Back-to-Work Sleep Considerations, with Kim West

The Birthful Podcast: Episode #109

When returning to work, it’s not uncommon for baby to start waking more at night. What can you do ahead of time to support better sleep and minimize these wakings? If your baby starts waking more often, what can you do to survive and better the situation? Kim West has answers. Check it out.

What we talked about:

• What to consider depending on your baby’s age
• Why working with your daycare provider is key!
• When does the circadian rhythm get established, and how to work with it
• Day/night confusion
• Paying attention to daytime sleep
• Developmentally appropriate expectations
• Why might wakings may increase?
• What can you do to help minimize that waking?
• Setting down the groundwork with solid preparation
• Getting yourself ready for going back to work
• When to look for a care provider?
• Matching things up with the baby you got

Additional resources and articles:

• 12 Things New Moms Going Back To Work Need to Know, from Cloud Mom
• Going Back To Work After Baby: 7 Tips for New Moms, from Working Mother
• Ask Dr. Sears: Back-to-Work Baby Anxiety, from Parenting

Podcast episodes we mentioned:

• All About Pumping!, with Nancy Mohrbacher, Birthful episode #84
• Going back to work, with Nancy Mohrbacher, Birthful episode #26

[mark]About Kim West -aka The Sleep Lady[/mark]

Kim West is a mother of two wonderful daughters and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has been a practicing child and family therapist for 25 years. Known as The Sleep Lady® by her clients, over the past twenty years she has helped tens of thousands of tired parents all over the world get a good night’s sleep without letting their children cry it out alone.

Kim has appeared on the Dr. Phil, Today Show, NBC Nightly News, Good Morning America, TLC’s Bringing Home Baby and CNN, and has been written about in a number of publications including The Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Baby Talk,  Parenting, The Baltimore Sun, USA Today, The Telegraph, The Irish Independent and the Washington Post.

Kim is the author of three books: “GOOD NIGHT, SLEEP TIGHT: The Sleep Lady’s Gentle Guide to Helping Your Child Go to Sleep, Stay Asleep and Wake Up Happy”, the “Good Night, Sleep Tight Workbook” and “52 Sleep Secrets for Babies”.

Dedicated to providing tired parents with excellent sleep advice and coaching, she started training Gentle Sleep Coaches® all over the world in 2010. Learn more at sleeplady.com, or follow her on:

facebook.com/TheSleepLady

twitter.com/TheSleepLady

pinterest.com/thesleeplady

instagram.com/thesleeplady

*may contain affiliate links. This means that I may get a small percentage of what you buy, and that is one of the ways of helping me continue to do this podcast – Thank you!

Like the music on the podcast?:

Title music: “Vibe Ace” by Kevin MacLeod, from the Free Music Archive / CC BY (edited for length).

Sponsorship music: “Air Hockey Saloon” by Chris Zabriskie, from the Free Music Archive / CC BY (edited for length).