Waste of Money
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This book cannot make its mind up what method to endorse. It sits neatly on the fence, contradicting itself many , many times. Over all if you favour the" cry it out method" then this book is for you. Personally i dont think a hysterical child left to cry it out till he may vomit is the answer to your sleep problems. I would give Secrets of the Baby Whisperer ago first. Its a much better laid out methodical genteler way to parenting. Any busy parent ,single or otherwise who is no doubt stressed enough anyway would deserve a gold medal having to sit threw hours of a crying baby or child using the Feber method. If you are reading this and you have, hats off to you. Your a better person than i am!!
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authoratative, researched, non-judgemental, helpful!
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After becoming totally demoralised by the Baby Whisperer I was thrilled to find this book so informative, encouraging, well-researched and clearly outlined.
Generally, Dr. Weissbluth does a good job of describing the science of sleep in laymom's terms and I clearly recognized my daughter in his descriptions of wired babies. Unlike other expert book writers, Weissbluth is a trained medical professional with decades of experience which gave me faith in his recommendations. His recommendations are also well supported with external research by leading child psychologists so again you are not relying solely on one person's opinion. Most importantly he's not judgemental or faddy about how you set about getting your baby to sleep.
Highly recommended.
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research-based advice
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This has been the most helpful book I have read on the subject of child sleeping patterns and I wish I had read it before our baby was born, because as a previous reviewer has pointed out, there are issues with layout, repetition and consistency. One needs time to digest and understand the book and it can indeed be difficult to follow if one is already sleep deprived. For example, key recommendations highlighted in boxes on some pages, such as "Never wake a sleeping baby", are qualified in the body of the text (wake a sleeping baby if to let her sleep would interfere with that child's daily sleeping pattern): this can be initially confusing and we often had to read the same chapter a number of times in order to appreciate the subleties of the advice and the nuances for our own child. I didn't expect a "one size fits all" solution, however, so a certain complexity to the book seems understandable.
Such difficulties aside, we relied heavily on the book at months 3 to 4 and it helped us to understand the reasons for the changes to our baby's sleeping patterns and the importance of helping her learn to get to sleep by herself. From being woken every 2 hours throughout the night and our daughter being unable to nap for longer than 40 minute periods during the day (and consequently behaving as if she had attention deficit disorder and being generally a bit miserable when she was awake), we now at 8 months have (and have had since 4 months) a happy, relaxed baby who sleeps 11 or 12 hours at night and naps well and easily during the day: this has been literally life-changing and marriage saving.
I was very reassured by the extent of scientific research cited in the bibliography and my partner in particular was happier to accept advice from someone who could point to supporting research than from other parenting "experts/personalities" with books on the market. A friend lent us the No Cry Sleep Solutions book which I initially found helpful but which left me feeling intensely guilty if our daughter cried at all and led to my trying physically to soothe or feed the baby to sleep at increasingly more frequent times during the night until we were both exhausted and frantic. To understand that limited, controlled crying in certain circumstances can within a few days establish a child's independent ability to sleep - and the reasons why, stripped of judgment not based on research - was incredibly helpful to us. Our daughter has cried much less, both during the day and at night, since she learned to sleep by herself.
The book deals with sleep issues from birth to teenager and provides considerably more detail than any other book on the market which I could find. Its conclusions are consistent with those of a number of other authors: the difference with this book is that the reasons for the advice given are fully explained and the supporting research cited, so that one does not feel that one is experimenting with one's own child. This is particularly important in the highly emotive context of allowing one's child to cry in certain circumstances.
Despite the qualifications mentioned above, I have given this book 5 stars in this review because of the effect it has had on our life and on our daughter's happiness.
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The best sleep book I've read
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I really love this book, and I wish I had bought this before I wasted money on other ones.
It does not offer any magical solutions or quick fixes. What it is is a comprehensive, well-written, and detailed study of all the elements of infant and child sleep, and what course of action could prevent or treat various sleep problems and disorders. Unlike authors of other sleep books, Dr Weissbluth is a child sleep expert, which in my opinion has to count for something. Of particular interest is the section about colic and sleep.
This book is longer than most, but you can probably omit some chapters that don't apply to your situation.
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A lifesaver
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I bought this book 4 years ago when my first son was 4 months old and only napped for 20 mins at a time and only slept for short periods at night. I knew something was going wrong, but all the 'routine' books I tried didn't seem to be fixing it.I bought this book and it all made sense. He was hugely overtired. By understanding the biology of sleep better and sensible yet flexible intervals for baby/child sleep I was able to make changes. I could go on and on about what a sanity saver this book is; its huge benefit is that it is not dictating minute by minute routines, but it is divulging some universal truths - eg all babies cry most between weeks 6-8. Also that babies who have had genuine colic WILL be overtired at 3-4 months and will need special attention to sleep schedules to get them back on track. It helps you know what to expect, so that you recognise certain behaviours as completely normal and then do not run round in circles trying to 'fix' them. Instead you concentrate on what matters. My only complaint with the edition I bought was that it wasn't very well edited and you had to look in loads of places for the relevant information.I notice a new edition is now available so maybe this has now been addressed. I now have a second son age 8 weeks and by adhering to the basic principles in the book I am already seeing a difference. Really; if your baby doesn't sleep this book might just save your sanity without making you run round in circles trying to adhere to some complex routine - rather crucial when you have more than one child! I have now passed this to at least 6 friends - all of whom have found it equally good.
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