Hey mama! I’m so glad you’ve found my little corner of the internet. Here, I aim to provide valuable information through research and community building. Today, I want to introduce a pediatric sleep consultant in Mobile, AL, who can help you and your little one get the restful sleep you deserve.
This sleep consultant is Elizabeth Zarzour. Elizabeth is a sleep consultant and a newborn care specialist in Mobile, Alabama. She started her business, EZ Sleep Training, “to help families achieve quality sleep for their babies and children by providing personalized sleep plans.”
What is a sleep consultant for babies?
A Mobile, AL pediatric sleep consultant specializes in helping babies, and their parents, develop healthy sleep habits. They offer education, advice, and support to improve a child’s sleep.
Do I need to hire a sleep consultant?
Elizabeth’s words of advice are:
“If the current sleep situation in your home is working for you – there is no reason to change it! The reason to hire a sleep consultant is to change things that you don’t know how to, or feel too overwhelmed to know where to begin.”
Sleep Training While Maintaining a Nurturing Environment
Elizabeth says, “A good night’s sleep is just as important to your child’s development as a nurturing environment!” The plans she offers to her clients includes every piece to the puzzle: sleeping environment, nutrition, establishing a schedule, and more. It’s her job to get all of these crucial pieces into place before starting the sleep training so you, and Elizabeth, know without a doubt that your child is ready to begin training. The plans Elizabeth offers highly encourage connection and engagement with your child during wake hours. These wake hours meet the nurturing needs of your child so that you are able to have the best of both worlds – sleep along with a loved, nurtured, and emotionally well child.
Sleep Tips from Mobile, AL Pediatric Sleep Consultant
Consistent bedtime routines are crucial for sleep training. Elizabeth says “it’s the foundation for a good nights sleep and cues their brain that it is time for bed!” In addition to that, she recommends removing what is called “sleep crutches”.
A sleep crutch is anything your child is dependent on to fall asleep. The following are examples of common sleep crutches:
- Rocking
- Feeding (both bottle feeding and breastfeeding)
- Being held
- Patting or rubbing their back/bottom/chest.
Removing these sleep crutches can be very overwhelming (I say that from experience). If you find this part of sleep training to be too much to handle on your own, I would recommend reaching out to Elizabeth. I’ll leave her contact information at the bottom of the blog.
When Can I Begin Sleep Training My Baby?
You can begin setting the foundations for independent sleep sleep the day they are born. Elizabeth says, often time when you follow these guidelines from birth you never actually have to sleep train.
Otherwise, your baby is developmentally capable of learning the skills required to put themselves to sleep around 16 weeks old, if baby is carried to expected due date. That’s only 4 months old!
Sleep Training with Special Needs
Every baby, and every family is different. If you have a child with special needs or health conditions, you can still sleep train. Working with a professional sleep consultant can be beneficial to reduce the overwhelm you may already feel from being the caregiver to your child. Elizabeth is highly experienced in different methods and in tweaking schedules to accommodate you, your family, and your child.
Sleep Training Misconceptions
Cry It Out Method
The cry it out method is the most common misconception heard by Elizabeth. Letting your child cry themselves to sleep is not something she would ever tell a parent. Putting your child to bed at night, and then not responding to their cues until the next morning is NOT in her plans.
Breastfeeding and Sleeping
Elizabeth says she hears it all too often that it is impossible to breastfeed and have a full nights sleep. She’s here with good news – you can do both!
Personally, all three of my children were sleeping through the night by 6 months old. While I am no medical professional, I just wanted to share that bit of information with you as a mother. All three of my girls were sleep trained, and all three of them were breastfeed for an entire year, without any issues.
Final Thoughts from a Pediatric Sleep Consultant
“There is no one size fits all approach. Sleep training methods fall in a spectrum from more hands on to more hands off. This can involve anything from staying in the room with the child, to timed check ins. I pair my families with the method I believe they will be comfortable with, and therefore stick to! Any method can work- the key is being consistent with the approach. ” – Elizabeth Zarzour, Mobile AL Pediatric Sleep Consultant
Useful links:
- Elizabeth’s Website – https://ezsleeptraining.com/
- Join my FREE Mom’s Village Facebook group for specials and discounts.
- Find more Professionals for Moms on my blog!
- If there’s a professional you’d like to learn more about, let me know in the comments! I am always willing to research and build my community.
