Thursday, July 03, 2008
Sleep Separation Technique
3-JULY-2008:
Dominic never had any problems going to sleep on his own, in his own room. I would normally just put him in bed, get out of the room and get on with my other stuffs. Unfortunately, all that changed after we came back from Malaysia last month. He insisted that I stay in the room with him and hold his hand while he fell asleep. As you might recall, I recently wrote that I had to take a nap in his room between 9 - 10pm every night, while waiting for him to fall asleep.
Then, I consulted my "Ask Supernanny" book and she told me to use the Sleep Separation Technique. I used it and it worked, although I modified the technique a little bit. Now, Dominic is back to normal and I have plenty of "me-time" in the evening. :-) Here's what Jo Frost wrote about her Sleep Separation Technique.
- Put your son in bed as usual.
- Sit down on the floor close to his bed, but at arm's length so he can't reach for you. Don't look at him. Just sit in silence until he goes to sleep. Every time he tries to talk to you, say nothing. Sit with your head down, like you were shut off. You're reassuring him with your presence but not engaging with him in any other way.
- The next night, repeat the same stages, moving a little way further from the bed.
- Gradually increase the distance until you are sitting outside his room with the door open.
- And then finally, break the habit.
As mentioned, I modified the technique a bit.
- First, I lied down close to his bed. He asked me to hold his hand. I held it for about 1 minute and then let go.
- He continued to ask me to hold his hand. The technique said I should ignore him and keep quiet, but I talked to him. I told him I was there and he didn't need to hold my hand. It went on successfully for a couple of nights. And then I was able to move further from his bed.
- First, I had broken his habit of holding my hand to sleep, but he still wanted me to be in his room. I followed the technique and moved further and further each night, until I was sitting at the door.
- Now, I don't even stay by the door anymore. He would still ask me to stay here and I would say "Yes, mummy will stay here - in the house". And he was contented with that. Sometimes he just called out "Mummy" to make sure I was still in the house and I would shout back (from wherever I was), "Mummy is here". And he would go to sleep.
For mums out there who are experiencing the same problem, do give this a try. It really works.
