Baby Sleep Help | Toddler Sleep Help | Custom Sleep Help - Pick Nick's Brain

Prematurity Awareness Month

Nicole — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:00:11 +0000

November is March of Dimes Prematurity Awareness Month! Many babies (roughly 1,400 per day!) are born premature in the U.S. alone and unfortunately, the numbers are increasing rather than decreasing. Please take a moment to learn more about prematurity and what you can do in pregnancy to reduce your risks by reading When Babies Are Born Premature on the Babble Soft website this week. You can also read about premature development and your baby’s sleep here on this site. Please also consider forwarding the information to friends and family as you can save a life of two sharing the knowledge! Thank you for doing your part in this very important matter.

Phew! Daylight Savings is Behind Us

Nicole — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:00:17 +0000

The end of Daylight Savings is always the source of worry for many parents, especially when their baby is waking too early. I thought I’d take the time to tell you how ours went and see how yours went, too.

Thankfully, our daylight savings went fairly smooth this year. I personally use option 3 when it comes to daylight savings in our house. My boys are just too unpredictable to use another option.

On Saturday night, I put the boys to bed around 9:20 p.m. which was a little late for my 21 month old, but Halloween definitely helped in that way. It did hurt us in that because he was overtired, he was up around 4:15, but once he fell back to sleep, he didn’t wake until 8:30 a.m. the NEW time, which was GREAT! For my preschooler, we have a rule that he does not come into mommy and daddy’s room until the first number on his clock is a “7″, so I changed his clock the night before. Hee. Hee. Sneaky mommy. It mostly worked, but the later bedtime did too, I’m sure. He didn’t come in until 6:53 a.m. My husband and I have a deal that we each get a day to sleep in on the weekend and Sunday is my day, so I was able to sleep until 8:40 a.m. NEW time! Woohoo!

The past few days have been filled with slightly earlier bedtimes, around 7 a.m. wake-up times, and good sleep, so it’s been pretty smooth for us (now that I’ve completely jinxed myself). I’m enjoying the earlier bedtimes because my preschooler is such a night owl that bedtime had gotten close to 9 p.m. anyway. I enjoy the later wake-up in the morning, but the late bedtime makes it hard to have much down-time in the evening. Mostly, I work on this website at night, truth be told.

Now that Daylight Savings is behind us, I can start to focus on the holidays and start my Christmas shopping. If I’m a good little girl, do you think my husband will get me these diamond earrings? :p Not this year!! Instead, we’ll focus on the kids and review this year’s hottest toys.

How did your Daylight Savings go?

How Long to Cry It Out (CIO)

Nicole — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:15 +0000

This topic “How long to cry it out?” has come up a few times in the last few weeks in one way or another, so I thought I’d talk about it this week. I always preface any discussion about cry it out by making sure that everyone understands that I’m not a “Cry It Out Pusher” and I’m very much NOT an extremist or a hard-core “sleep trainer”. I try to be realistic and just know that all babies are different and all family structures are different and what works for one won’t work for everyone. I even debated Pantley about this very topic, because while I think she has some good ideas, they simply will NOT work for all challenging baby types…at least in time before you go crazy from sleep exhaustion. I also don’t recommend cry it out for long-term co-sleepers, either.

If you are adamantly against cry it out, please do NOT do it! It probably won’t work and you’ll just feel bad about it. At all times in my sleep consultations, I work with parents on helping their baby sleep with as few tears as possible. Why? Because who wants their baby to cry? We all do what we can to limit our baby’s tears and as your sleep consultant, I understand that. My son’s sleep struggles are still very near and dear to my heart and I pretty much relive them every day in every consultation, so I very much remember where you probably are right now.

So, how long do you cry it out if you do choose that path?

First, make sure your baby is at an appropriate age for cry it out, he is no longer swaddled, and if you are feeding baby on a schedule that you have set a realistic schedule. One thing that I can’t emphasize enough is that my philosophy is that some parents might use cry it out to fix sleep problems, but please don’t make your baby go hungry if she still needs night feedings. One thing that really does make my skin crawl is hearing about letting a two month old cry throughout the night to avoid two feedings, which is hardly a “sleep problem.”

Another reason I recommend exhausting all other methods before trying cry it out is that you must be 100% committed to cry it out for it to really work. So, typically, I recommend that you feel like you’ve “tried everything” first. If you let your baby cry for a set length of time and then you “give in”, you have basically set a precedent and he will cry that long (or longer) next time (if there is a next time). Many babies respond well to non-crying methods (highly depends on your baby’s temperament) and only a small percentage of my clients really have to go full blown cry it out, so make sure you’ve truly given it your all on the other methods.

