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Show Notes: Possums Sleep Intervention Part 3
Dr Koa Whittingham (A collaborator on the Possums Sleep Intervention – www.possumsonline.com) shares some wonderful information about the Possums Sleep Intervention including how to co-ordinate baby wearing and feeding to sleep with multiple caregivers, a new perspective on sleep association, tired cues, incorporation of ACT and how to access the Possums Sleep Intervention.
Summary
Does co-sleeping, baby wearing, feeding to sleep restrict caregivers?
- Everyone who cares for baby does NOT have to do the same thing.
- Each caregiver can find different ways to settle the baby.
- As the primary caregiver, you want your life to be as easy as it can be.
- Each caregiver needs to flexibly experiment and find what works for them and baby.
- There are many ways to comfort a baby, and baby will learn what to expect from each caregiver.
Sleep Associations
- Feeling relaxed after food is extremely natural.
- Any external association with sleep can become problematic.
- Sleep should be primarily cued by the internal cue of sleepiness.
- The feed relaxes baby, the sleepiness cues sleep, at that point we do not want to wake baby and uncouple sleepiness and sleep.
- If feeding to sleep is easy and works for you, enjoy it. Just because your baby has learned one thing, doesn’t mean he or she can’t learn another.
- The Possums Sleep Approach: You know your baby and situation best. It is about flexible experimentation to figure out what works best for you and your baby.
Tired Cues
- Problem with tired cues
- It is important to understand your child’s cues
- Infant behaviour cannot be classified into observable cues – Babies are all different – you need to learn to understand your baby.
- You will learn to understand your baby’s cues. Flexibly experiment until you understand the patterns.
- You will get it wrong. That is part of learning.
- Be flexible and live in the moment.
- You will develop expert intuition through experience. You won’t always know how you know.
Possums Clinic attitude to breastfeeding and co-sleeping
- Fully support breastfeeding, formula feeding, or combination feeding.
- Fully supportive of co-sleeping and solo sleeping. Keep baby within sensory distance for the first 6 months.
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
- Most interventions are focused on infant sleep.
- Mother’s ability to get back to sleep is also important.
- Support mother’s sleep efficiency with mindfulness and relaxation exercises and taking the focus off sleep.
- Learn to disconnect from worrying thoughts.
Accessing Possums Sleep Intervention
- Possums Sleep Film
- Skype consultations
- Face-to-Face sessions with Dr Pamela Douglas in Brisbane
- General assessment
- If sleep is the primary issue, then move into the Possums Sleep Intervention
- Group sessions (Accessible online and in person)
Links
- Possums Sleep Intervention: Possums Online, and Feed your baby to sleep – The possums sleep intervention new recommendations
- The Discontented Little Baby book by Dr Pamela Douglas
- First step in any good sleep intervention (understanding sleep biology): www.practicalresearchparenting.com/firststeps or sign up by clicking here.
- Parenting from the Heart: www.koawhittingham.com.
- Becoming Mum book by Dr Koa Whittingham
For more great resources on Mindfulness and ACT for parents, check out these links:
- Free Mindfulness Meditation App for pregnant couples: Mind the Bump .Org .Au
- 9 Tips for Mindful Mothering
- ACT: Taking Hurt to Hope – Struggling with attachment with Newborns
This is the 6th Episode in the series, here are links to the rest of the series:
- PRP014: Angry Parents Part 1 Acting inline with values despite anger
- PRP015: Angry Parents Part 2 Acting inline with values despite anger
- PRP016: Becoming a Mother
- PRP017: The Possums Sleep Intervention Part 1
- PRP018: The Possums Sleep Intervention Part 2
- PRP019: The Possums Sleep Intervention Part 3
- PRP020: The Possums Sleep Intervention Part 4
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Have you felt pressured by common advice around baby sleep? Have you attended Possums? Or Read Dr Pamela Douglas’ book? Please start a discussion under the previous show notes.
