I was given the chance to review The Happiest Baby Guide to
Great Sleep in a book review campaign with One2One Network. Seeing as we’ve
had several issues with our 3 year old and his sleep, I jumped at the chance to
review the book by Dr. Harvey Karp, M.D., who is the author of the great book The
Happiest Baby on the Block. I loved that this new book covered from birth to 5
years, since a lot of the books that are out there focus on newborns to one
year-ish. We’ve been working to get D (the 3 year old) out of our bed and into
his own, especially since we are due with our 2nd child any day now
(April 26 is her due date but she’ll be here before.) I have been trying a
couple of different things to get him to sleep in his own bed, like we bought
him a car bed since he loves cars; his room is decorated in cars and he has a
night light and a fan in there to make it seem like our room. I would sleep on
an air mattress in his room to try to get him to sleep in his room, but he
would end up on the air mattress with me. It’s been very frustrating to say the
least.
In Dr. Karp’s book, I went right to the section that
dealt with older kids. I figured that we can deal with Baby A’s sleep issues
once she gets here, my main focus is D’s. Starting in section 3, we learn about the
things that can go on in a toddler/preschoolers life. With our son, he has
developmental delays and speech issues so that has compounded a few our
problems as well. He is in a preschool program and enjoys it. His daddy is Navy
so he isn’t home as often as we would like, and now he will have a baby sister
at any given day, so I can only imagine all the stress that he is dealing with
and can see why sleeping with mommy would be a big comfort. In Chapter 10, Dr.
Karp talks about some ways to boost patience and cooperation, like the “Fast-Food”
Rule (FFR), which means that we connect and repeat back to the little one what
his fears are. This sounds like it would be a great idea, as long as they are
able to communicate well, which is something that is improving with our 3 year
old. Another method would be to speak in Toddler-ese or to speak like they do.
I think this would be a much better option with our son, since he can
communicate in short sentences.
Dr. Karp talks about having a good bedtime and day time
routine that it’s important to plan for going to bed during the day. I think
this would be a great idea. He gives suggestions about how to use the
patience-stretching method during the day that is talked about in detail to use
at night. It involves almost giving your child something that they want, but
then asking them to wait for a few seconds (and then work up to a minute or
more) while you go and do something that you forgot, like talk to daddy, etc.
Give them something like a lovey to hold on to while they wait for the few
seconds so that it can help them build the patience they are going to need when
you work with them to go to sleep.
There is a great section that I am going to use about
weaning your tot from bed-sharing. That is our big issue and Dr. Karp gives
some great suggestions that I’ve not thought to try. It also involves starting
in the daytime to get them ready for bed, by playing in his bed and showing him
how cool and comfortable his bed is. He also suggests to make a Beddy-Bye book
to read with them, which is a book that goes through their day and shows what
they do and has pictures of them doing it. Dr. Karp suggests when putting them
in bed to make up a bed beside them to start with, and to work on moving
towards the door and out of the room. I think that if we can get him to just
sleep in his bed with a lovey or his stuffed monkey and me in the room and I
work my way out, that would help. It is something that we are planning on
working on, when I’m not pregnant and can sleep on the floor.
Overall from the sections that I read on working with my
3 year old, I’m very excited about trying what Dr. Karp recommends. I can’t
wait to read about how to work with our newborn and getting her to sleep, but
if his advice is just as good for newborns as it is for the older kids, I’m
sure we’ll be able to get her to sleep well. I love Dr. Karp and his other
books, so I am glad that he has put out a book on sleep. I see this book
helping lots of parents to get their little ones to sleep well.
To check out the information for the book, head here The
Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep site - http://bit.ly/ZUyHra.
Also some other resources:
Some information from the publisher about the book:
Finally, kids do come with instructions!
Surprisingly simple steps to boost your little child's sleep fast!
Dr. Harvey Karp made doctors applaud and parents cheer with his brilliant
solutions to centuries-old problems such as colic and tantrums. Now, in THE HAPPIEST BABY GUIDE TO GREAT
SLEEP: Simple Solutions for Kids from Birth to 5 Years (William Morrow
Paperback; On-Sale: March 19, 2013; $15.99; ISBN: 9780062113320),
Dr. Karp stuns the world again by solving the #1 problem plaguing new parents:
exhaustion. Dr. Karp's surprising insights include:
How to train brand new babies to sleep better: Infants can be taught to sleep
at least one extra hour from the first weeks of life! Dr. Karp shows how to
safely boost baby sleep in just days.
What’s the best white noise (and which ones worsen sleep): The right white
noise (low pitched and rumbling) is the key to good sleep—even through
teething—for all babies. Plus, it even gives parents a more restful sleep
Why parents should always wake a sleeping baby: For good sleep, babies must
learn how to self-soothe. The best way to teach babies how to fall back to
sleep—when they rouse in the middle of the night—is to wake them just as
they’re being put into bed.
How to enjoy the benefits - and avoid the risks - of swaddling: Swaddling
dramatically improves a new baby’s sleep. Yet, many states are shockingly
banning this ancient parenting tool. Smart moms should do it and Dr. Karp will
teach them how to do it properly and safely.
The importance of powering down: Staring at bright screens at night (TVs,
computers, phones) can wreak a toddler and a parent’s sleep.
Easy "no-cry" tips that end infant and toddler bedtime struggles in
just days!
With THE HAPPIEST BABY GUIDE TO GREAT SLEEP, no longer will new parent have to
suffer months of sleep deprivation and no longer will babies have to cry
themselves to sleep. Backed by compelling science, common sense and decades of
experience, Dr. Karp’s landmark guide will revolutionize how millions of children
drift off to dreamland.
Disclosure: “I
am participating in a book review campaign with One2One Network. I received
this book from Harper Collins for the purposes of reviewing it. I have not
received compensation. My participation in the campaign enters me into a
drawing for a gift card. All opinions stated are my own.”