Once you 100% commit to cry it out, there really isn’t a length of time that you really stop, when you’re working on nights (though you want to limit nap time crying). The goal is for your baby to fall asleep without said sleep association and every parent will need to decide what is “too long.” I recommend deciding that before you start, if possible. Having a plan (do you visit or not, how long between visits, do you stay in the room, etc.) is of utmost importance so everyone is on the same page and will stick to it. Once you decide to stop said crutch, it can’t really be an option to change your mind, otherwise, you go backwards and might even make things worse.

Many people against cry it out will paint a picture that cry it out is cruel because a baby can’t communicate what she needs. This is true, to an extent, in that you can’t ignore all your baby’s cries and I would never recommend that. That’s irresponsible parenting. My argument is that if you give your baby a pacifier ten times per night and that’s all she “needs” then you know why she’s crying. Does that mean you give your baby everything just because she cries? Not to me. If it had, my son would not have sat in a car seat for his first year of life. Your baby only thinks she needs a pacifier to sleep because that’s all she’s known. It doesn’t mean she can’t learn a new way to sleep. Enter…the parent.

Down the line, after initial “sleep training” is over, does this mean you never go in to your baby at night? ABSOLUTELY NOT!! We all do pretty crazy things to get our baby to sleep, but when you’re ready to make a change, it’s important to commit to your plan of action. Whether you succeed in finding a no crying sleep method or try cry-it-out, babies are destined to change. Cry it out is NOT a cure-all and it doesn’t mean your baby won’t need you during an illness, when she’s getting new teeth, growth spurt, etc., so it doesn’t mean never go to your baby or use your instincts. It also doesn’t mean that cry it out “didn’t work.” because your baby needs you at night for something.

In my opinion, there is a right and wrong way to approach “sleep training”. If you’re doing cry-it-out, it might take you a few nights or a couple of weeks, but please expect things to pop up and change on you, because they will. Just remember, that cry it out won’t change your baby’s personality, there is no proof that cry it out is harmful, not even by Harvard, it’s not always clear when you’re done sleep training, and being a mom is an every day challenge.

How many days did cry it out take for you and your family?

When Baby Won’t Nap

Nicole — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:00:10 +0000

Naps can be challenging to get from your baby and sometimes it seems like he just won’t nap. Part of the reason your baby won’t nap is because day and night sleep are handled by two different parts of the brain. What your baby knows how to do at night doesn’t necessarily mean he will do the same thing during the day. Depending on how perceptive he is, the sunlight can keep him up or just playing with the smallest piece of lint in the crib. There is a whole lot of fun to miss during the day!

Another reason why your baby won’t nap is because the drive for your baby’s body to sleep at night is strongest. Our internal clocks strongly push us to sleep at night, but during the day, while our babies are sleepy and they do need to nap, the drive to sleep is not strong enough to make it easy for all babies. This is when it gets frustrating. You might try 45 minutes to get a 30 minute nap. And, you might do this 3 times a day!

When your baby won’t nap it’s most frustrating when she’s cranky because of the non-napping or when she refuses to sleep through the night because she’s so overtired come bedtime that she wakes up often at night, unable to settle. Though there are a few babies who appear to do fine without enough napping, naps are a key component of good night sleep, happy babies, and happy parents.

Most of the time, if your baby won’t nap, it can be solved by avoiding some mistakes that many parents make. Today, I begin offering a new free e-Book called 7 Common Napping Mistakes that discusses the 7 most common napping mistakes and what you can do about them. Just like my other free e-Book, 5 Ways to Help Your Child Sleep Through the Night, this e-Book is completely free, with no obligation. To get your free copy, sign up here.

Your Baby’s Sleep and Daylight Savings 2009

Nicole — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:24 +0000

The end of daylight savings is upon us when we will change our clocks back one hour. In Europe, the clocks change this weekend and for the United States (most of them), they will change on November 1st. For most people this means a baby, toddler, or child who wakes up a dreaded one hour earlier. This is especially painful when your child is already getting up at the crack of dawn! Most people don’t even get why we even have to change the clocks (Note: Nowadays, it’s to save energy).

