Hi Mummies,
Saw something on the net tat may b useful for pacifying bb to sleep at night...
What science says about cry it out
As much as we all want our babies to sleep, most of us can't bear to hear them cry for long before they nod off.
But many experts say that a few tear-filled nights during sleep training won't do your baby any harm. The handful of studies that looked at the emotional impact of crying it out clearly showed better parent-child attachment after sleep training, says Mindell.
What's more, she adds, the studies revealed that infants who went through sleep training were more secure and predictable, and cried and fussed less, than those who weren't trained. Not only do babies seem to thrive on the routine, but like the rest of us they're often in a better mood after a good night's sleep or nap.
"We're fairly certain that sleep training doesn't have any long-term negative effects," Mindell says. "If you love your child and are a responsive parent and then let your child cry three nights in a row to teach her how to sleep, that's fine."
However, not everyone believes that cry it out is harmless. Robert Sears, a pediatrician and co-author of The Baby Sleep Book, which encourages sharing a bed with your baby, points to studies that suggest prolonged crying spells for weeks at a time can cause emotional trauma as well as physiological changes to the brain. But Mindell argues that these studies had nothing to do with sleep training they were done on children who suffered from long crying jags in general. Therefore, she says, the findings don't apply to a few teary nights with the cry it out method.
It's a frustrating impasse for parents. But no matter which side of the debate science weighs in on, no study or expert opinion can tell you how you should feel about the sound of your baby's wailing. That's why most sleep gurus agree that the decision to go with a cry it out or tear-free method is clearly a personal one.
Five sleep solutions that work
The review put these five sleep-training techniques to the test:
The full "cry it out" method. You let your baby cry herself to sleep without comforting her (also known as the extinction method).
The modified "cry it out" method. You let your baby cry but reassure her at regular intervals (also known as graduated extinction).
Soothing bedtime routines. You establish routines that help your baby wind down, then turn out the lights and don't respond to any crying.
Parent education. Before your baby arrives or right after, you learn about infant sleep and how to help your baby establish healthy sleep habits, such as putting her to bed sleepy but awake.
Scheduled awakenings. This rarely used tactic involves waking your baby before she would normally get up on her own. The awakenings get fewer and further between as you progress, until finally they're phased out altogether.
Unfortunately, the one popular technique the review didn't examine was co-sleeping (sharing a bed with your baby), since, as Mindell points out, no large studies have looked at how it fares in teaching babies to fall asleep or self-soothe at night.
The good news is, all five methods the researchers did look at cut down on bedtime tears and middle-of-the-night wakings. And while a few of the studies pitted one sleep-training method against another, no one method had an edge.
Finding the best method for your family
So which sleep-training technique (or combination of techniques) will do the trick for your night owl? The experts say let the following be your guidelines:
Consider your child's temperament
"If you can match a sleep-training approach with your child's temperament, you'll have more success and see quicker results," says Chicago pediatrician Marc Weissbluth, author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. "It's just like disciplining your child easygoing, adaptable children are easy to correct. A strong-willed, highly determined child, on the other hand, may need a tougher approach."
How does that translate into sleep training? In Weissbluth's experience, mild-mannered children can learn to sleep well with gentle, consistent parental consoling a no-cry or modified cry it out method. More determined babies, on the other hand, do better with full cry it out because parental consoling tends to prolong or even intensify the fight.
Bear in mind that your baby's sensitivity to stress should also be considered when picking a technique. "Children who have more resilient temperaments typically respond well to crying it out," Mindell says. "A sensitive child needs a slower approach." Robert Sears advises co-sleeping for the very sensitive baby, but adds that it won't work for all children. A baby who is easily stimulated, for instance, might find sharing a bed with her favorite playmates her parents too exciting to settle down and would probably do better in her own bassinet.
To determine your child's temperament, look at how your baby responds to new or stressful situations. Does she shrink back in fear and require lots of comfort? You're raising a sensitive plant. Does she take them in stride or recover quickly? You've got a resilient baby.