Yay, you’re taking a step towards getting great sleep! Getting professional help from a sleep consultant is going to help so much, but what traits should you look for in a sleep consultant?
Hiring Someone You Can Trust
The first of many traits you want to look for in an infant sleep consultant is somebody who you trust. Put on your FBI cap and do your research. Figure out what you can learn about them. Start with the traits that are most important to you.
Some Questions and Traits to Consider
How much experience do they have with sleep training infants or helping families get better sleep? What type of sleep training style do they promote? Are there special circumstances that they have expertise in that would benefit your baby? What else do YOU want to know?
Check out their websites and social media sites to see what they post and how their personality is.
Wanna know a secret? This is one of the biggest reasons why I do so much behind the scenes stuff on Instagram. I want people to get a feel of me and my life and what I’m all about.
A Sleep Training Consultant Should Be Collaborative
When you are ready to hire an infant sleep consultant to help your baby (and you!) get more sleep, you will want somebody that you can trust and who has your baby’s best interests in mind. Often, parents want someone who is warm, loving, gentle, and responsive.
A lot of parents are hesitant to use “cry it out” for sleep training method. If this is you, you’ll want to work with a sleep consultant who is familiar with several different sleep training methods. You’re looking for someone who understands both the fog and desperation that can come with having a baby who doesn’t sleep, but also your fears and worries about the “cry it out” sleep training methods.
You also want to make sure that the sleep consultant is someone that hears your concerns and can work WITH you. Instead of just trying to put you in this certain mold of how things “have to be.”
The truth is that there are a lot of ways to sleep train a baby and each has it’s pros and cons. A collaborative sleep training consultant will be able to work with you, discuss the pros/cons in a nonjudgmental way and help you choose the best approach to sleep training for your infant & family.
Other Traits To Look For
- Flexibility
- Good foundation of the basics.
A good sleep trainer will use this base knowledge, but also has the skill set to adapt and modify to fit you and your baby’s needs.
- Humble
They understand that you are the mom and you are the expert on YOUR baby. Although the sleep consultant might be the expert about healthy sleep, you still want someone that acknowledges your expertise and that you have all of this history and insight and instinct with your own baby.
- A personality you mesh with
This is true especially if they are going to be in your home. You want to be able to like and respect that person and not be awkward.
- You trust with your children
When I do the in-home sleep training package, I’m happy to stay at home with the baby while you and your spouse go for an overnight, go on a date, or have a little stay-cation. So, generally, parents hang out with me that first day to get a feel for me. But you want to feel comfortable that your baby will be in good hands if left with that person.
- Experience
Whether it’s experience with their own children or lots of experience sleep training babies.
You want someone that’s done the research and understands different modalities.
A lot of times “certified sleep consultants” have just taken a course in one person’s method and then they think that every baby should just fold neatly into that. You want somebody that’s done more than just have a weekend course from somebody else who calls themselves a “sleep expert”.
- They understand the fundamentals of healthy attachment
This is so that you and your baby are in good hands. And, your sleep training doesn’t run the risk of damaging your healthy relationship.
- Somebody that can defer to the expertise of someone else
If you have a medically fragile child, then it’s important to collaborate with doctors and nurses to make sure your baby stays as healthy as possible.
Who You Hire is Up to You
Ultimately, at the end of the day, you want to work with somebody that you like and you trust and you know will work with you as the parents. You’re looking for a baby sleep trainer who will come to understand your values/wants/needs, your baby’s individual personality and develop a sleep training plan based on that, not just force your baby into this certain expectation.
Regardless of the decision you are making, I want to applaud you for taking steps to get better sleep! When baby sleeps better, parents sleep better and the whole household is happier and a better version of themselves!
The Peaceful Sleeper: Personalized, Expert Sleep Services for the Whole Family
As a sleep consultant, I’m on a mission to help your entire family sleep better. Are you sick of feeling groggy and foggy? I also offer a variety of sleep training resources for baby sleep training including 25 affordable sleep training guides and a newborn sleep essential course.  I even offer an online adult insomnia course based on effective CBT-I principles to help the adults win the household sleep better. Lastly, I offer individual sleep consultations and even an exclusive executive sleep package for maximum sleep training support.
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