The Responsive Family Sleep Podcast

What should I do? I get this question a lot from parents, typically after giving them a few options for how to navigate their current sleep situation. It’s an understandable question, but often one that doesn’t have one clear answer. Many sleep situations have multiple good paths to take, and what a specific family should do depends on many factors. In this week’s episode, I’m talking about the ma...

How do you define healthy baby sleep? I bet you’ve been told it’s a baby who goes in their crib drowsy but awake, falls asleep independently, and sleeps through the night. That’s our cultural definition of healthy sleep, but it’s not a more developmentally informed, biologically based definition. In this week’s episode, I’m walking you through a better way to conceptualize healthy baby sleep. I’m...

There are so many decisions we parents make every single day. It’s exhausting. And trying to make decisions in the middle of the night adds an extra layer of exhausting. Should we wait a few minutes, or go in right way? Is it ok to feed again? Who should respond? These are questions I hear from parents all the time. Sometimes nighttime needs are high, and there isn’t a clear and easy path towards...

Is your little one super wiggly at bedtime? Do they have a hard time settling down and relaxing into sleep? Parents often think these littles need more calm (and sometimes that’s a factor) but they can also use more big body play. In this episode, my good friend, sleep coach, and OT Heather Boyd and I are talking about big body play for better bedtimes. We are digging into the reasons movement mat...

We are taught to focus on reducing the number of night wakes to improve our sleep. And there is certainly a level of waking where bringing those wake ups down is going to help most parents sleep better. But an equally (if not sometimes more) important part of parent sleep is how quickly you are able to fall back asleep after responding to a night wake. In this episode I’m sharing 10 tips to help y...

Most parents want longer sleep stretches at night, and yet most sleep info on improving nighttime sleep doesn’t take into account protecting breastmilk supply. Balancing sleep goals and feeding goals is a big part of the work I do with families. And the truth is, there isn’t one solid answer to the question – how long can I go overnight between feeds (or milk removals) without negatively impacting...

Sleep is an expression of so many factors. Babies and children have differing needs, capacities, and temperaments. Parents have differing needs, capacities, and temperaments. Goals aren’t the same from family to family and phase to phase. So, in this episode, I am talking you through my framework for how to make sleep easier in your family no matter your needs, capacity, temperament, or goals. Thi...

So many commonly held sleep beliefs developed without any thought to breastfeeding needs and norms. As a result, a lot of common advice can complicate or undermine your nursing relationship or your milk supply. In this episode I’m talking you through some of the common signs that sleep info isn’t lactation informed or supportive. I hope it helps you spot strategies and beliefs that can hurt breast...

Everyone tells you to be consistent, but how do you know if it’s time to call quits on a change or strategy? Sometimes we jump from strategy to strategy too quickly and other times we feel pressure to push through, even when we know it feels like too much. In this episode, I’m talking you through 7 questions to ask yourself when you are deciding to  push through or make a change in approach. The q...

Getting a baby or toddler used to a new sleep space can be tricky, especially for more sensitive littles. Whether it’s the transition from bassinet to crib, crib to toddler bed or floor bed, or any other shift in sleep set up, crib play is a strategy I often recommend. In this episode, I’m talking you through the key points of crib play.  What is crib play? When should I use crib play? How do I do...

So many babies who struggle with sleep also struggle with transitions, with feeding, with going from zero to a million in a second. In this episode I’m exploring a different way of looking at sleep, feeding, and fussiness concerns with Kaili Ets, a colleague, sleep coach, and OT. Our conversation focuses on looking beneath the behavior at the nervous system.  We talk about temperament, nervous sys...

Have you hit a wall of exhaustion? Are you spinning in circles wondering what to do first? IN this episode, I’m talking you through 3 key things to do when you are beyond tired. Our brains tend to jump to big changes and drastic measures, but that’s often a bad idea because you don’t have the reserves to do it thoughtfully, assuming you even actually want to make that change. I talk you through pr...

