PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — If you ask any new mom, they’re likely to have the same goal: get baby to sleep through the night!
However, moms who have already achieved that are probably now thinking about the next challenge, which can be Daylight Saving Time.
Kaitlin Riceputo, mother to 1-year-old Kreed, has experienced all of the above, especially the sleep deprivation for the first few months of her son's life.
"I read that children can’t reach their developmental milestones when they are sleep deprived and that children their age need anywhere from 11 to 12 hours of deep REM sleep every night," said Riceputo. "And that’s when I kind of thought to myself, 'I’m not giving him any gift by coddling him and rocking him to sleep until he’s in a deep sleep. If anything, I’m harming him emotionally and physically.'"
Riceputo found Rachel Fiorello, a certified sleep consultant with a company called the Cradle Coach.
"There’s a lot of misconceptions out there about sleep training," said Fiorello. "And I know that Kaitlin in particular was very set on exactly how she wanted to handle Kreed’s sleep training. And that's the beauty of working with us is that we do get to customize a plan for each family."
Melissa Perry founded the Cradle Coach eight years ago when she had her first child. The Palm Beach Gardens company now has thousands of followers on social media. Coaches connect with families via Skype or FaceTime all over the country.
"Seventy percent of families are struggling with sleep, especially at that newborn stage," said Perry. "And so we really are just are pushing for parents to say that there is so much more. You don’t have to just survive but you can thrive in these years and really enjoy it."
This week especially, the team knows Daylight Saving Time can really throw a monkey wrench into your child’s sleep schedule. So they offer some advice:
- Be consistent
- Prepare by starting to ease into the new routine
- Make small adjustments, changing your child’s schedule by first five minutes, then 10, 15, and eventually reaching that hour difference
The sleep experts say you could also just go cold turkey and roll with the time change.
To get in touch with a certified sleep consultant at the Cradle Coach, click here.