Why hire a sleep consultant? Let me tell you a story…once upon a time, there was a very tired Mom named Carrie. Carrie loved her little 7-month-old baby boy so much. But Carrie was exhausted.
Carrie’s baby was trying new foods, standing with support, and babbling away about who-knows-what. He was so adorable, but he did not sleep very well.
In fact, it seemed he didn’t sleep at all! Carrie got maybe 4 hours of sleep on a good night. Her son would fall asleep just fine while nursing. She would rock him a little while longer in the rocking chair, and then put him in his crib.
Occasionally, he would wake up right away, but a few minutes of gentle bouncing in her arms did the trick and he would go to sleep for the first stretch of the night.
After that, it was a gamble how many times her son would be up through the night. There were times he was up 7 times a night!
Carrie felt like a zombie most days and survived on caffeine and hope.
Some of the links below are affiliated links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize your purchase.
YOUR BABY DOESN’T SLEEP WELL
Does Carrie sound familiar? Maybe a bit like you? You’re in an all-too-common situation right now.
Your baby doesn’t sleep well and frankly, you’re exhausted. You know how important sleep is. You’ve become anxious over time. You never know if your baby will sleep for one hour or three. One time, he did a six-hour stretch!
Your baby’s irregular sleep makes it impossible for you to plan for breastfeeding. Will he wake up before midnight? Or should you set an alarm to pump?
Maybe you’re a Mom who works outside the home and has to leave the house by 6:30 every morning. That’s always fun, trying to get ready without waking up the baby too early (not).
YOU’RE PUSHING THE LIMIT
Your baby’s irregular sleep is stressful in itself, let alone the mental load of new motherhood. Let me guess, your husband is “too tired” to wake up with the baby? Or maybe he genuinely wants to, but it just makes more sense for you to be “it” during the night.
You’re dragging yourself around all day, pushing your body and your spirit to the limit.
One day, you reach your breaking point. You’ve barely slept, you were late for work, and your boss is particularly moody all day. You get home from work and spill 2 ounces of breastmilk trying to transfer containers.
Then, during dinner, you notice a rash on your son’s arm (hello, anxiety). And while you’re changing a dirty diaper before bed, your baby does a wrestling move and gets poop, well, everywhere.
Insert total breakdown.
Your husband comes rushing in to see what all the commotion is about.
You have never felt so defeated in your life.
Why is this so hard? You see other women doing it all the time – working, taking care of their kids, looking presentable, and seeming genuinely happy with motherhood.
You feel like you must be doing something wrong.
YOU NEED A SOLUTION
So here you are, scouring Google for answers. It’s likely the middle of the night and you’re unable to fall back asleep after your second…or maybe third…feeding of the night.
You know there has to be a way to make your life at least a little better than it is right now. Something has to change.
You’re thinking if your baby could sleep just a bit better, you could get some semblance of yourself back.
You considered cry-it-out, but that’s just not an option for you. You’ve heard about sleep training and the different types. But what exactly do those other methods entail?
You know deep down that your current situation is simply not sustainable. So now you’re looking into hiring a professional to help you figure this out.
But what does a sleep consultant actually do?
What Does a Sleep Consultant Do?
Sleep consultants are professionals who help you teach your baby to sleep better. Oftentimes, there are things that you’re doing, or not doing, that are preventing your little one from being able to fall asleep on their own.
That’s where a sleep consultant comes in.
They will typically chat with you on the phone before starting any programs to make sure there isn’t a specific reason your baby shouldn’t start sleep training (like the presence of uncontrolled acid reflux, for example).
Many parents say they feel “hopeful” or “relieved” after finishing their first call with a sleep consultant, because they finally feel heard.
Here at Live Love Sleep, every one of our consultants has been through our program with their own kiddos, so we have quite literally been in your shoes.
We know the challenges you’re going through and also how life-changing a gentle sleep training program can be. We genuinely care about every family we talk to and make sure to listen to your unique challenges on our initial call.
Once you choose a sleep consultant and sign up to work with them, they will give you tools for you to teach your baby to fall asleep independently.
Some consultants offer strictly virtual programs. Other companies, like Live Love Sleep, offer in-home consultations for a more personal level of support.
If you’re stuck on how to hire a sleep consultant, read this first.
WHY DO PEOPLE HIRE SLEEP CONSULTANTS?
You have already tried everything, but nothing seems to work. Even with the white noise, the sleep sack, dark room, and solid bedtime routine, your little one is still waking too frequently during the night or taking short naps during the day and you’re at your wits-end.
Sleep consultants are like coaches. They teach you the process of soothing your little one as they in turn learn a new skill – the skill of falling asleep independently.
Some babies sleep well all on their own, and parents of those babies won’t ever invest in a sleep consultant.
Other babies have trouble sleeping soundly, and this can happen for many reasons. Sometimes a baby sleeps fine up until a regression and isn’t able to get back to sleeping well.
Other times it may be a sickness, a move, or other significant family event that causes sleep to spiral out of control.
And sometimes we find there isn’t any good “reason”, but your little one just needs some help.
There is nothing wrong with asking for help to teach your baby this skill! Especially if the lack of sleep is taking a toll on your health or your baby’s development.
How Do You Know a Sleep Consultant Will Work?
Another reason parents reach out for help is the support they receive from having an expert walk them through the process. This ensures you have the best chance of success, as opposed to continuing to go at it alone (which obviously isn’t working)
Here at Live Love Sleep we provide unlimited support via an app called Voxer for the entire duration of your program. We offer programs that range from two weeks to four months long.
Having the support makes all the difference when going through this process. You’re never questioning whether or not you’re doing the right thing.
We customize each sleep plan to fit the needs of your family, today. So, the sleep plan we create for you is different from a plan we would create for you 3 months from now. Your life won’t be the same then!
Hiring a sleep consultant means you have a solid plan moving forward with your sleep training efforts. Plus, if something isn’t going as planned, the follow-up support is available to tweak or make changes as needed.
As Seen On…
ADDRESS YOUR FAMILY’S SLEEP ISSUES
Understanding and overcoming the issues that your baby is having with sleep is a vital part of parenting. Whether you do this early-on, or once your baby isn’t a baby anymore (we work with children up to 8 years old).
Accomplishing healthy sleep in your home opens the door for so many more opportunities. When sleep improves, health and development improve. Plus, having a predictable day lowers stress significantly, for everyone.
To learn more about how a sleep consultant can benefit your family, schedule a call with us today.
We will gain an understanding of the sleep difficulties you’re having and walk you through exactly how a sleep consultant from our team can help. You don’t have to do this alone, Mama!
To Healthy Sleep,
Kaley Medina
Founder of Live Love Sleep
Baby and Toddler Sleep Consulting