Let’s ground your sleep knowledge in a research backed approach centering development, biology, and attachment so that you can serve your clients more fully!
And those questions make you want to run and hide because you don’t know what you don’t know so sleep questions make you really nervous that you are going to say the wrong thing.
Your training didn’t give you enough knowledge in this area and you don’t want to get in the middle of strong and conflicting views on sleep so you try and avoid sleep conversations in an effort to stay neutral. Saying anything feels like taking sides in the sleep training debate and yet you want to encourage realistic expectations whilst meeting parents where they are at.
It’s sharing evidence-based information so that parents can stress less about what’s normal and make informed decisions about sleep instead of a fear-based one-size-fits-all approach that does a disservice to families.
And that’s what all your work is about – helping parents make informed decisions.
Yet somewhere along the way, sleep training became so dominant and all-consuming that parents simply aren’t getting all the information to make informed decisions – in fact, they don’t even know they have choices. And it’s leaving parents feeling guilty, anxious, and confused.
I’m here to help you help parents trust themselves, their baby, and the unfolding of development more so that they have confidence in the choices they’re making for themselves and their family.
Whether you are a doula, lactation consultant, therapist, or another type of professional supporting parents in early parenting I want you to feel confident to answer sleep questions with information that is developmentally informed, attachment focused, and evidence-based.
Now, I know you don’t really want to be a sleep coach, but parents need developmentally accurate information on sleep from all the professionals they see!
Sleep is such a big topic for new parents, and yet so much information commonly shared about sleep is outdated, inaccurate, and out of touch with biological norms. With all the conflicting and incorrect information widely shared, it can be challenging for a professional supporting parents to know what’s evidence-based and developmentally informed and what is just cultural beliefs repackaged as fact.
(Hint, there is a whole lot of that commonly shared around infant sleep!)
Understanding sleep development is essential for parents to make informed decisions based on their own needs rather than fear-based messaging.
And bonus, by helping you separate what is cultural belief around sleep verses biology, you can more sensitively support parents from different cultural backgrounds.
Hey, I’m Kim Hawley, MA, MPH, IBCLC Certified Holistic Sleep Coach, Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant, And Certified Peaceful Parenting Educator.
I have over 13 years experience supporting parents through maternal and child public health programs, lactation support, and sleep support. My specialty is a developmental, holistic, and attachment focused approach to supporting sleep in the whole family.
Introducing….
A short course for perinatal professionals to deepen your knowledge of sleep development so that you can confidently navigate sleep conversations with your clients – from validating what's normal to sharing simple sleep tips to knowing when to refer parents for extra support
What you’ll learn:
Deepen your knowledge of biologically normal sleep development so you can confidently handle your clients sleep questions.
Know how to separate cultural beliefs from biological needs so that you can spot information that is inaccurate or outdated.
Understand the factors that shape modern sleep information so you can guide parents to information that matches their values.
Learn simple tools to promote safe and healthy sleep so you can confidently share quick tips with parents.
Discover how sharing normal sleep development is the foundation of informed decision making for sleep so you don’t feel you are taking a stance when talking about the reality of normal sleep.
Ultimately, I want you to have the confidence, knowledge, and insight to talk about sleep with your clients. Each time you validate what’s normal and share simple tips that work with parent baby biology, you are changing the narrative on sleep and helping parents stress less about sleep development and trust their instincts.
Sleep information in context
To understand how to talk about baby sleep, you need to understand how we got to a place where sleep is such a contradictory and controversial topic.
You’ll learn:
Why every professional needs to unpack their own sleep story to hold space for your clients sleep experience.
How mainstream sleep information became popular, and why it’s lacking developmental context.
The true roots of conflicting sleep information, and how this conflict creates unnecessary stress for parents.
The biological foundation
To understand sleep development, you first need to understand some of the key biological forces shaping infant behavior and needs.
You’ll learn:
How modern culture goes against evolutionary biology creating unrealistic expectations for infant care practices.
What neuroscience tells us about early developmental needs and capabilities, and what that means for parents expectations.
How attachment shows us a better path towards long-term healthy sleep and changes the priorities for supporting sleep in the present.
Sleep foundations
To answer sleep questions, you need to understand the evidence-based process of sleep development and maturation.
You’ll learn:
How a parent can work with their babies own biological sleep regulation to promote better sleep.
Why evidence-based sleep development disproves so many sleep rules, shoulds, and expectations and how to sensitively discuss this myth busting information with parents.
How to flip the narrative on healthy sleep to one that’s developmentally based so parents feel more at ease with normal development.
What sleep looks like over the early years so you can help parents understand the normal progression of sleep patterns.
Supporting safe and healthy sleep
Modern life isn’t sleep friendly (for anyone!). all professionals can have some tips and tricks to share with tired parents.
You’ll learn:
How to talk about safe sleep in various settings (including bedsharing).
The true foundation of healthy sleep for the whole family.
Important perspectives to take into your conversations with parents about sleep.
Tips for screening and referrals to connect parents to the right professionals (sleep specialists and otherwise).
Self-paced, short videos to make the information easy to digest and fit in around a busy schedule.
Resources for further reading and to share with your clients.
Reflection questions to deepen your understanding.
Periodic live, virtual Q&A sessions -get access to some face to face time with me to get your specific questions answered. This is a great time to talk through those trickier aspects of talking about sleep with parents so you build their confidence, meet them where they are at and still share accurate developmental info.
***This workshop has a sliding scale option as well as scholarship slots. Reach out if you’d like to chat about these options.
“This workshop is a comprehensive primer that will introduce you to the basic concepts of infant sleep. It’s informative and thought- provoking and will expand your understanding of how sleep is interconnected to parenting as a whole.”
— Sara BhaduriHauck, perinatal professional
“This workshop will challenge long held beliefs about newborn and infant sleep with evidence-based information and empower you to support your clients through the 4th trimester compassionately.”
-Lindsey Vick, Birth Doula Agency Owner and Birth Doula Trainer, Sunflowers Healing and Wellness
“This class had great information about biological norms for infant sleep, and included nonjudgmental ways to approach sleep conversations with families.”
—Rebecca M. Lactation Consultant
I know how hard it is to talk about sleep with parents. You want to validate them and give them hope. You want to share accurate information that helps them all get more sleep. You don’t want to alienate parents who may be struggling.
And yet, the sleep information overload is real, even for professionals! It’s hard to sort through the conflicting information to feel confident you are sharing evidence-based, developmentally informed information and solutions.
If you are ready to navigate tricky sleep conversations with compassion, confidence, and clarity that you are sharing accurate information…
► That you are helping parents trust their intuition…
► That you are supporting informed decision making….
This course is a series of short video lessons with related resources provided.
You have lifetime access to this course and any updates as long as I am running the course.
The course is 2 hours broken down into 13 videos.
No, this is a short course designed for continuing education. While it will give you a solid foundation in normal sleep development, it’s not designed to train you to be a sleep coach.
All professionals need to share accurate information around sleep, and the desire to share more developmentally based information to a range of professionals prompted this courses creation.
If you’d like to train as a sleep coach or consultant, I’m happy to recommend a program aligned with the values of this short course.
