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The Responsive Family Sleep Podcast
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by conflicting sleep information; frustrated by sleep advice that felt wrong; or searched for a truly gentle, responsive alternative to sleep training, then you are in the right place. In each episode I’ll be answering your most pressing baby and toddler sleep questions, dispelling common sleep myths, deepening your understanding of biologically normal sleep, and encouraging you to trust your intuition. And because sleep is rarely just about sleep, you may just find some responsive parenting, lactation, or self-care tips sprinkled in along the way.
I’m your host, Kim Hawley, MA, MPH, IBCLC Holistic Sleep Coach, Lactation Consultant, Peaceful Parenting Educator, and mom. My specialty is truly holistic, developmental, attachment focused sleep support – no hidden sleep training here!
The Responsive Family Sleep Podcast
From the archives: When will my baby (or toddler) sleep through the night?
Welcome to the summer from the archives series! We’re revisiting some much loved podcast episodes from the early months of the podcast. These are episode that are great to revisit at different points in your parenting journey.
When will my baby sleep through the night is one of the most common questions I get in casual conversation with parents. There’s so much pressure and emphasis placed on sleeping through the night, and so many parents feel like a failure when there baby is sleeping completely normally.
Realistic expectations can go a long way to decrease stress and help you support better sleep in your family.
In this episode, I’m unpacking the myth that babies should be sleeping through the night. We’ll talk about what it means to sleep through the night and what the research actually says around waking and sleeping through. Next time you get one of those “but shouldn’t they be sleeping through the night by now” comments, you’ll know just what the truth actually is.
Resources related to this episode
Developmental Sleep Expectations blog post (lots of citations): https://intuitiveparentingdc.com/blog/2018/7/6/developmentally-appropriate-sleep-expectations-birth-to-age-5
Study citations
Hoyniak, CP, Bates, JE, Staples, AD, Rudasill, KM, Molfese, DL, Molfese, VJ. (2019.) Child sleep and socioeconomic context in the development of cognitive abilities in early childhood. Child Development, 1718-1737.
Hysing PhD, M., Harvey PhD, A. G., Torgersen PhD, L., Ystrom PhD, E., Reichborn-Kjennerud PhD, T., & Sivertsen PhD, B. (2014). Trajectories and Predictors of Nocturnal Awakenings and Sleep Duration in Infants. Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, 309-316.
Paavonen, E. J., Saarenpaa-Heikkila, O., Morales-Munoz, I., Virta, M., Hakala, N., Polkki, P., Karlsson, L. (2020). Normal sleep development in infants: findings from two large birth cohorts. Sleep Medicine, 145-154.
Pennestri, M. H., Burdayron, R., Kenny, S., Béliveau, M. J., & Dubois-Comtois, K. (2020). Sleeping through the night or through the nights? Sleep Medicine, 76, 98-103.
Connect with Kim
Grab a free sleep myth busting guide and learn more about working with Kim: https://intuitiveparentingdc.com/
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