The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep: Simple Solutions for Kids from Birth to 5 Years

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Rocking your baby to sleep every night will make her dependent on it. It's true that rocking and nursing your baby to sleep every night will delay her learning how to get to sleep on her own. However, rocking and nursing your baby to sleep is absolutely delicious and will probably become one of your most treasured memories of these early days. And babies are held and rocked nonstop in the womb — so your little friend is already "hooked" on these sleep cues from before Day 1.

Fortunately, it's super easy to enjoy as much holding, nursing, and rocking as you want, without causing sleep problems. All you need to do is add other soothing sensations to your bedtime mix like white noise and swaddling and use the quick "wake and sleep" technique which I'll teach you soon to turn your baby into an excellent self-soother. For thousands of years, colic sudden screaming fits that totalthree or more hours a day has been a medical mystery. This crying starts at two to three weeks, hits a peak at six to eight weeks, and then gradually disappears by about three months.

But, the fact that most screaming babies can be quickly calmed with the 5 S 's shows this crying isn't caused by pain. Doctors and grandmas have always assumed colicky babies were upset from stomach pain — overfeeding, indigestion, or acid reflux pain. Although some do grunt and fuss right after a feeding — and 5 to 10 percent get better with a change in formula or their mom's diet — it is now clear that this daily wailing is not caused by stomach pain.

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Yet loud noise or cruising the interstate does nothing to relieve severe pain. It certainly wouldn't help our stomachs! I'll talk much more about how to do this by using the 5 S 's to turn on the calming reflex in the next chapter.

Psychologist Lee Salk said it best: Just because your baby is capable of screaming doesn't mean it's beneficial for him to go on and on. The idea that wee ones need to scream to exercise their lungs or to "blow off steam" to unwind from the day's chaos makes no sense, biologically or emotionally. First, crying is not a lung exercise the lungs of calm babies are just as strong as those of colicky babies.

Second, letting your baby "cry it out" is as crazy as ignoring your screeching car alarm while you wait for the battery to go dead. Young infants only cry for one reason: The solution is to figure out how to meet their need. It sure looks like some babies hate swaddling! They fight and strain as soon as they're enveloped.

But remember, in the womb, babies are perfectly content. As I'll describe in the section on swaddling, your baby may struggle when her arms are snugly straightened into the wrap. But then, when you add the other special steps that switch on her amazing calming reflex she'll tend to soothe quickly, stay calm longer, and sleep better. We all want our babies to grow up to be independent.

But that's a goal that will take a long time to achieve — as any parent of a fifteen-year- old will tell you! In truth, having your baby sleep in another room during the first months is inconvenient — and may even be a danger. It's inconvenient because you have to leave your warm bed and stumble down a cold hall every time your hungry baby cries. I especially liked how Dr Karp kept it simple, clear and concise. Mar 14, Katie rated it really liked it. I got some really good tips on how to make bedtime and even quiet time a smoother routine at our house.

Dec 13, Julie rated it it was amazing. Karp and team know what's up when it comes to babies and toddlers; I'm a big fan of the Happiest Baby series and this sleep guide is a great one. Nov 13, Jen Kayna Habitat for Happiness rated it it was amazing. Full of great advice for parents searching for a peaceful yet effective sleeping solution. Some good advice, too repetitive, and a little condensing. Feb 23, Katrina McBride rated it it was ok. All of these books seem to repeat the same basic info, but wow do I hate this style of writing.

Jul 22, Jill rated it really liked it. Good enough that I'm going to buy my own copy. Jul 01, Michele rated it it was amazing. I've only read the parts that apply to us right now. Jul 11, Erin rated it liked it. A few good tips, but if you've already tried those or are aware of the 5 S's that Karp teaches Jan 16, Nance rated it liked it. Some really good ideas in here. Apr 14, Eva Lorenz rated it it was amazing.

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This time I am reviewing a different kind of book than the ones I usually cover. Harvey Karp was of interest to me since one of the downsides of doing babysitting was to get several children assigned to the group who were less than one year old and could not participate in the playtime with the older kids.

So one thing I always asked the moms to do was feed the kids before dropping them off at daycare and made sure that the diaper had bee This time I am reviewing a different kind of book than the ones I usually cover. So one thing I always asked the moms to do was feed the kids before dropping them off at daycare and made sure that the diaper had been changed. Some moms looked at me funny because other babysitters did not request that, but I told them that at the young age, being hungry was one of the main reasons that the kids would wake and start crying.

When I came across this opportunity to review a book about how getting babies and toddlers to sleep more and regularly, I was interested. I had based my babysitting advice on what I had picked up from my parents and how they managed to get me to fall asleep and sleep through the night. So I was glad to see that several of the hints in the book involve proper feeding and setting some kind of routine that involves getting the babies to be more and more independent during the night, such as a practice of waking the babies just as they are falling asleep to get the little ones used to falling asleep on their own self-soothe , without demanding that mom or dad show up in the middle of the night and rock them to sleep again.

