I’ll be the first to admit that I did not use a sleep consultant to help sleep train my children, and I really wish I had. It would have saved me lots of aggravation, doubt, and money. I remember looking up some reputable consultants in my area but
ultimately decided that I did not want to spend the money.
I was on an unpaid maternity leave from my teaching job and in addition to all of the other expenses that come with babies, buying really expensive specialty formula for my child’s GI issues.
How could I justify a “splurge” on a sleep service?
Well, cue my Amazon cart at 2:00 a.m. The amount of money that I hemorrhaged on swaddles alone is embarrassing, let alone all the other products I bought, praying that they would magically be the cure to my child’s night wakings.
Spoiler alert: none of them worked.
Some of them may have helped every once in a while, or for a short period of time, but Mr. Merlin was providing me no magic at that 5th night waking.
There’s nothing like cursing out a piece of fabric while heating up a bottle of smelly formula in a pitch dark room (I see you, elemental-formula-moms).
Not all of my purchases were in vain, though. I came across quite a few very helpful sleep training books that I ended up using in order to help guide me through the process
(“Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child” by Marc Weissbluth being my favorite that was also used as part of my certification curriculum).
But at the end of the day, it took much longer and there was a lot of doubt along the way. I did not have the personal advice of an expert whose passion was helping babies sleep.
I did not have the reassurance of a professional who could encourage me to stay the course when things were rough. I know for sure the Tupperware bin of unused swaddles that is somewhere in our basement provided me zero encouragement and only left me more frustrated.
All of this is to say that certified sleep consultants are experts in the field of pediatric sleep and the best sleep consultants are certified by a reputable sleep school, like mine, The Family Sleep Institute.
We can actually help your children get better sleep, unlike some of the sleep products sitting in your Amazon cart. So if you’re on the fence about hiring a sleep consultant, just know that it’s an investment that is worth its weight in gold.
If you hired a sleep consultant, what does that mean and what would it include? Every consultant runs their business and packages differently, but most will offer something similar to my packages. With my 1 and 2 week packages, I offer:
Access to a client portal
Detailed analysis of sleep assessment
1-hour consultation call (virtually or over the phone)
Customized 8-10 page sleep plan, aligned with your parenting philosophy and individualized for your child needs and specific sleep issues
Virtual personalized sleep log to record daily progress
1 or 2 weeks of daily follow up support (While we work together, I am available daily to address any issues, concerns, fears, or questions to help reach your goals!)
Interested in finding out more? Check out my packages page on my website. Are you wondering if we’re the right fit, or how my process works?
Feel free to reach out!
Rest Well!
Sarah