Articles 2018-06-11T08:59:04+00:00

We were zombies from hourly wakings overnight and felt like we had exhausted all avenues

I can’t thank Lucy enough for her help and guidance through our baby’s sleep journey. We were zombies from hourly wakings overnight and felt like we had exhausted all avenues. Firmly believing we had a ‘non- sleeper’ we came to Lucy in desperation. She gave us a tailored routine, made weekly changes based on our baby’s needs and after a few weeks, even a bout of sickness and lots of teething, our nights are looking a lot better and

Connection Point – Mahon Point SC, Cork

Connection Point is a 7- week series of social and information-orientated sessions hosted by Rachel O’Sullivan of Baby Chi and Sleep Consultant Lucy Wolfe, that creates an inclusive space for mums and their babies to connect with each other, share their experiences and receive support from a range of professionals that may enlighten and lighten their mother-load. Mothering asks much of the woman without adequate resources as she navigates the lived reality of becoming a mother, that may challenge every

Traveling with young children

Travelling with young children can be a big undertaking.  You have to pick your destination with care, you don’t want to go somewhere that is too hot, or not hot enough, you will need to try to avoid flights that are too long, transfer times that that wouldn’t suit a young baby or toddler, not to mention the accommodation, pools, activities, kids clubs-it can be exhausting just thinking about it. In an effort to help make your holiday the

Managing sleep times when you have more than one child

Managing sleep times when you have more than one child As you increase the number of your family, one area of concern can be, how can one parent prepare and comfort two or more children as part of the transition to sleep at bedtime and how do you manage naps with an older child roaming about unsupervised. There is no definitive answer to this question, but each individual family will begin to make inroads to this parenting dilemma in

Five Reasons Why your Two-year old’s sleep may be disturbed

    You have survived the first two years and you may feel relieved. Your child’s sleep has for a while been dependable and it took a lot of work and analysis on your part. However, between 2 and 3 years of age is a massive developmental stage and your child’s sleep profile is constantly changing and therefore you may meet a few unanticipated bumps in the road. Here we explore five reasons why your 2-year old’s sleep may

Is your toddler climbing out of the cot?

Sometimes when a young child starts to climb out of the cot and as a result may present a danger to themselves, parents introduce a big bed.  When the child is under a certain age- under 2-2.5 years for example, this may be a premature adjustment and create more problems that it resolves. When it happens, it may be as a result of a developmental leap of sorts and as a result they have discovered how to get out

4 Early months suggestions

4 Early months suggestions Master a pre-sleep ritual Whenever you are ready, do this in the bedroom that your child will sleep in, dim the lights, connect, and engage, telling them you love them as you prepare them for sleep. Aim for more awake than asleep At bedtime specifically consider having your child go into their sleep space aware that you put them down- use my percentage of wakefulness approach to initiate future sleep ability. Avoid comparison Every baby

4 Nap supports suggestions

  Consider your wake times Having a regular wake time, no later than 730am allows you to set the tone for naps and bedtime! It can be challenging when you have been up at night, but it can make a huge difference to your daytime attempts. Start time of nap Possibly the trickiest dance to do- aiming before overtired and not tired enough- watching for cues or using my age-appropriate sleeping times as a framework can help an easy

12 Sleep important questions to help get more sleep

  How old is your child Your child’s age has implications on their sleep profile.  Beyond 6 months we understand that longer night and daytime sleep is achievable – before this age we work towards creating a foundation with sleep shaping. Have medical issues been identified, ruled out or are they appropriately managed It’s always important to know what is causing what-sometimes there is an overlap and once we consider the medial issues managed or resolved, then we can

4 considerations for your 6 months old and beyond non-sleeper.

  Consider the sleep environment   Consider the transition to a formal cot. After about 4 months big cot is more appropriate. Have you considered if some wakes are due to proximity to you or the other parent. Are you disturbing each other? Is it dark, warm, without too many distractions. Do they have a positive relationship with this space? Consider your feeding practice   Consider how and when you provide feeds- is the morning feed in the bedroom?

6 Reasons to seek professional sleep help

  Your child’s sleep profile is a challenge Despite your best efforts, at 6 months of age plus you still experience several challenges such as sleep resistance, frequent night waking, long wake times over-night, excessive upset, short naps, and early rising, for example. You may also have feed, weaning, and behavioural concerns that are interrelated. You don’t know where to start As your child’s sleep is multi-dimensional and entirely unique, general recommendations may not always apply and conflicting information

I am a sleep consultant and here are 3 answers to bed-sharing queries

  Is there an ideal age when children should stop sleeping in their parent’s bed and if so, what is it?   I don’t feel that there are any specific ages to cease bed-sharing.  When the parents or the child decide it is time for a change represents the ideal time.     Is it a problem if they continue to do this after that age (apart from parents being exhausted) and what issues are there?   There are

