Saturday, June 16, 2012

Ferber method - review

After 6 days of implementing the Ferber method I have come to a sort of stand still as to what I should do next.

One the one had, R's sleeping has improved dramatically, he only really wakes up once in the night now and sleeps average from 8pm-7am with a night feeding at around 9:30. When he wakes up at other times he is able to sooth himself back to sleep within 2 minutes. This has made a dramatic improvement on my quality of sleep as well as my temperament.

On the other hand the amount of time spent listening to him cry at the initial stage of sleep has not changed much from 15 - 20 minutes. This is the part I'm most frustrated and unable to deal with. I cannot imagine having to listen to such desperate cries night after night, especially when my maternal instincts tell me I should do something about it. Its distressing for any mother to have to listen to this every night and this is the main reason I have decided to call halt on this Ferber operation.

At this point I am certain of three things, the Ferber method works, on some level; it might not be suitable for all babies; and I am not sure if this is the right choice for me and R.

I will try and adopt a more gentler method from tonight, I think the thing to keep in mind when implementing any type of sleep training, as with anything in life, is to stay flexible. No one will benefit from a stubborn decision least of all your baby.

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