“Many parents who come to me share the fact that, well before they end up in my office, they have read a pile of sleep advice books without getting results,” says a local sleep consultant in Westport, CT. “As a result, they often worry there is no real solution for the problems they face with their child’s sleep.”
However, the specialist adds, “The good news is, with the several hundred families I’ve worked with, this has never been the case. The problem isn’t with their child – it’s with the source they’re using for help with getting a child to sleep.”
Individualized Family Assessment
While books and other one-way sources of advice often contain useful information, they tend to simplify issues and offer a single solution for every problem. Since they can’t take into account important considerations such as a child’s individual age and developmental stage, temperament, and the particular needs of each family, the general type of advice offered in sleep books may be hard to translate into something parents can apply in their home.
When families are having a sleep issue with their child, asking parents a series of detailed questions about their child and family situation, as well as their priorities and values when it comes to their child’s sleep can help. Our job as pediatricians is to figure out not just what strategies would work the best for your child, but what you, as parents, feel comfortable with. By reviewing the multiple options that are usually available, we can help parents decide what makes the most sense for them and is most likely to succeed.
Follow Up Support
Follow up support is a vital part of her program. While books, websites and even some experts will tell parents what to do and then let them muddle through on their own, we can provide parents with crucial follow-up support while they implement our advice. When parents have questions or doubts, we are there to help. And when you start seeing great results, we get to celebrate together! Time and again we have heard from parents that phone support, and being available for calls, has made all the difference in helping them implement and stick with a plan.
Here to Help
Of course there are parents who are able to take information from a book and make it work for their child’s sleep issues. If you are one of those parents, rejoice! But if you’re one of the many who need more personalized support, the physicians, physician assistants and nurses at Willows Pediatrics are here to help.