Perspectives on baby & toddler sleep, Part 1

04/21/21 • 29 min

Sleep, or the lack of it, is probably the most discussed topic among parents of newborns. And while sleepless nights are widely accepted as just part of the bargain of bringing a new life into the world, we are not always prepared for the sleepless nights to drag into years. Night wakings, bedtime routines that seem to go on and on, skipped naps, sleep regressions, musical beds, and crib to bed transitions — it is truly exhausting!

In today’s episode, host Jessica Rolph is joined by Lauren Lappen, a certified sleep consultant and co-founder of Wee Sleep Solutions, who offers practical advice on toddler sleep.

Key Takeaways:

[1:38] How do you get a toddler to bed and keep them there?

[2:45] The benefits of using routine cards during bedtime.

[4:04] Lauren’s tips on how to avoid a battle of wills with your toddler.

[5:10] How to respond when your toddler wakes in the middle of the night, asking for you.

[6:35] Why “musical beds” aren’t ideal for anyone; toddlers like to wake up in the same bed where they fell asleep.

[9:18] What if the wakings are a function of your child being unwell?

[10:26] Lauren talks about the signs a baby is ready to move to a toddler bed, and gives suggestions for types of beds to use.

[13:55] Considering easy access to the potty.

[17:22] Suggestions for specific situations, like if you’ve got a new baby coming and you need to make room, or if your child is a climber and might exit the crib.

[20:16] How critical are night feedings to toddlers?

[22:38] How to wean a toddler from that night feeding.

[24:23] What to do about pacifiers. Do they stay or do they go?

[27:06] Jessica gives some highlights of her conversation with Lauren.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Lovevery.com

In today’s episode, host Jessica Rolph is joined by Lauren Lappen, a certified sleep consultant and co-founder of Wee Sleep Solutions, who offers practical advice on toddler sleep.

Key Takeaways:

[1:38] How do you get a toddler to bed and keep them there?

[2:45] The benefits of using routine cards during bedtime.

[4:04] Lauren’s tips on how to avoid a battle of wills with your toddler.

[5:10] How to respond when your toddler wakes in the middle of the night, asking for you.

[6:35] Why “musical beds” aren’t ideal for anyone; toddlers like to wake up in the same bed where they fell asleep.

[9:18] What if the wakings are a function of your child being unwell?

[10:26] Lauren talks about the signs a baby is ready to move to a toddler bed, and gives suggestions for types of beds to use.

[13:55] Considering easy access to the potty.

[17:22] Suggestions for specific situations, like if you’ve got a new baby coming and you need to make room, or if your child is a climber and might exit the crib.

[20:16] How critical are night feedings to toddlers?

[22:38] How to wean a toddler from that night feeding.

[24:23] What to do about pacifiers. Do they stay or do they go?

[27:06] Jessica gives some highlights of her conversation with Lauren.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Lovevery.com

Previous Episode

How to Limit Your Toddler's Screen Time

This week, we are revisiting a listener favorite from September, 2020, as we prepare the lineup for our upcoming season: Perspectives. Starting April 21, you’ll hear perspectives from experts on sleep, eating, and parenting philosophies, among other topics, so you can make informed choices for your family.

Few topics will spark debate among parents more readily than screen time. It’s so controversial! Screens are everywhere. And avoiding them can feel like the domain of super-human parents. Learn some tips to cut down on screens from Dr. Screen-Free Mom: Meghan Owenz. She runs a website, Screen-Free Parenting, with over 27,000 active participants. She is also an Assistant Teaching Professor at Penn State University.

Key Takeaways:

[1:46] What does screen-free look like for Meghan’s family?

[2:24] Meghan shares her alternatives for keeping kids engaged and busy.

[3:23] Use her S.P.O.I.L. system to cut down on screen time.

[4:38] How can independent play be achieved so parents can have a break too?

[6:37] Rotate favorite toys in and out of special baskets so that they feel fresh.

[8:18] Does screen-free mean more stuff? There are ways around it: Something as simple as a scarf can offer miles of road-trip diversion.

[9:37] What does the science tell us about the effects of screen time on kids?

[11:17] Meghan shares research findings on attention.

[12:13] Meghan talks about how language is impacted by screens.

[14:00] What about connecting with grandparents or friends over Zoom or FaceTime?

[16:13] How does Meghan help parents wean their children from screens?

[18:08] What does becoming screen-free look like?

[19:38] How can a parent enforce a screen-free approach? She provides advice around changing rules with a toddler, as well as older children.

[22:45] Jessica provides a recap of an eye-opening conversation with Dr. Meghan Owenz.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Lovevery.com

Screen-Free Parenting

Next Episode

Baby sleep: Alternatives to 'cry-it-out'

Host Jessica Rolph welcomes Certified Pediatric Sleep Specialist Lauren Heffernan to the second episode of our new season, Perspectives. In this season, you’ll hear curated perspectives on topics like sleep, feeding, and parenting philosophies, so you can make informed choices for your family.

It is rare to find a new parent who doesn’t wish for more hours of sleep; long nights seem to be part of the bargain. When those long nights start dragging on, it can feel like sleep training is the only way out. Lauren proposes a different approach. She is the founder of Isla Grace: Attachment-Focused Sleep. She prefers to avoid separation and the cry-it-out method of sleep training.

Key Takeaways:

[1:31] Lauren speaks about her own experience sleep training.

[3:56] She explains how that experience informs her practice as a sleep consultant.

[6:35] Supporting your babies’ emotions when you are sleep deprived is challenging.

[8:20] Why it’s difficult for parents to sit with those big emotions from their child.

[9:26] Lauren answers a question from a listener: My baby only falls asleep when I breastfeed him and wakes up throughout the night for more breastfeeding; how can I stop this without the cry-it-out approach?

[12:48] What happens when night weaning gets derailed.

[13:38] Bed-sharing and how to practice it safely.

[16:08] Lauren explains “bridging” between crib and toddler bed.

[17:04] How to reframe inconsistent napping.

[19:45] If you are getting extremely frustrated and exhausted, try a shifting pattern or ask for someone to support you.

[21:06] Lauren’s bottom-line advice to sleep-deprived parents.

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Lovevery.com

Isla Grace: Attachment Focused Sleep