I'm a Ferber convert

AimeeL85

I posted only about 4 days ago about needing to have DD be able to put herself to sleep for naps (after a bit of nursing and rocking, of course) because I was spending so much time every day trying to get her to go to sleep, only to have her wake up 30 minutes later, and having a toddler who I couldn't leave alone constantly.  It was the most stressful thing for me every day because it took so much time and she still wasn't getting the sleep she needed.

In just 2 days and with VERY little crying, she was and is settling into sleep with no crying, for all naps and bedtime, and even after waking in the middle of the night. Not only that, but she's sleeping for normal lengths of time.  I used to spend 20-30 minutes trying to get her to go to sleep and then having her wake after 30 minutes.  Now it takes less than 10 minutes and she's asleep for an average of 1.5 hours. She's so much happier and it wasn't hard on her at all.

I kick myself for not doing this with DS (never put himself to sleep, ever, in 16 months....and woke 5-6 times a night until 16 months).   I guess it's because of how he was that makes me want to cry tears of joy over this lol.

No real point to this other than wanting to say how relieved I am.  Our days are already so much less stressful and DS (my toddler) is getting so much more of my attention and happier because I'm happier.

vettymama

Good for you! I'm seriously contemplating sleep training of some sort. The last 3 weeks have been rough. He won't calm down until we pick him up and rock him. For both going to sleep and MOTN wakings.

kb&mb

Congrats! It worked for us too and we are all happier because of it. :-) Honestly, I think little man benefited the most from it. He started sleeping so much better and is so much happier because he is well rested.

a eliza13

That's awesome! We've been sleep training DS for 2 weeks now and we've pretty much got bedtime down -- (tonight he fell asleep after 2 mins). But his naps are still a struggle. I was told to do bedtime first then focus on naps, but I think he's ready...and I definitely am. Can you just explain what you did exactly? Did you set a schedule for her naps or did you wait for her cues? Does she take 2 naps or 3? For some reason when I've tried letting him cry for naps he can't seem to soothe himself, or maybe he's not tired enough. Anyway, glad it's working for you!

this decaf life

DD never used to nap and since we started Ferber not only is she taking 3 a day, she's taking them in her crib without being nursed to sleep. Her naps range between about 45-90 minutes long and it's just amazing. She's also waking far less at night now and usually nurses once a night around 1 AM. Last night though she woke up around 1 but put herself back to sleep after just fussing for a few minutes and didn't eat until 6 AM.

She's also gotten REALLY good at entertaining herself. She never used to be in her crib alone without screaming/crying and now she'll hang out for like 30 minutes in the morning playing with her lovey. I can also put her down in her PnP during the day and she'll play with a toy whereas she used to always cry non-stop until I picked her up.

I'm glad I waited until she was 6 months to sleep train. I just don't think she was ready much earlier and we moved 2 times when she was 5.5 months old but it's worked really well for us. 

honeydew01

a eliza13:

That's awesome! We've been sleep training DS for 2 weeks now and we've pretty much got bedtime down -- (tonight he fell asleep after 2 mins). But his naps are still a struggle. I was told to do bedtime first then focus on naps, but I think he's ready...and I definitely am. Can you just explain what you did exactly? Did you set a schedule for her naps or did you wait for her cues? Does she take 2 naps or 3? For some reason when I've tried letting him cry for naps he can't seem to soothe himself, or maybe he's not tired enough. Anyway, glad it's working for you!

This is exactly us too. We started it last Saturday and I am planning to start nap training in a week and half once we are fully sure that the night training is established. I can not wait for him to nap in his crib and for longer stretches. I'm glad it worked for you and would love to hear more about it if you have time to answer eliza's questions I'll benefit too. 

ShaunaT25

So glad it worked for you! It did wonders for us too. DS would only nap in my arms for the first five months. I decided one day it was time to sleep train and within two weeks our lives were completely different! Up to 90 min naps, and puts himself to sleep. When i put him in his crib tonight I thought back to when I used to swaddle him and rock him to sleep. Got a little sad he doesn't need me to do that anymore, but it definitely makes life easier.

AimeeL85

a eliza13:

That's awesome! We've been sleep training DS for 2 weeks now and we've pretty much got bedtime down -- (tonight he fell asleep after 2 mins). But his naps are still a struggle. I was told to do bedtime first then focus on naps, but I think he's ready...and I definitely am. Can you just explain what you did exactly? Did you set a schedule for her naps or did you wait for her cues? Does she take 2 naps or 3? For some reason when I've tried letting him cry for naps he can't seem to soothe himself, or maybe he's not tired enough. Anyway, glad it's working for you!

I wish I had more advice, I think I was fortunate to have an easy go of it with DD.  I had posted asking if I should wait to start naps until after doing bedtime.  I ultimately decided to do naps at the same time simply because they were the major problem for us - bedtime wasn't bad because I had time to put her to sleep if need be, and she didn't have a major problem with night wakings.

I didn't set a schedule for her naps, I read her cues but also had read what another parent had said (when she did Ferber) that putting them down at the very first sign of fatigue isn't always best, sometimes they're still not tired enough.  So, I tried to stretch it a little without letting her get to the point over overtired, and that seemed to help.   She is taking 2 or 3 naps depending on the day.  We're only a few days in, but previously she was taking about 4 terrible catnaps. I do think she'll be on a nap schedule in the near future though, once she becomes more consistent.

Good luck!!  I probably shouldn't be shouting from the rooftops after just a few days but my DS traumatized me with his sleep habits and I'm just so happy that we (hopefully) don't have to deal with anything like that this time around.

RissKay

YAY!

Ferber doesn't have to be torture. Even for those of us who's LO's cry for a while before finally giving in. I'm so glad it's helping you!

As for advice, I will say that it's important to wait until LO is tired. DS used to show a cue, and if we missed it, we were screwed because he became overtired very quickly. Now as he's gotten older, he'll show some tired cues, but still need another 30 minutes or so before actually being "ready" for bed. His issue is that he doesn't like to be taken away from the action of what is going on... little goof.  

babygirlva2013

Congrats!!! That's wonderful! We did Ferber with our LO, now 6 months, and it went really well. Everyone is happier and sleeping better. 

AimeeL85

Nicb13:

See! And your child won't even know the difference when she's older so what damage was done?? Congrats

I know, and I was so against it with my DS - tried EVERYTHING else. I was switching tactics all the time, pulling my hair out, and was miserable, but I said "nothing that involves any type of CIO."  What was I thinking???

bikramgirl

This book has been recommended to me numerous times. I have a copy and am going to read it finally.  I hear that it works for so many people.  Good to know!