You have three options when it comes to your child’s sleep and the end of the daylight savings. This year, I’ve had the pleasure to summarize your options on WorkingMother.com in Time Change Sleeping Tips. If you’d like more detail about how to handle daylight savings, please head over to MomCentral.com and read Saving Your Baby’s Sleep During the Time Change. Please take a moment to read over your options and feel free to post questions in the comments below.

How will you handle your child’s sleep when the time changes?

SIDS Awareness Month October Giveaway Winners

Nicole — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 18:17:44 +0000

Many thanks to everyone who enter the SIDS Awareness Month October Giveaway. It was truly my hope to help promote awareness about SIDS and provide tips, facts and resources for helping prevent SIDS. Along the way, I learned about Patti McKenna’s story about the loss of her precious son to SIDS 21 years ago. She has also written a book, Caution: Children Should Come with Warning Labels, from which she donates the proceeds from sales to SIDS research. A charming and brutally honest accounting of the adventures of parenting. I was happy to donate three copies of this book the giveaway.

And now….I am pleased to announce the winners of the giveaway. Winners have been notified by email.

Target Gift Cards We have two Target Gift Cards up for grabs donated by Pick Nick’s Brain.

With the holidays just around the corner, who wouldn’t find it helpful to have a gift card on hand to help with the gift shopping? One winner will receive a $50 gift card and another will win a $75 gift card! You can check out all the great stuff Target offers over at www.Target.com

Winner $50 Gift Card: Krystal who entered a comment, subscribed to the blog and became a fan of all three Facebook Fan Pages

Winner $75: Carla who entered a comment

Merino Kids Cocooi Babywrap from BabySleepBags.com

These adorable and cuddly soft baby swaddlers are perfect for swaddling newborn babies up to two or three months old. Made from allergy safe New Zealand merino wool, these swaddlers are perfect for any season as merino has the unique ability to help regulate body temperature and reduce the risks of overheating. Baby has the freedom to move naturally while swaddle much like they did while in the womb. Merino has a silky soft texture, is lightweight and comfortable to wear without itch making it safe to use for babies with eczema, allergies and sensitive skin. Merino is also naturally fire resistant. These baby wraps are available through their online store at www.babysleepbags.com.

Winner: Michelle who entered a comment, subscribed to the blog and became a fan of all three Facebook Fan pages

Good Nite Lite

The Good Nite Lite is the perfect nightlight for helping babies and toddler which helps promote a child’s ability to get into a healthy sleep pattern. This nightlight features a nighttime moon light that is set at bedtime to give off a soft blue glow that provides enough light to soothe your child but is not too bright as to inhibit sleeping. Parents can then set the light for a specific wake-up time and the sun lights up letting your baby or toddler learn and understand that until the sun lights up, it is still sleep time. The Good Nite Lite is a great visual cue for young children to begin moving from waking up too early and interfering with getting a full night’s rest. You can find more information and ordering this product at www.goodnitelite.com.

Winner: Karen who entered a comment

Sounds for Silence- Baby Settling Program for Sleeping

This program was developed by Dr. Harry Zehnwirth, an experienced Pediatrician. Includes a unique combination of blended and layered sounds to distract, engage and soothe unsettled babies. Also includes a no nonsense book for parents with information and practical advice to help parents better understand their babies and how they can help soothe and comfort them. The book covers such topics as Intuition, Infant irritability, Strategies for managing irritability, Baby sleep and settling, and The preterm infant (prematurity). You can order this product directly from Amazon: Sounds for Silence.

Winner: Bebemiqui who entered a comment

Nature’s Paradise Organics

Nature’s Paradise Organics provides safe & effective organic skin care products which are all USDA Certified Organic. Their products are chemical free, vegan approved and sustainable.

Nature’s Paradise has been kind enough to offer one Baby Organic Kit which includes Conditioning Shampoo & Body Wash, Lotion, Diaper Cream, Baby Powder, Baby Coconut Oil and Hand Sanitizer. Great starter kit or gift for Mom’s who care about the quality of skin care for their baby’s delicate skin. All Certified USDA Organic. This Gift set comes packaged in a eco-friendly, recyclable box with a clear top and a natural bow tie. Available and in Coconut or Unscented. You can find more organic skin care products on Nature’s Paradise website.

