just be set down and would fall asleep on his own and his naps were getting longer because he could fall back asleep on his own if his sleep cycle was disrupted. Then on day 7 - January 4th - Conner slept through the night for the first time ever. He slept from 7:30pm to 7:30am. Twelve solid hours. The best part is that he has been sleeping through every night since - almost a week!!!!

We haven't been as lucky to get him to sleep to 7:30am any more but he is sleeping solid from bedtime until about 6:30am which is fantastic. I have a feeling he would sleep longer but he tends to wake himself up by going to the bathroom and then of course wants a fresh diaper - I don't blame him, he can be quite smelly!

Now I need to start going to bed earlier and sleep training myself so I am not still waking up at 2am,4am and 6am anticipating my nightly feedings. Soon enough I will get my body back to sleeping through, but for now I am celebrating that my littlest little is! Thank you Dr. Ferber!!!!!

Speaking of bed - time for me to turn in because I've been staying up far too late which makes morning come much too quickly. Sweet dreams! (I hope I don't jinx it with this post!)