Attachment Parenting & Sleep Teaching, is it possible to do this?
I’m hoping that I might be able to change some minds here today.
It won’t be easy because when is it ever? But on parenting issues, there are so many emotional ties and firm beliefs that enter into the equation that make swaying someone’s nearly impossible.
As parents, we bear an enormous responsibility. It’s not just about keeping our little ones alive, warm, fed and happy. We’re all looking to raise exceptional human beings. We’re responsible for the quality of our kids’ lives long after they’ve left the nest. Many of the decisions we make today are going to determine who they are 2030, even 50 years from now.
No surprise then that I take these decisions very, very seriously as a parent myself.
I’ll admit that I find the idea of attachment parenting more than a little interesting, and I can see why it appeals to a lot of parents. After all, most of us want to love our kids unreservedly, especially in those first few years. Our instincts are all about holding baby close. Meeting they’re every needs the moment it arises. Protecting them with the strength and determination of a Titan.
(Although if I remember my mythology correctly, those Greek gods made some pretty questionable parenting choices, so maybe that’s a bad example.)
What is attachment parenting philosophy?
For anyone who’s not familiar, attachment parenting is a parenting philosophy that was popularised by Drs. William and Martha Sears in their 1993 publication, “The Baby Book.” In a nutshell, the idea is maximum closeness and responsiveness by you wearing your baby. You share a bed with your baby. You breastfeed on demand, and you answer their cries immediately.
In theory, this creates a strong attachment between mother and baby results in well-adjusted children who grow up to be happy, healthy, contributing members of society.
Now, all of these theories get debated endlessly and passionately. There’s no strong evidence to show that attachment parenting is better or worse than other parenting styles. If you want more information on attachment parenting to google it. A quick Google search will provide you with more material than you could take in over a dozen lifetimes.
But that’s not what I want to talk about today. I wish to debate is attachment parenting and sleep training mutually exclusive?
SO WHAT ABOUT CRYING?
Crying is how babies express discontentment, no question about it. Whether it’s a wet diaper, general discomfort, or just wanting something that they don’t have at that particular moment. Babies cry to express that they want something.
You may have noticed that I specifically avoided saying that they cry to express a “need,”. Let’s face it, not everything a baby cries over is a requirement. If you disagree, I urge you to take a look at these hilarious examples of kids crying for nonsensical reasons. Lots of them show different scenarios, but they’re all pretty great.
So again, a lot of my clients are surprised when I tell them that sleep teaching does NOT require them to leave their babies to cry until they fall asleep. I don’t recommend waiting longer than max 10 minutes ever before responding to a crying baby. This is not my first method. It is to only to help give space to you as parents when it is needed to keep everyone safe.
I do suggest giving your baby a few minutes to see if they can fall back to sleep on their own. Still, the idea that sleep training requires parents to close the door at bedtime. Leave their little ones until the next morning, regardless of the intensity or duration of their crying, is, in scientific terms, bogus.
So we’ve managed to get to the last two of the seven Bs without any real conflict, but this next one is going to be tough to navigate.
“Beware of baby trainers.”
So let me just level with you here, okay? I can’t speak for everyone in my profession, but as a Certified Sleep Sense Consultant, I am part of the largest collaborative network of pediatric sleep coaches in the world, and we all have one thing in common.
We’re passionate about helping families.
We’ve been through this issue ourselves, we’ve found a solution, and we’re devoted to helping others the same way we helped our babies because we know, first hand, the difference it makes in people’s lives.
And for anyone who might be thinking, “They’re just in it for the money,” I implore you to try working with exhausted parents and overtired babies for a few nights and tell me about how easy the money is. If this job were just about turning a profit, I would all find something else to do.
I work with people in their most frazzled, desperate moments, and it is challenging work. The reward is in the results; the smiles of those happy babies and the relief in the eyes of the parents who are feeling reinvigorated and re-energized about raising kids that getting enough sleep.
My only other issue with the attachment parenting style outlined by Dr Sears lies in the last of his seven rules.
Balance.
“Wear your baby everywhere. Breastfeed on demand. Respond immediately to every whimper. Sleep next to them, and hey, remember to take some time for yourself, because it’s all about balance.”
But on the fundamental principle of balancing your parenting responsibilities with your self- care, I agree. Being a mother is a priority. It can be argued that it should be your main priority. Many would tell you that it’s your only priority. I would disagree with, but let’s say for a minute that it’s true.
If you’re going to be the best mom you can be, you, inarguably, need to get regular, sufficient rest.
Motherhood is incredibly demanding and requires a finely-tuned well-oiled machine to do it right. You have to be patient, understanding, energized, empathetic, entertaining, and focused on being a good parent. Ask yourself, how many of those qualities would you say you possess on three hours of sleep?
Favourite quotes
One of my favourite quotes on parenthood is Jill Churchill’s heartwarming reminder that none of us bats 1.000 in this sport.
“There’s no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.”
It reminds me that we, like our babies, are unique, and all of these parenting recipes need to be tweaked and adjusted to suit our familiar individual needs.
So if attachment parenting is your thing, more power to you, the best parenting strategy is the one that works for you and your family.
But if your little one isn’t sleeping and bed-sharing doesn’t seem to be rectifying the problem, I urge you to consider bending Dr Sears’ rules a little and getting some help.
I won’t tell him if you don’t.
Book a call with me today, and we can get you started on your journey of sleep