Every so often I get asked to write an article for another publication or community. 

As you know I don't offer services to help parents with their baby or their toddler's sleep issues but there are many great practitioners who do that already. One of these practitioners who have been part of my own community is Iva Faulknerova at the Sleepy Baby Consultancy. So when she reached out to ask me for an article for her clients, I was happy to contribute. 

Those early months after the baby arrives are incredibly difficult especially when it comes to the sleepless nights and disturbed sleep for often both parents. 

In the blog article that I compiled, I talked about various issues that show up and how to still get through these times and sleep well. 

I talked about the 3 Sleep Skills for new parents that help both your little ones and your sleep. 

I won't copy over the entire article but wanted to share with you a few points that I wrote about. These will help you even if you're not a new parent as these can be applied to various stages of life but just in a different way of course. 

Sleep Skill number 1: Self-awareness is absolute gold

Step one of the 7 step process that I use to help clients develop Sleep Skills for Life is self-assessment mostly through self-awareness. I teach people how to understand what’s happening with your sleep in a practical way that’s actually helpful.

The first conversation I always have with clients is about the importance of true and practical self-awareness. Knowing what helps and hinders your ability to sleep in a tangible way will always help you to make more informed decisions about choosing the appropriate treatment plan or action plan. 

More on this Sleep Skill on Iva's website - click here

Sleep Skills number 2: Falling asleep 'easily'

The fourth step of the 7 step process I use to help clients develop Sleep Skills for Life is learning to fall asleep easily every night.

So many people I talk to these days either overcomplicate their evening ‘routines’ or have no idea how to prepare their body and their mind physically, emotionally and mentally for going to bed and sleep itself.

As a parent, you’ll hear people talk about routines for your baby, ways to soothe, ways to prepare before bedtime, and keeping things as consistent as possible so that your baby or toddler can get used to what he or she is supposed to do.

More on this Sleep Skill on Iva's website - click here

Sleep Skill number 3: Staying asleep throughout the night

The fifth step of the 7 step process I use to help clients develop Sleep Skills for Life is about helping you to stay asleep and sleep through the night without disturbances.

This is a very common sleep problem at the early stages of parenthood but it doesn’t have to last a lifetime.

Of course, it starts with breastfeeding as I mentioned in the previous point. Naturally, as you become a parent you end up having to take turns or wake up several times a night depending on the dynamic of the family. Some parents share the duties of nighttime bottle feeding others keep to breastfeeding only.

More on this Sleep Skill on Iva's website - click here

I really enjoyed collating this resource for Iva and her community, and I'm sure you'll enjoy reading it as well if you are about to be a new parent or going through those first few months. 

As always, let me know if you have any questions. 

Until next time, 

Beatrix