On other tip I found interesting involved the use of specific white noise low pitched and rumbling that is particular good at encouraging sleep for the little ones. Karp also lists the types of white noise that can actually hurt your attempt at getting the little one to fall asleep. Once asleep, teething is a lot easier to bear for the parents and without the sleep deprivation often encountered, the parents can be productive.

What really scared me was the mentioning of parents driving kids around town in the middle of the night to get them to sleep. I can only imagine what it means to be woken up in the middle of the night and resorting to driving around town with a baby in the back of the car.

Simple Solutions for Kids from Birth to 5 Years

If for no other reason that to avoid that road hazard, people with little ones who have problems sleeping through the night should get this book. With the book "The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep", parents will minimize sleep deprivation or resort to let babies cry themselves to sleep. Backed by advice from a nationally celebrated pediatrician, child development specialist and children environmental health advocate, parents can follow the surprisingly simply tips in the book to get their kids to fall asleep and sleep through the night.

Even in the first weeks of life, infants can be taught to sleep at least one extra hour and with the easy guide instructions from Dr. Karp, the sleep of babies can be boosted in just days.

One tip that I found helpful, even for adults who often suffer from problems falling asleep as well due to stress at work, power down before bedtime. Do not state at bright screens at night, such as TVs, computers etc.

The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep

This applies to kids and parents! Karp certainly has the expertise and experience to be writing such a book. His biography, available here, indicates that many celebrities have sought his advice regarding child rearing and now everyone can enjoy his advice through the book that is written in simple, easy to follow steps that makes it appear as if children now come with instructions. I really like the breakdown of the book, with chapter summaries being included for quick reference and tricks highlighted throughout the chapter, including the use of massage to calm the little one down before bedtime.

If you want to find out more information on the topic and seek input from others and the author on how to help your little one find a good night's sleep, you can visit the website "The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep" here. I am participating in a book review campaign with One2One Network. I received this book from Harper Collins for the purposes of reviewing it.

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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. Jul 21, Paul Smolen rated it liked it. First, if you have not read one of Dr. His writing is easy to understand, well written, and very interesting as he likes to mix modern scientific sleep medicine with wisdom from ancient cultures. His chapters are well organized and finding useful, practical information is very easy to do. He stresses practical solutions to sleep problems that parents often face.

The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep: Simple Solutions for Kids from Birth to 5 Years

Karp is also particularly good at giving memorable names to sleep techniques he wants you to First, if you have not read one of Dr. Karp divides his discussion of sleep mostly by age, birth-3 months, 3 months- 12 months, toddler- 5 years, and finally special sleep problems like the those presented by children with ADD or new onset insomnia. His discussions of these topics are well researched and done quite well. Here are some of the big points Dr.

Sleep will follow this reflex. Now for the problems we see with his advice. Unfortunately, The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep contains a number of inaccuracies, some minor and some not so minor. Karp advocates for parents to use reclining swings for infants. Check for yourself on the AAP guidelines. Karp also advocates pacifier use for older children because he believes and that states that the number of children developing a mal shaped mouth is greater from children who suck their thumbs than those who use a pacifier.

The opposite is actually true. Karp, the reality is that children can truly learn to sleep through the night, starting at around months of age, without their parents feeding or rocking them, if a good sleep ritual is established at that age. We therefore are only giving it a 2. May 14, Heather rated it liked it Shelves: The 1st half is a condensed version of "Happiest Baby on the Block" for newborns. The rest puts all other infants and toddlers in the same group, so I didn't really find the solutions I was looking for.

He reiterates the same sleep training info extinction, fading etc. Perhaps I expected too much from this book considering how beneficial Happiest Baby on the Block was to me. This book is basically a combo of Happiest Baby and Happiest Toddler, so if you've read those, then you don't need this one. I was so shocked to read that Dr. Karp's suggestions for getting your infant or toddler to sleep include letting them cry it out for minutes, even to the point of the child vomiting. I thought this was a gentle parenting book!

I cannot fathom why any ped Perhaps I expected too much from this book considering how beneficial Happiest Baby on the Block was to me. I cannot fathom why any pediatrician would recommend this as a healthy solution to sleep difficulties. Jul 07, Lauren Wagers rated it really liked it Shelves: Perhaps satisfaction comes from a sense of empowerment in having specific step-by-step directions to follow in difficult situations.

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Other research suggests that increased parental empowerment is one primary result of his approach. Dr Karp advocates that white noise shower level be used throughout the night and at naptime to promote sleep. Unfortunately, there are no current studies that support the safety of long-term white noise in term infants. Because there is ample evidence correlating hearing loss in preterm infants with ambient noise in NICUs, it may be prudent to limit prolonged noise exposure in all children.

In an environment where childhood obesity is rampant, feeding infants and older children who do not exhibit hunger cues should be viewed with extreme caution. In sum, Dr Karp has provided a book full of many wonderful ideas that will help promote happy parenting. It contains creative positive reinforcement strategies providers can share with parents. For these treats, this dog raises one slightly arthritic paw of approval. However, before blithely recommending this book, providers should understand that there is a lack of scientific evidence about some recommendations and potential harm in others.

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