Winner: Valorie who entered a comment, blogged about the giveaway, subscribed to both blogs and to Pick Nick’s Brain Newsletter

Baby Dipper Bowl and Spoon

The Baby Dipper spoon and bowl combo is the genius invention by a mother of two sets of twins which makes it no surprise at all that this set makes feeding baby easy and is perfect to assist toddlers with self-feeding. Barbara Schantz invented the Baby Dipper Bowl as a triangular-shaped bowl which enables parent’s to feed with one hand while keeping the other hand free. I’ve tried this bowl with my own son and found it to a huge help at feeding time. The Baby Dipper features a non-slip base which keeps it in place as either me or my son scoops food out of it- making it especially handy for helping my son learn to feed himself. The contoured interior of this bowl also helps to guide food onto the spoon and the transparent sides allow for easy viewing of the food. You can feel good knowing the Baby Dipper is lead-free and phthalate-free and also shatter proof.

Barbara has graciously agreed to provide a Baby Dipper bowl and spoon as part of our SIDS Awareness giveaway. You can find more information on the Baby Dipper at www.babydipper.com.

Winner: Meredith who entered a comment

Babble Soft

No matter what you’ve heard, it’s not a year’s supply of diapers or a baby wipe warmer that will make the biggest difference in your baby’s life – the most important tools of parenthood are actually organization and coordination. Unfortunately, these things don’t always come naturally. That’s why Babble Soft provides easy-to-use software applications with organization and coordination in mind. It doesn’t matter whether you are a stay-at-home parent scheduling your day or if you are returning to work and need to coordinate with a nanny or other caregiver – their tools provide everything you need to give your life that perfect level of structure.

Babble Soft online software allows you to track feedings, pumping, diapers, and medication combined with an online baby album for baby’s first year. For parents on the go, Baby Insights mobile grants you access to the same information you get at home no matter where you are on your iPhone, Blackberry and other mobiles.

Three lucky winners will get a FREE three-month subscription to Babble Soft to track your baby’s sleep, feedings, pumping, medication doses, etc. You can find more information about Babble Soft at www.babblesoft.com.

Winner: Danielle who entered a comment, followed on Twiter, tweeted about the giveaway and became a fan of all three Facebook Fan pages.

Winner: Debbie who entered a comment, followed on Twitter, tweeted about the giveaway and subscribed to the blogs.

Winner: Susan who entered a comment and tweeted about the giveaway.

Caution: Children Should Come with Warning Labels

Heartwarming, funny, charming and brutally honest book by Patti McKenna about the true adventures of parenting. McKenna chronicles her experiences raising four children with humor and graciousness. Also the mother of a child lost to SIDS, McKenna donates the proceeds from the sales of this book to SIDS Research. Pick Nick’s Brain has donated three copies of this book to the giveaway.

Winner: Jessica who entered a comment and subscribed to the blog.

Winner: Karrie who entered a comment, subscribed to the blogs and blogged about the giveaway.

Winner: Janet who entered a comment, stumbled the post, followed on Twitter, tweeted and blogged about the giveaway.

And, last, but obviously not least:

Pick Nick’s Brain

After sleep coach and owner, Nicole Johnson, overcame her son’s sleeping issues in a way that complemented her own parenting style, and after such a happy success, she knew it was her mission to help other tired parents “find their child’s sleep.” Your baby’s sleep shouldn’t be stressful and Pick Nick’s Brain strives to provide a strong, non-judgmental, support network to help you and your family sleep better. Our website has helped countless families through free online articles, step-by-step e-Books, and private and personalized sleep consulting services.

Three (3) people will get one FREE e-mail sleep consultation to help with your sleep struggles. You’d be surprised how far you can get in just one e-mail! If you already have an account, your account will be credited.

Winner: Lee Ann who entered a comment, is a Pick Nick’s Brain Member and became a fan of my Facebook page.

Winner: MCZ who entered a comment.

Winner: Claire who entered a comment

Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to everyone who participated and help spread the word about SIDS Awareness Month!

TheBump, a Mom’s SIDS story, and a pricing change

Nicole — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:00:23 +0000

As I mentioned last week, October is SIDS Awareness Month. I’ve been sending out SIDS facts via Twitter and the Facebook Fan page to increase awareness and it has opened up conversations with some parents who have been sadly touched by SIDS. I wanted to share one mom’s story because it touched me so much. Her son would have been 21 this week and she and her four daughters still miss him. Please read her touching blog post this week here: One Word at a Time.

