I remember when I had my first born and prior to training as a Sleep Coach, I literally had no idea that there is a recommended amount of sleep for children. I just thought a baby would sleep when they wanted to like many of us as adults. The problem was, he never seemed to want to or know how to sleep during the day.
Read MoreI can honestly say the more sleep deprived I am, the higher my anxiety and stress levels are. I know it is impossible to never experience stress, but I find parenting so much harder when I am struggling with anxiety. This month I’m excited to introduce Gemma Sandwell from the Happiness Branch who shares her hacks on how to feel less anxious when you are sleep deprived.
Read MoreAfter giving birth to our first born, Oliver, it is safe to say that my life transformed within an instant. I know that many mums and dads feel the same. However for me, not all of this change felt positive. If I’m being honest, becoming a mother for the first time stripped me of my whole identity.
Read MoreYou may not know this about me, but when I was 15 I was diagnosed with M.E., “Myalgic Encephalomyelitis”, which can also be referred to as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). It seems rather apt to share my journey with you, being that it is M.E. Awareness week.
Read MoreThis subject is one that is close to my heart. With our first born Oliver, we never had to worry about this because there was no such thing as “stopped sleeping” as he never started. However, our little sleeper Ruby slept through as a newborn, but now she wakes 2-3 times a night as a 5 month old. Does this sound familiar?
Read MoreWill my second baby come early? A question I was continually asking myself (and google) throughout my third trimester. Never did I think that having a premature baby the first time, would make me constantly be on edge when I was pregnant with our second.
Read MoreI remember when I was pregnant with Oliver our first born, I met a mum to be in our ante natal classes who said she was having her placenta encapsulated after giving birth. To be honest the first thing I thought was “What the hell is that”? She then went on to tell me and I just thought it was really weird, why would she want to do that? After giving birth she sent the group a photo of her “Placenta Smoothie”, which at the time seemed really disgusting. I mean why would she do this to herself?
Read MoreThere I was 35 weeks pregnant with our second baby, creating a thorough sleep plan for our unborn little girl. After giving birth first time round to our sleep thief, I was determined to use all of my tools in my toolkit to help our baby girl to learn to sleep.
Read MoreTruly. Too many parents hear the words “baby has colic”, “it’s normal”, baby will grow out of it” or phrases to that extent. And are sent home. Apparently “reassured” that it is normal. That the high-pitched screaming of their tiny infant is somehow normal. That inconsolable crying is normal. That still not being able to settle or sleep peacefully by the age of 8 months is normal.
Read MoreHere is Episode 2 of “Honestly Parenting” Blog – Coping with pregnancy and terrible twos. Be sure to give yourself some time to watch this one, whether it be with your feet up and a cuppa one evening or whilst doing some household chores. So much happened this trimester, and I didn’t want to cut any of it out.
Read MoreNever did I think after a relatively straightforward pregnancy first time around, would I experience anxiety during my second one. I was not aware that the experience of having a pre term baby affected me at all, until I hit the second trimester in this subsequent pregnancy.
Read MoreIn honor of #NICUawarenessmonth, we asked NICU Mum Vicki Cockerill to come and write a guest piece for us. Here is her story...
Read MoreOne of the most common struggles I hear from sleep deprived mums is that they feel low, fed up and anxious. When parents share this with me, I know exactly how they feel because I have been there when my former sleep thief was constantly waking every night for nearly a year.
Read MoreSince I have started on this journey to becoming a Sleep Consultant, I have come across hundreds of myths that are associated with early childhood sleep. Part of me can totally understand these misconceptions because before I experienced sleep coaching both as a parent with a sleepless
Read MoreExhausted, desperate and ready to give up, best explains how I felt when Oliver was 6 months old, “Why are all my friends babies napping for 3 hours a day and only up once or not at all during the night?” A question I used to ask myself daily. Oliver was refusing naps all day and awake every 60-90 minutes through the night.
Read MoreIf you are anything like me, pre child holidays involved relaxing, exploring, sunbathing, sipping cocktails and basically doing everything you wanted when you would like to. So our first trip away with Oliver was a huge shock, in fact it was actually very stressful! Which is the opposite experience that hubby and I were going for, we were looking for more of a break from busy parenting life. Silly us!
Read MoreI do chuckle looking back at my pre child self, I had no idea how the sleep deprivation was going to hit me. Before becoming a parent, I used to say to my business friends with kids, “Can’t you just do your business mindset in the middle of the night to make the best use of your time”? or “Why don’t you just work every night when the kids are in bed?”. Now I know why they laughed at me!
Read MoreI am genuinely envious of those mum's who experience no sickness or queasiness during their pregnancy. When I was pregnant with our first Oliver, I think in hindsight I had Hyperemesis gravidarum (severe morning sickness), as I could not keep water or food down until week 17. I remember just opening an eye whilst laying in dark room and I was instantly sick. I couldn't get in a car, in fact I couldn't leave my bed.
Read MoreParenting was a struggle for me. Just getting my children off to school in the morning and to sleep at night was a battle. I was stuck on parenting ‘autopilot,’ going through the motions and dragged down by guilt and overwhelmed.
Read MoreWhen I initially considered hiring as sleep expert, my husband’s first reaction was “We do not have the money to spend on that”. Oh the irony, knowing what I do now! Three months later, Oliver’s (and our) sleep had not improved, in fact it was getting worse. It wasn’t just the lack of the sleep, life felt like it was crumbling around us.
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