I’m a sleep consultant & see new parents make the same mistakes – NEVER take kids out their cot before they’re three
A SLEEP consultant has revealed the five things she’d never do with her own children.
Cat, who posts under the acronym @thesleepteam, took to TikTok where she shared a very informative video to help struggling parents.
In the clip, she begins by saying that she’d never let her baby sleep in a light room if they’re older than a newborn.
“I learned this the hard way with my eldest daughter,” she explains. “I think that her short naps took way longer to connect than they would have if I’d actually had a dark room.”
Cat then moves onto tip number two and says she’d never worry about holding her newborn too much.
“Simply put, you can’t spoil a newborn,” she says. “So, if you want to cuddle them and you’ve tried to put them down and they just won’t have any of it, just enjoy those newborn struggles.
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“Surrender to it and let it go and know that as they get older, you can work on improving their sleep.”
The sleep expert also notes how she’d never move her toddler out of their crib until they were at least two-and-a-half or even closer to three-years-old.
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“I get so many calls from families with an SOS message when they’ve moved their toddler out of their bed too early,” she explains.
“It can cause absolute havoc on their sleep and they have had weeks or months of destructive sleep because it was just too early to get them out of the crib.”
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Cat then says she’d never compare her baby’s sleep to someone else’s baby.
“You’ll have some friends whose baby will sleep through the night from eight weeks of age, you’ll have other friends who won’t sleep though the night until 18 months or maybe even two-years-old,” she explains.
“All babies are different and all children have different temperaments which can have a huge impact on their sleep.
“Comparison is the thief of joy and it’ll drive you crazy if you compare your baby to somebody else’s.
“Try to focus on your little one and do what works best for your family.”
Finally, Cat says she’d never stay home all day trying to get her baby to sleep in the crib.
“I’ve been there, I’ve done that – it drives you crazy,” she explains. “You have to look after your mental health and it’s so important to get out of the house both for you and your baby.
“If your little one’s on three naps – nap one and nap three are the easiest naps of the day to have on the go so use those to your advantage so you can both get out of the house and you’ll feel infinitely better.”
The post has since received a whopping 43,000 views and been inundated with comments from social media users.
“I’m pleased to hear your advice about moving from crib at 3yr. I’ve had a lot of stick for this from friends. My son is 3 next month. He likes his,” wrote one.
A second penned: “As someone who moved their kid to a toddler bed at 2 yrs 4 months, and it severely messed with her sleep, I fully agree lol.”
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A third commented: “This is so reassuring! my little one is 2yrs 7 months and still in her cot, she is getting a big girl room with a big girl bed for her 3rd birthday!”
Meanwhile, a fourth noted: “Thank you so much for this video- so encouraging!”