Just a reminder that the SIDS Awareness Month giveaway will end on Sunday, October 18, 8:59 PM EDT. I am pretty surprised at how few entries there are as you have a chance to win a $75 Target Gift Card, a $50 Target Gift Card, and many other prizes! I am also adding in 3 copies of the book: Caution: Children Should Come With Warning Labels, which was written by the woman mentioned above, Patti McKenna. Any proceeds of the book go towards SIDS research. Pick Nick’s Brain will donate 3 copies to the giveaway. Please enter now by following this link: Enter the giveaway to win!

In lighter news, the Pick Nick’s Brain blog is a finalist in TheBump’s first annual Mommy Blog Awards!! I actually read and enjoy several of the blogs up against this one, so it’s an honor to be right next to them. Please take a moment to vote for your favorite MommyBlog (preferably this one!) by visiting TheBump: Vote Favorite Mommy Blogs.

Lastly, there is going to be a pricing change on the website. One thing I remember in college is that supply and demand drives the price on pretty much everything. Since there is only me, my supply is running a little low as the Sleep Helpdesk has been busy and I’ve been putting in some late nights. This is very good news because that means I’m really helping a lot of people, which is my main goal here! I do not expect to get rich and really do want to keep everything affordable, but I’m finding the two e-mail package (now $19.95) is probably priced a bit too low. I spend a good 20-30 minutes on the first couple of e-mail and I’m getting super busy. I know another sleep consultant charges $35 for one e-mail and one quick follow-up. I’m not going there right now. My plan is simply raise the price on my two e-mail package (which automatically includes follow-ups) from $19.95 to $24.95 and my five e-mail package from $39.95 to $44.95. This price change will take effect on November 1st. At that point, all existing customers (either book or Helpdesk) will get a separate, private e-mail of a coupon code for $5 off until November 30th, so you can buy more at the original price. Just a little something for loyal customers. You might want to consider buying services now before the price goes up! Get One-on-One Help for your Troubled Sleeper.

As always, I want to thank you for your continued participation in the Pick Nick’s Brain community! I hope you are finding all the resources you need. Be sure to e-mail me with any article ideas if there is anything you have been looking for and haven’t been able to find. Go ahead and contact me, now!

Have a great weekend!

Baby Sleep and Breastfeeding Series: Part 3

Nicole — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 12:00:08 +0000

Welcome to part 3 of my Baby Sleep and Breastfeeding Series! If you are just joining us, you might want to start at part 1, where I discuss reasons why breastfeeding moms sometimes struggle with sleep. Today, I’ll go over the way mom’s diet or medication might affect baby’s sleep.

Breastfeeding Mom’s Diet

In general, breastfeeding moms do not need to limit their diet. Most babies will not be sensitive to anything in your diet and some sources even say one glass of wine or alcohol in small quantities is OK. I am a nervous mom, so I really did not drink when I was breastfeeding, but some do say it’s okay. What is okay for one mom to eat may not be right for you and your baby, so there really isn’t a list of regular foods that breastfeeding moms have to stay away from, including “gassy foods.” Breast milk is made up of what is in your blood, not what you eat.

The AAP does recommend to limit caffeine, but you can drink it. Basically, consume anything in moderation. No throwing back shots or drinking five cups of coffee (limit to 1 maybe 2 cups per day). Even if you are drinking caffeine in moderation, if your baby is unusually fussy or difficult to settle for sleep, try cutting back (or out) caffeine to rule it out as a culprit. I gave up caffeine in pregnancy (the first time, not the second) and didn’t start drinking it until I went back to work and just couldn’t keep up with my son’s sleep problems and work (this was around 8-10 weeks). So, caffeine most definitely was not the source of our sleep problems. I do know that! One thing to keep in mind is that newborns *are* fussy for the first 6-8 weeks and just when you think about cutting out dairy and all kinds of things in your diet (like I considered but thankfully didn’t do because I love cheese!), their fussiness starts to go away, so be patient.

All in all, your diet has little influence on your breast milk and your breastfeeding baby will get the nutrition she needs. So, just when you think that spicy food affected your baby’s sleep, keep in mind that there are areas in the world where spicy food is the daily norm and they breastfeed just fine. Please read more about the effect of mom’s diet on breast milk to put your mind at ease. Having said that, it’s important to eat enough calories to keep up your milk supply, so going on a diet while nursing is not advisable and that includes taking diet pills. Breastfeeding usually burns more calories and actually makes it easier to lose weight (though not for everyone) and it may take up to a year to lose all that baby weight, but your baby’s health will be well worth it.

