Frequently Asked Questions

My role is to look at the bigger picture of your child’s sleep, work out what’s contributing to the challenges you’re experiencing and create a personalised plan to help you make meaningful changes.

I don’t believe in giving every family the same schedule or telling you to simply “leave your baby to figure it out”.

I’ll take into account your child’s age, temperament, sleep needs, current routine, feeding, sleep environment, your parenting style and, most importantly, what you’re comfortable with.

You’ll receive a clear plan, but you won’t be left alone to work it out. I’ll guide you through the process, answer your questions, troubleshoot challenges and make adjustments along the way.

You may have heard the term sleep training and immediately thought of leaving your baby to cry, rigid schedules or being told not to respond to your child.

That’s not what my approach is about.

I provide personalised, responsive sleep support to help your child develop healthy and more independent sleep skills while still respecting your parenting choices and your child’s individual needs.

There isn’t one “right” way to improve a child’s sleep, and you don’t have to choose between being responsive to your child and getting the rest your family needs.

No.

There are many different ways to support a child towards more independent sleep, and the approach we use will depend on your child’s age, temperament, your goals and what feels right for your family.

Crying can sometimes be part of a child’s adjustment to change, but you will never be expected to simply ignore your child.

Not necessarily.

Feeding to sleep is not “wrong”, and breastfeeding is certainly not something you need to stop simply because you’re looking for sleep support.

If feeding to sleep is working well for your family, there’s no reason to change it just for the sake of changing it.

If it’s no longer working for you and you’d like to make a change, we can look at ways to gradually change that association while still being responsive to your child.

You’re not alone.

When you’re exhausted, it can genuinely feel like you’ve tried absolutely everything.

Often, though, it’s not that you’ve failed or that your child “can’t sleep”. It may simply be that the approach you’ve tried hasn’t addressed the underlying reason for the sleep challenge, or it wasn’t the right fit for your child.

I’ll take a fresh look at what’s happening, identify where we can make changes and guide you through the process.

You don’t need to come to me knowing what’s wrong.

That’s my job.

That’s okay.

Your child’s personality and temperament are important parts of creating a sleep plan.

I don’t expect every child to respond in exactly the same way, which is why I don’t use a one-size-fits-all approach.

We’ll work with your child’s individual personality while also giving you clear boundaries and strategies to help you feel confident and consistent.

Change can be difficult, and some children will protest when something familiar changes.

That doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong.

My role is to help you understand what your child’s behaviour is communicating and show you how to respond while still moving towards your sleep goals.

You won’t be told to simply leave your child and hope for the best.

I’d love to understand why.

Sometimes the plan wasn’t suited to the child. Sometimes the timing wasn’t right. Sometimes the approach didn’t fit the family. And sometimes parents simply weren’t given enough support while implementing it.

That’s one of the biggest differences between generic sleep advice and personalised support.

I’ll look at what you’ve already tried, what happened and what could be done differently.

Once you’ve chosen your package, you’ll complete a comprehensive sleep assessment so I can understand what’s happening with your child’s sleep, your current routine and what you’d like to achieve.

I’ll review everything you’ve provided, analyse your child’s sleep patterns and create a personalised plan specifically for your family.

We’ll then talk through the plan so you understand exactly what we’re doing and why.

Once you begin implementing the changes, you’ll have ongoing support from me. You can ask questions, let me know what’s happening, troubleshoot challenges and receive adjustments when needed.

You’re not just purchasing a sleep plan.

You’re getting someone in your corner while you implement it.

Every child is different.

Some families notice changes within the first few days, while others need more time, particularly when sleep challenges have been happening for a long time or there are multiple factors involved.

I’m much more interested in creating sustainable progress than promising you a magical overnight transformation.

The important thing is that you understand what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and how to adjust when things don’t go perfectly.

Tell me.

Seriously.

You don’t need to keep following something that clearly isn’t working and hope it eventually gets better.

Your support period is designed for exactly this reason. We’ll look at what’s happening, work out what may need changing and adjust the plan where appropriate.

Real life doesn’t always follow a perfect plan, and that’s okay.

It depends on how much support you feel you need.

The Sleep Essentials is ideal if you want a personalised plan, clear direction and one week of daily support to help you get started.

The Sleep Transformation is my most popular package and is ideal if you’re dealing with more persistent sleep challenges or you’d like two weeks of daily support, troubleshooting and accountability.

The Sweet Dreams Home Visit is designed for families who want the highest level of hands on support, including a three hour in-home visit at bedtime. It’s particularly helpful if you’re feeling overwhelmed, your situation is more complex, or you’d simply feel more confident having me there beside you while you implement the plan.

You can view everything included in each package on my Sleep Packages page.

I work with families from newborns through to around five years old.

Sleep support looks different at different ages.

With younger babies, the focus may be on healthy sleep foundations, routines, sleep environment and age-appropriate expectations.

As children get older, we can work on things such as independent sleep, night waking, naps, bedtime resistance, early rising, sleep associations and overnight feeds.

My approach always considers what is developmentally appropriate for your child’s age.

Yes.

Most of my sleep consulting services can be completed virtually, so you don’t need to live nearby to work with me.

The exception is my in-home support and Night Nannying services, which are location dependent.

You don’t have to wait until you’re completely exhausted.

You don’t need to have tried everything.

You don’t need to know exactly what’s wrong.

And you don’t need to be at breaking point before you’re “allowed” to ask for help.

If your child’s sleep is affecting your nights, your days, your relationship or simply your ability to enjoy this stage of parenting, that’s enough.

You deserve support too.

I’ll help you understand what’s happening, create a plan that’s right for your family and support you while you put it into action.

Simply purchase a package through my website or contact me directly at kristy@thesleepparlor.com.au

 

We’ll start with an intake questionnaire to learn more about your child’s sleep and your goals. From there, we’ll create a plan together and I’ll support you as you put it into action.