BABY & TODDLER SLEEP SUPPORT
Baby Sleep Consultant Perth
Understand your baby. Work with their biology. Take the pressure off sleep.
If you’re exhausted, confused by conflicting sleep advice or wondering why your baby doesn’t sleep the way you were told they should, I can help.
My approach isn’t about teaching your baby to sleep independently, following wake windows or leaving them to cry. Instead, we look at the biology that drives sleep, your baby’s individual sleep needs and what is happening across your whole day and night.
Responsive, evidence-informed sleep support for babies and toddlers in Perth and online.
What if your baby isn’t the problem?
You’ve been told your baby should be sleeping longer stretches. That they need a routine. That you shouldn’t feed them to sleep. That contact naps create bad habits. That they should be able to “self-settle”.
And when your baby doesn’t follow the rules, it can feel as though something has gone wrong.
But babies haven’t read the sleep books.
Frequent waking, feeding to sleep, contact naps, needing help to settle and wanting to be close to you can all be part of biologically normal infant sleep.
Sometimes the first step towards making sleep feel easier isn’t changing your baby.
It’s understanding your baby.
A Different Way of Looking at Baby Sleep
Sleep is biological, not a skill
Babies don’t need to be taught how to sleep. Sleep is regulated by biology, particularly the interaction between circadian rhythms and sleep pressure.
Understanding these biological drivers allows us to work with your baby’s sleep rather than spending your days trying to control it.
Normal sleep varies enormously
There is no single amount of sleep, nap length or night-waking pattern that is right for every baby.
Understanding your baby’s individual sleep needs can take away much of the anxiety created by schedules, wake windows and expectations about what your baby “should” be doing.
Connection isn't a bad habit
Feeding, cuddling and responding to your baby are powerful biological tools for helping them regulate and settle.
You will never hear me tell you that responding to your baby is creating a problem that needs to be fixed.
Less worry. Less battling sleep.
More understanding. More confidence.
You don’t need to teach your baby how to sleep.
Baby Sleep Isn’t a Linear Progression
Baby sleep changes throughout infancy and toddlerhood, and development rarely follows a neat upward line.
A baby who has been sleeping longer stretches may suddenly start waking more frequently. Learning to roll, crawl or walk, separation awareness, illness, teething, travel and changes in feeding can all temporarily affect sleep.
That doesn’t necessarily mean something has gone wrong or that you’ve created a “bad habit”.
Sleep consolidation can be a bit of a roller coaster.
Understanding that can take enormous pressure off parents who feel they need to intervene every time their baby’s sleep changes.
And Yes, You Can Feed Your Baby to Sleep
Feeding to sleep is one of the most powerful biological settling tools babies have.
If breastfeeding or feeding your baby to sleep is working for you, there is no reason to stop simply because someone has warned you that you’re creating a “sleep association”.
Babies are designed to fall asleep in connection with another human being.
If feeding to sleep is no longer working for you, we can explore other responsive ways of helping your baby settle.
But we don’t need to remove something that is working simply because the internet says you should.
Sleep Doesn’t Happen in Isolation
After nearly 30 years working with babies and families, I rarely see sleep as a stand-alone issue.
Sleep interacts with what is happening throughout your baby’s entire day and with what is happening for your family.
During a consultation, we might explore:
Feeding
Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, night feeding, feeding to sleep and whether feeding concerns are contributing to unsettled behaviour.
Development
Sensory needs, gross motor development, separation awareness and the enormous neurological changes happening throughout infancy can all influence sleep.
Biology
Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, night feeding, feeding to sleep and whether feeding concerns are contributing to unsettled behaviour.
Your Family
How everyone is coping, what feels difficult, what support you have and what changes would actually make life more manageable for your family.
Your Needs Matter Too
Meeting your baby’s neede doesn’t mean your own needs stop mattering.
If sleep has become exhausting or stressful, we can look at ways to make life more manageable while continuing to respond to your baby.
Sometimes that means changing expectations.
Sometimes it means looking differently at naps, bedtime or the structure of the day.
Sometimes it means finding more sustainable ways to manage night-time parenting.
And sometimes simply understanding that your baby’s behaviour is normal removes an enormous amount of worry.
Instead of only asking:
“How do we make our baby sleep more?”
ask:
“What is making sleep so difficult for our family, and what can we change?”
I was seeking a gentle, biological supportive approach to sleep and nursing my baby. As a new mum with a strong desire for a holistic approach but with little knowledge & support around me, I felt alone and doubted myself. However when meeting Pip she helped me find my confidence through her encouragement, evidence based resources and further more, a community of like minded parents. We quickly established healthy safe cosleeping and nursing techniques that also helped me gain a strong bond with my baby, which was especially important to me after experiencing separation after birth. Although the parenting journey is still a roller coaster (and in its own rights, I think it’s meant to be) at the back of my mind knowing I made the best decisions to support my babies neurodevelopment gave me the comfort and confidence I needed in striving forward as a the mother that I am.
Better Baby Sleep Masterclass
I have also created a Better Baby Sleep webinar video.
This comprehensive video pools together my years of training and experience with the work of Dr. Pam Douglas (Neuroprotective Developmental Care at ndcinstitue.au), Prof. Helen Ball, Prof James McKenna, Nathan Wallis, Dr. Gabor Maté, Dr Russ Harris, and other leading experts in the field.
What you’ll learn:
- Explore your parenting values
- Bust some common myths
- Discuss what “normal” baby sleep really looks like
- Delve into the Science of Sleep and how to work with your baby’s biology to set your days and nights up for success
This comprehensive session covers everything from understanding sleep biology to practical tips for improving your baby’s sleep. Accessible from the comfort of your home, our webinar is a perfect addition to our personalised consultations.
About Pip:
Pip Wynn Owen is an NDC Practitioner, IBCLC, Registered Midwife, Certified Childbirth and Early Parenting Educator, and Mother of four.
Pip has nearly 30 years of experience in the perinatal field and is a highly regarded and award-winning Birth and Early Parenting Educator. She is wonderfully supportive and experienced in assisting women with breastfeeding concerns and families with sleep concerns.
If you need more help working out your baby’s sleep needs and how to sync their biological drivers of sleep Pip is available for in-person (in Perth, Western Australia) or Zoom consultations.
Contact her at [email protected] Or book through this link