Not every sleep challenge needs to be fixed

Try to avoid thinking of your child's sleep as a destination. Sleep improvements will come, and they also sometimes go. There are multiple reasons why your child may wake, that does not indicate a "sleep problem". Night waking may be problematic but may also be indicative of typical childhood sleep. Here's some reasons your child may wake- this is not an exhaustive list: Hunger Too hot Cold Teething pain Feeling under the weather Emotional/developmental progression Travel disturbance Needs connection

6 ways to encourage more sleep for your new baby

  Try not to worry You cannot spoil your baby -there are no such things as bad habits- focus on meeting their needs with loving responses.   Have a regular wake time Babies thrive when we are predictable. Waking at the same time and offering feeds and sleeps at similar times each days helps   Offer Naps every, 1 to 2 Hours Look for brief eye rubs and yawns and prepare for sleep within this time frame throughout the

4 Reasons to provide a feed earlier at bedtime

4 Reasons to provide a feed earlier at bedtime May improve sleep ability If you aim to have the last feed over at least 45m before sleep time and you have also then use the stay and support staged based approach then you are creating a fertile ground for a high level of sleep ability required to support sleep in general. May reduce night waking   A high sleep ability at bedtime helps to promote a higher sleep ability

Improving sleep- what it is and what it is not

Improving sleep- what it is and what it is not   It's not about training, crying alone, rigid routines, making your child fit into your life, attempting to get your child to do something they are not ready for; night-weaning, giving up breastfeeding, dummies, room-sharing, or your parenting beliefs. It is about learning to get to know your child in relationship to their sleep-understanding their signals, helping them to regulate their body clock with some predictable landmarks such as

Three Great Suggestions to promote your New Baby Relationship

After so many months of anticipation, and to be fair in the current climate, uncertainty as well, the wait is over, and you get to meet your wonderful new arrival.  After all the wondering about who they will be, and how they will look and how you will be in your brand-new role, they are here in your arms and an amazing parenting journey begins. It is the start of a whirlwind adventure and although it will feel challenging,

Night Terrors

Night Terrors Night terrors can be easily identified and typically happen within the first few hours of sleep, during deep “non-REM” sleep.  During an episode, the child jolts awake from deep sleep, wide eyes, frightened, screaming/shouting and possibly sweating with a racing heart.  As this is a partial arousal disorder, your child is not awake, will not recognise you or realise you are there; he/she may push you away while at the same time call for you.  Unfortunately, this

Establishing a Bedtime Routine

Establishing a bedtime routine could be considered the first step towards positive sleep practices.  Helping to prepare your child for sleep time can result in a calm onset of sleep that enables your child to achieve their sleep with greater ease, leading to the potential of falling into a deep and more restful slumber. Introducing the concept of  a pre-sleep ritual can be done from as early as 6 weeks of age-once your baby starts to respond to social

Should I let me baby cry to sleep?

When parents report that they have sleep challenges they may hear certain suggestions from others such as – “you will just need to let them cry” to “ you should never let them cry”. This often means that parents are conflicted and, in a dilemma, as managing the ongoing sleep deprivation may be so hard that they feel that to allow their baby to cry it out is the only way. As a practitioner, I do not advocate to

Managing the four-month sleep regression

There is a lot going on developmentally between 4-6 months, it is undeniably tricky territory.  It will be less tricky, if you have been establishing my sleep shaping suggestions from birth, but if you have not been, then along with the “4-month regression”, you may find that your sleep is worse than ever, and there is little scope to make changes outside of the feeding and sleeping suggestions.  Don’t despair- you can be preparing the scene and although may not seem

Toddler’s Sleep and Anxieties

Unfortunately, due to the nature of prolonged lockdowns we are seeing a higher rate of anxiety and sleep refusal in the toddler age range.  Many factors influence this, as the very nature of the lockdowns have meant that we are not seeing enough social interaction and stimulation in this cohort, we are not experiencing the usual day to day activities that allow our children to mix with others, say goodbye to their parents, say hello again and feel confident

Treating Sleep Under 6 Months

Parents who struggle with their children’s sleep often report feeling lonely, unsupported, and frustrated. There are lots of schools of thought, conflicting information and due to the nature parents of being sleep deprived, they may be also emotionally and physically drained. When parents struggle with their children sleep, they often feel but they have failed in some way and that they “should” be able to help their child sleep.  Child sleep challenges affect somewhere between 40 and 70% a

How to Cope When Your Baby Doesn’t Sleep

Finding yourself struggling with sleep deprivation can sometimes be a lonely and vulnerable place.  Very often families feel like they are the only ones to experience the debilitating and frustrating effects of trying to help your baby and yourself to sleep more.  Most of the sleep challenges that you may experience in the early few months are attributed to typical infant sleep behaviours and not a problem that requires intervention.  Although new parents may find this incredibly challenging when

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