Breastfeeding Mom’s Medication

If you’re a breastfeeding mom, you do have to be careful about some medications you might take. Always talk to your doctor about the medication he wants to prescribe and make sure you remind him that you are breastfeeding. The APP does have a large list of approved drugs for breastfeeding and KellyMom has a more user friendly list of approved medication here.

Some cold medications are not advised when you are breastfeeding. Sudafed and Actifed are okay to take as well as some allergy medications such as Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra, and Benadryl. Keep in mind any cold or allergy medication can affect your milk supply, so if you notice a dip, once you stop using it, your milk supply should go back up. Advil and Tylenol are both deemed as safe for you to take without an effect on your milk supply. This is different than when you are pregnant and should NOT take Advil. You can also review natural cold remedies that might help without adding to your stress or worry.

Anti-anxiety and anti-depressants have not been proven to cause a problem in a nursing infant, but the AAP puts them on a list of “Unknown, but could be of concern.” You should also make sure you review the list of medication with significant effects on infants, such as aspirin.

Any particular medication may or may not cause any sleep issues (none specifically that I know of — remember, I am not a doctor), and if you need medication for any given problem, I’d recommend working around it rather than trying to stop your medication. If medication is temporary, always keep in mind that you can “pump and dump.” I know of one mom who weaned at around 8 weeks because she had to take a certain unsafe medication for a week or two. She later realized she could have pumped and given her baby formula for a couple of weeks and then gone back to breastfeeding, so I try to remind people that weaning to fix a temporary problem is unnecessary and we can work around it. If you need ongoing medication, don’t assume your sleep struggles are due to the medication and definitely talk to your doctor about it.

Whether it’s diet or medication, there are many things breastfeeding moms have to worry about. When there are so many variables, it’s easy to blame breastfeeding and wonder whether if you stopped breastfeeding if all your sleep troubles would disappear. My mother-in-law was convinced that would have been true for me, but the pros definitely outweighed the cons and given I get just as many bottle-feeding moms to the site, I’m sure that, once again, all babies are different. Don’t wean. I breastfed for a year with both boys and we can work on the sleep troubles!

Share your experience with medication or diet

TheKnot, TheBump, Ba-da-bump!

Nicole — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 01:59:48 +0000

Don’t try to figure out the title of this post. I just liked it. I used TheKnot to help plan my wedding (5+ years ago), but only recently heard of the spin-off TheBump. TheBump is holding their first annual Mommy Blog Awards and someone nominated this blog! I’m very honored and wondered if you wanted to second (or third or forty-fourth) the nomination? If you enjoy this blog, please take a few seconds to add to the nominations (and any other Mommy Blogs you enjoy!). Here’s the link:

Visit TheBump to nominate a Mommy Blog!

Have a great weekend! And, oh, did everyone NOT understand that you can win a $75 Target Gift Card or $50 Target Gift Card by entering the giveaway? It’s really easy and right now there is a 29% chance you’ll win (that’s better than 1 in 3!) given not too many people are entering! Usually there are at least over 200 entries, so I’m wondering if people really saw all the prizes involved here. There will be 13 winners total. Good luck! But, you have to enter to win!

Learn about SIDS and enter the giveaway for a chance to win money and lots of great prizes!

SIDS Awareness Month and October Giveaway

Nicole — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:00:52 +0000

October is SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) Awareness Month and because safe baby sleep habits are just as important as healthy sleep habits, I wanted to take some time to provide you with SIDS facts and resources. The rate of reported SIDS deaths has been declining in recent years and in part that has been attributed to the “Back to Sleep” Campaign and increased awareness around sleep safety for babies. Research continues into the possible reasons why there remain significantly higher rates of SIDS among certain ethnic groups.

Additionally, as of today, I am going to be doing another giveaway with some great sponsors who agreed to be part of the SIDS Awareness giveaway as a way to help promote further awareness about safe sleeping habits and understanding SIDS. The giveaway begins today and runs through Sunday, October 18, 8:59 PM EDT. During this time we will be tweeting and posting on our Facebook page SIDS facts and resource links to help spread the word about October as SIDS Awareness month.

SIDS Facts

What is SIDS?
SIDS is the diagnosis given when an infant under one year of age dies suddenly and there is no other medial explanation for the death after a complete examination.