You need to teach your baby how to sleep. Give them the gift of good sleep skills. Do comments like this sound familiar? In this episode I’m unpacking the idea that we need to teach our babies to sleep. Hint, we don’t and can’t. I talk about sleep being an involuntary state that you don’t have conscious control over. I share some of the things you can influence to support falling asleep: sleep fee...

Is my child getting enough sleep? How much sleep does my baby need? These are common questions I get from parents, and they can create a lot of stress. The evidence I use to answer these types of questions always includes the National Sleep Foundation recommendations. So I was very excited to have Dr. Dzierzewski From the National Sleep Foundation on the podcast to talk about their latest annual p...

Nursing to sleep and back to sleep is normal and healthy, but what happens when your baby or toddler just won’t unlatch! It’s one of the patterns I see push so many parents over the edge into not coping. In this episode I’m talking you through some tips for unlatching from night feeds. I share some specific tips for the moment of unlatching and also some bigger picture tips for how to manage over...

Over the years I’ve worked as a sleep coach, I’ve seen long-term logging sleep become more and more common. But have you paused to reflect if logging sleep is helpful or harmful to your sleep or mental health? Is all that data actually useful? In this episode I’m talking you through the pros and cons of logging sleep. I hope this episode encourages you to be more intentional with logging, or even...

As a parent, you are surrounded by all the shoulds, should nots, and strong opinions on how you should parent. When you are a responsive parent, it can feel like all that noise doesn’t align with your values. In this episode I’m joined by Claire Felps, a counselor specializing in acceptance commitment therapy, to talk about showing up as a responsive parent in a world that isn’t always supportive....

It’s time for a safety focused episode. When can a baby sleep on their stomach? So many babies sleep better on their stomach, but when is it safe? In this episode I’m walking you through the safety guidelines and some things you can do to encourage baby to meet the milestones needed for safe tummy sleeping.  Resources related to this episode Pediatric PT /milestones IG accounts: @mommyandme.pt @ne...

What does a baby need headed into a nap? Do they need a pre-nap routine just like they need a bedtime routine? In this episode I’m answering some common questions about pre-nap routines, how they can help, and how to make sure they aren’t limiting your nap flexibility.  Connect with Kim  Instagram: instagram.com/intuitive_parenting_dc Facebook:  facebook.com/intuitiveparentingdc Learn more about w...

What does your baby’s tongue position have to do with their sleep? Actually, quite a bit. In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Alison Sigal, a pediatric dentist and airway specialist,  for a conversation about airway health and sleep. I find this to be a really important and under talked about reason for frequent waking, feeding challenges, and unsettled behavior. We discuss: Why tongue ties matter....

Overtiredness is a common topic in the sleep world. Sometimes, it feels like it’s the answer to all sleep problems. I see so many parents anxious about overtiredness. In this episode, I’m sharing a deeper look at the overtired conversation. I will talk you through: Is overtiredness a real thing? How does focusing on overtiredness influence your ability to support sleep? Why sleep pressure and regu...

I think we’ve all been there – your little one is not…settling down, stopping crying, letting you transfer them, falling asleep! And you are wondering why is it always this hard. The frustration builds, and you are getting dysregulated right along with your child. In this episode, I’m talking about the power of cognitively reframing the situation to help you regulate and better understand what you...

The way you take care of your nervous system influences how you show up to nurture and take care of your baby. In this episode, I’m joined by Jennifer Grove, a Nervous System Whisperer & Venting Coach, to talk about how you can show up for yourself in the overwhelming and intense early years of parenting. We discuss self care as regulation support and emotional release, not the traditional sel...

I talk with so many parents who are in a hard season of life. They feel bad that it’s so hard. That they aren’t coping better. They feel like it should be easier, come easier. Sometimes it’s hard because it is hard. In this episode, I’m talking about what to do when it’s hard. Sometimes there are ways to optimize  things to make life easier (and I love helping you do that!), but sometimes we need...

We’ve all had one of these days – the first nap is rough, they fight the next nap, and it’s late afternoon and they’ve hardly slept. You're frustrated and dysregulated. They are tired and dysregulated. And you feel the impending doom of how bad bedtime and the night are going to be. In this episode I’m sharing a few ideas for how to survive because most of us have been there. Even with a soli...