BabyWise Method

I was searching the internet for information on the BabyWise program that I've heard so much about. The following link www.ezzo.info takes you to a site that goes into alot of detail on the book, it authors along with some very interesting or should I say disturbing comments from Moms who have used this method. It mentions how you can cause your baby to not thrive, have attachment problems and so on and so on. Kind of scary. I just wanted to share this with all of you moms not as a believer in it but as an FYI and hear what you have done with this method/program...been successful, modified it as neccessary, etc...

I have 9 wk old babies & have been told I can get them to sleep at least 5 hrs at night. They sleep 3-4 now. I just wondering if this is a realistic goal or not...sleeping 5 hrs at night. If it is realistic then the big question is, that most moms I'm sure want to know, is 'HOW?'

 

At 9 weeks my babies were still up every 3-4 hours around the clock. The only advice I have is to feed them every 3 hours at least during the day, so that they are receiving the bulk of their nutrition during the daytime hours.

I also wanted to point you to THIS POST. I think one of our mom's was having trouble getting a PM through to you due to your screenname, and I wanted to make sure you saw this post. (The very last one in the thread)

 

I read the book, and used the method with my daughter -- and she was sleeping through the night (8 hours) by 2 months....she would nurse and go down at 10pm, wake to nurse at 6am, and then go back to sleep until 10am.

We were on this schedule until 6 months, when she started solids and started sleeping the 12 hours straight. Until then, I nursed her every three hours during the day....and she thrived and gained weight normally.

I think the problem with the book comes in when parents don't use their instincts, personally. The author repeats, many times, that "parent-directed feeding" means that you evaluate the situation, and make a decision. So, if the baby is showing hunger cues after two hours instead of three, or is screaming for food -- FEED her, already! I always did. In the evenings, her feedings were often closer together, the last nap was often shorter -- we just followed the schedule as best we could to make it work.

I think what worked best from the book is the Eat-Activity-Sleep cycle, which is not unique to Babywise -- other authors suggest it, too. I was very careful to follow this, and I never, ever let my daughter nurse to sleep, or put her down for a nap after she ate. I fed her, kept her awake and stimulated until she showed tired signs, then swaddled her tightly and put her down for a nap. She would sleep until it was time for the next feeding, which was pretty close to three hours from the time I started the last one....the author's opinion is that this helps "regulate" their feeding/sleeping patterns, and they will naturally start sleeping through the night.

It worked exactly that way for us, and we never had to do CIO.

On the flip side, what I really wanted to avoid was bringing baby to breast every time she made a peep -- babies cry for a lot of reasons, and I didn't want to get into the habit of becoming a pacifier, if in fact she was just tired or gassy or hot or cold or whatever.

I know there has been a lot of criticism of Ezzo -- and honestly, I haven't read much of it. The Babywise books suggests that your marriage is the most important relationship in the family, and that you must strive to fit your kids into your family dynamic, instead of dropping everything to let your world revolve around your kids.

This mindset worked for me, and for our family. (I'm also a fan of John Rosemond, who says the same thing.) It did NOT mean that I just stuck my kid in the crib, and tended to her when it was convenient, as has been suggested by some critics of the book. Rather, I worked very hard to make sure all of her needs were met by making sure she ate enough and slept enough, and as a result, she rarely cried as a baby -- because I learned early on exactly what she needed, and when. (And she's clearly attached to both DH and me!)

There is a lot more I can say about the book....but I wanted to add that the author says quite often that there are *always* special circumstances -- if you have preemies, or sick babies, etc., then clearly you will need to feed more frequently than every three hours. And, he makes allowances for growth spurts, travel, all sorts of things.

I'm obviously a proponent of the book because it worked so well for us -- and I will absolutely try it with these new munchkins (there is a special chapter on multiples) -- but your mileage may vary!

 

I agree with most of what the pp said, I hate to re-write what she wrote. Anyway I followed some of the methods of of BabyWise, but the method that I found very helpful was: "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" kinda the same concept, I like it a bit better. Mine were sleeping through the night at 4mo and have ever since! You really have to stick to a schedule, but can be modified as you see fit for your babies. Every Mom and her babies are different.

 

I read BabyWise and liked it to a point. DH and I decided to modify it a bit and try to follow our boys' natural patterns. I remember feeling discouraged when I read his multiples section, but found his wake, eat, sleep etc. pattern helpful. Our boys at every 3 hours until about 10 weeks or so, then went to every four. One of our little guys eats 32 oz. all during the day, while our other eats the same amount, but less during the day, so we feed him at night.

 

I also read Babywise and used many of its suggestions. I also read about 10 other baby/sleep books and used what made sense to me from those. I agree with pp that you must also use your instincts. As a new mom (of 2), I didn't realize I would have such maternal instincts; however, I did! Anyway . . .

 

I agree with everything Becca34 said. I used Babywise with all three of my kids and it worked great! They were all sleeping 6-8 hrs at night by 8-10 weeks.

But like she said you have to use your own instincts and modify it when you feel you should. For example he says feed them 15 minutes and no more and if they still act hungry don't feed them again until the next feeding. Well, when your Breastfeeding sometimes they take a lot longer than that. So I would feed them untill they were satisfied and then not feed them again until the next feeding. Again you just have to use your instincts and do what you think is right for your baby.

Like she said the main thing is to get them on the feed-wake-sleep schedule, so they don't get used to having to eat to go to sleep.

 

I did babywise "with a grain of salt" with all my kids - Justin was sleeping through the night at 7 weeks and my twins were by 10-11 weeks - I did the 3-hour feeding schedule from day one. It worked for us - as a working mom who didn't have much time off - it was a Godsend.

 

I did not read any books or follow any recommendations from any of the different ways to "train your babies how to sleep"

Yes my babies were sleeping more than 5 hours at 9 weeks old. In fact they were sleeping about 10 hours per night at that point. The only thing I changed right around the time they started sleeping though the night was to I started a bedtime routine (bath, clean jammies, bottle, crib.) I did the same thing every night and after about a week They started sleeping through the night on their own I did not ignore their cries for food if they woke up and were hungry they were fed and then they were put right back in the crib. They just did not and still dont wake up at night. They are now sleeping from 8 pm to between 6 and 8 am every night. They get plently of attention during the day and are still eating the recommended amout of formula/breastmilk and gaining weight properly. So I feel we are doing okay without needing a book to tell us what to do.


Personally I thinks books on how to raise your children are BS. Every child and parent is different so you need to find out what works for you and your babies and go with that. If they still need to wake up and eat every 3 hours then so be it so long as they are waking up to eat and not just out of habit. If they are sleeping through the night and are still eating the recommended amount of formula/Breastmilk then let them sleep through the night.

Honestly how would you feel if you were hungry and you were told that a book said you were not allowed to eat for another 2 hours??? Or on the flip side what if you were not hungry and were told you had to eat because a book says you have to???

Sorry but 'doctors claiming to know everything and thinking that all babies are the same is so rediculous to me.

 

we used Along the Infant way (which is by the same author as babywise but it incorporates the biblical principals for those who are interested) with our son. The most important thing which they stress strongly is that you have to use baby cues along with the schedule and many of those who have problems tend to let the clock dictate the schedule without assessing the whole situation. We loved this program and will be continuing to use it with the twins as well.