What causes SIDS?
New studies and research suggest that some SIDS babies are born with brain abnormalities that make them suspectible to SIDS as infants. These studies have shown that many SIDS infants have abnormalities in the portion of their brain that controls breathing and waking during sleep. Babies born with other brain or body defects may also be more prone to sudden death.

SIDS is most likely to occur in infants between one month and 12 months of age with the majority of deaths occurring between 2 and 4 months of age. The risk of SIDS diminishes significantly after the first year.

Can SIDS be prevented?

While there is no way to completely prevent SIDS, there are measures parents can take to help lower the risk of SIDS.

Place babies on their backs to sleep. If baby falls asleep on his tummy, gently roll baby onto his back.

Baby should sleep on a firm, flat mattress. Avoid using soft, fluffy or loose bedding that can increase suffocation risks. Consider using a sleeper or other sleep clothing as an alternative to blankets. (See the Merino Wool Baby Sleeping bag as part of our giveaway.)

Keep baby’s room temperature warm but not too warm. Overheated babies are more likely to go into a deep sleep from which it may be hard to wake up.

Babies with mothers who smoked during pregnancy are three times more likely to die from SIDS. Exposure to passive smoke around babies can double their risk of SIDS.

Good prenatal care and breastfeeding can also help lower the risks of SIDS.

Source: www.FirstCandle.org

Other Resources:

Information on SIDS/SUIDS and Still birth- FirstCandle.org

National Sudden & Unexpected Infant/Child Death & Pregnancy Loss Resource Center- www.SIDSCenter.org

National Institute of Child Health & Human Development- SIDS “Back to Sleep” Campaign- www.nichd.nih.gov/sids/

October Giveaway Prizes

I am pleased to be partnering with these sponsors for this important giveaway.

Target Gift Cards We have two Target Gift Cards up for grabs donated by Pick Nick’s Brain. With the holidays just around the corner, who wouldn’t find it helpful to have a gift card on hand to help with the gift shopping? One winner will receive a $50 gift card and another will win a $75 gift card! You can check out all the great stuff Target offers over at www.Target.com

Merino Kids Cocooi Babywrap from BabySleepBags.com

Good Nite Lite

Sounds for Silence- Baby Settling Program for Sleeping

Nature’s Paradise Organics

Nature’s Paradise Organics provides safe & effective organic skin care products which are all USDA Certified Organic. Their products are chemical free, vegan approved and sustainable.

Baby Dipper Bowl and Spoon

Barbara has graciously agreed to provide a Baby Dipper bowl and spoon as part of our SIDS Awareness giveaway. You can find more information on the Baby Dipper at www.babydipper.com.

Babble Soft

And, last, but obviously not least:

Pick Nick’s Brain

Deadline to enter is October 18, 2009, 8:59 p.m. EDT.

Here is how you can enter:

1. Leave a comment. – 1 entry

2. Stumble this post. – 1 entry (Leave a comment that you stumbled)

3. Follow one of our sponsors on Twitter and tweet about it. For example: Just followed @BabyDipper for @PickNicksBrain October Giveaway #babysleep. (Be sure to include the tag #babysleep in your tweet so we can track it!)

The following sponsors are on Twitter (and you can receive one (1) entry per sponsor followed):

Pick Nick’s Brain, BabyDipper, GoodNiteLite

Sample Tweet: “I just entered the SIDS Awareness Month October Giveaway by Pick Nick’s Brain! http://tinyurl.com/yz8xssd”

4. Tweet about this giveaway with a link back to this post and the tag #babysleep. The tag will allow us to track and locate your tweet entry. – 1 entry (You can enter as many times as you wish! Tweet daily to help raise SIDS awareness!)

Sample Tweet: “I just entered the SIDS Awareness Month October Giveaway by Pick Nick’s Brain! http://tinyurl.com/yz8xssd”

5. Subscribe to this blog or the Baby Dipper blog. One (1) entry for each blog subscription. Please post in the comments which blogs you subscribed to.

Pick Nick’s Brain Blog via RSS or via E-Mail, Baby Dipper Blog

6. Become a Facebook Fan of any of the sponsors and get one entry per Fan Page you join. Please post in the comments which Facebook Fan Pages you belong to.

Pick Nick’s Brain Facebook Fan Page

Baby Dipper Facebook Fan Page

GoodNiteLite Facebook Fan Page

7. Blog about SIDS Awareness month and this giveaway and submit a link to the blog post in the comments – 10 entries

Good luck to everyone and thank you for helping us spread the word about SIDS!