Want to help your baby have the best start to life? A life where your baby feels confident, capable, and well-rested? Imagine how that will make you feel too. If that sounds good to you, keep reading.

Why is learning independent sleep is so important for babies?
Babies who have learned and developed a process for independent sleep are capable of putting themselves to sleep at the start of the night. As well as in the middle of the night, when they wake up due to sleep disruption.

Do you realize what this means? Your baby will have developed the skills needed to put themselves back to sleep. That’s a great way to help them feel more capable and confident in their own abilities.

Why this matters for your baby
Independent sleep is one of the most empowering ways you can equip your baby at this young age. There are not many things your baby can do for themselves in the first year of life, but independent sleep is one of them and it’s an amazing skill to have. It is not only empowering, but it also helps them to experience night time interruptions without added stress.

Imagine these two scenarios, in which both babies, are asleep in a crib in their own room.

In scenario one, the baby has not yet developed independent sleep. They roll over in the night and wake up as a result (yes, mere rolling over can wake up a baby). Their eyes open, they look around and notice you are not there. They don’t know how to self soothe (comfort themselves without assistance) and they begin to scream. This immediately heightens their stress level until you arrive to help them calm back down.

In scenario two, the baby has learned independent sleep. The same roll wakes them in the night, but because they are equipped with the know-how of self-soothing, they do what they need to ease back into sleep and restore their rest. They have no heightened stress, no night anxiety.

These same skills can translate in the day for naptime. Imagine your baby being able to express cues of their readiness for a nap and then being able to fall asleep independently while you go about your business or break time while they rest.

There are also additional benefits for your baby in other areas. A better-rested baby is more capable of managing their emotional well-being during the day. Sleep is also necessary for growth and development, and deep sleep cycles are harder to obtain for a baby who doesn’t know how to put themselves to sleep.

Independent sleep benefits the baby and the family as a whole.

Now, let’s address the benefits you will experience
It can’t go without saying that the number one benefit is that you’ll be able to stay asleep throughout the night without jostling awake to the wailing screams of your baby upset. That alone is worth the effort of teaching your baby independent sleep (also known as sleep training).

And we know that the better your nighttime sleep – fewer interruptions and longer stretches of deep sleep — the better you will function the next day with a well-rested mind and body. There are also numerous health benefits like reduced stress, better functioning metabolism, and more, all because of a solid night’s sleep.

Ready to get started?
Sleep training is a good practice in routine and consistency and babies love routine. They thrive with routine because it helps them know what to expect. Which is fantastic since they have limited communication skills to express their anxiousness over the unknown or to question what’s going on.

If you are ready to start implementing sleep training with your baby, begin with implementing one new routine at a time. Here’s a great place to start:

Try a soothing bath right before bedtime. Or shutting down distractions and holding them to read, sing, pray, etc. before you put them down. This sets the tone for your baby and lets them know what to expect is coming next. Practice putting them down to sleep while they are drowsy but still awake. Why? Because this teaches them to fall asleep on their own — and that’s your goal.

For more tips on sleep training, check out my free guide, which includes the five foundations you need to get started. https://sleepshop.mykajabi.com/infant-sleep-tips 

And if you need more help, I’m always available for assistance. We can jump on a 30-minute call together and I can answer a direct question, or I can come alongside you for the journey, with the promise that your baby will learn independent sleep. I guarantee the results!

You can also text me at 949.763.4737 for assistance sleep training your baby.