1. Sleep training means putting your baby in a crib and leaving them until morning.
Fact: There are many more gentle methods, from checking on your child frequently, to camping out in their room.
2. Sleep training will harm my child.
Fact: There’s no data to show that sleep training or not sleep training will harm your child in the long run.
3. After I sleep train, my child will sleep through the night.
Fact: No human being actually stays asleep the entire night. Even after sleep training, babies will wake up multiple times each night, and may roll over, move briefly, or make vocalizations. The key is that after sleep training, they will be able to put themselves back to sleep after these brief awakenings.
4. Keep baby up during the day for a better night of sleep.
Fact: Overtired babies go into hyperactivity mode, causing the opposite effect.
5. If I let my child cry, they will hate me.
Fact: Some studies actually show an improvement in security between parent and child following sleep training.