Friday, April 20, 2012

On Becoming Baby Wise by Gary Ezzo and Robert Buckman

Copyright: 252
Publisher: Parent-wise Solutions
Genre: non-fiction
Pages: 252
Book Website
My rating: none yet


I had a couple of different people recommend this book to me as Husband and I are in the home stretch waiting for Baby Girl to arrive (currently 37 weeks...3 weeks to go).  Both people who recommended it to me spoke highly of it and gave me examples of how it's worked for them.

The basic concept is that babies and kids need a schedule..it not only helps them but it helps the parents as well.  If you can get your infant on a schedule then things will be a lot easier in the long run.  Most infants where the parents are able to follow the method outlined in the book have infants that sleep through the night starting weeks 8-12.

The book goes over the process of how to start getting the child on a schedule involving feeding, wake time, nap time, repeat.

It's not an easy process, it's going to be hard to do.  However after reading the book and talking to others who have had success with it, Husband and I are going to give it a try.  We won't follow everything.  Some things I feel are a bit far fetched, but the general idea is there.  

When I tell people we are trying this method at least 90% just give me a look and say good luck, come talk to me in 5 months.    I love the optimism and support. haha!  I didn't say it would be easy.  It's going to have it's challenges, but I also don't see any harm in trying it out.   I'll be headed to work after 8 weeks so if we can get Baby Girl on some kind of schedule where she is sleeping through the night or through most of the night soon after, it would really help both of us since we both work full time jobs outside the home.

I figure I'll report back on this book later and let you know if we had any success or if we started the practice and decided it wasn't for us.

7 comments:

bermudaonion said...

I didn't realize you were so far along. How exciting!! I didn't read a book, but found it easy to get my son on a schedule - it just kind of naturally evolved. The most he ever got up at night was once and he slept through the night at 13 weeks. Don't sweat the small stuff and I think you'll find it'll work out on its own.

Kathy said...

Unfortunately, it's not "no harm." Scheduled feeding violates the American Academy of Pediatrics standards and has been associated with reduced milk supply and low weight gain. And please ask yourself WHY it "works" not to respond to a baby's cries. When her parents don't respond s/he soon learns (some quicker than others) not to bother using the only means of communication s/he has. That can affect the ability to love and trust--for life.

Please research further. This book and its authors have been highly controversial.

Kathy said...

It's not "no harm." Scheduled feeding contradicts the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics and has been associated with reduced milk supply and low infant weight gain. Besides, ask yourself WHY it "works" so that babies stop crying. When Mom and Dad don't respond to the only means of communication an infant has, s/he learns (some sooner than others) not to bother. That can affect the ability to love and trust for a lifetime.

This book and its authors are highly controversial. Please research further.

Unknown said...

Thanks Bermudaonion - I'm hoping a schedule will naturally happy for us and we'll quickly get into a routine. I'll try not to sweat the small stuff..but we'll see. haha!

Unknown said...

Kathy - We don't plan to follow what the recommendations are 100%, we're using it more as a guideline and will do what we feel is right for our daughter and what we are comfortable with. Since I do plan/hope to breastfeed for a year the milk supply issue is something I'm already researching a lot about and will be paying close attention to. Especially since I'll also be training for a half-marathon and a 30k trail race in the fall.

Bookfool said...

You never know; you may be one of the lucky ones who can easily put your child on a schedule and keep her there. We did okay with D. but not with W. Kiddo nearly drove us nuts. He's a natural night-owl and every night we drove him around and around the town to try to get him to sleep. Then, as soon as Huz brought him in the door, he'd scream. Most kids aren't *that* difficult! You'll do great, I'm sure. I can't believe you've only got 3 weeks left!! Cannot wait to see baby pics!!!!

Unknown said...

Oh my..I hope we aren't stuck doing that Bookfool! lol! I'm back down to only getting 3 hrs of sleep a night instead of the 4-5 i had worked up to, so I suppose I'm getting ready for all those restless nights.