The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train

Hello tired parents! If you feel exhausted and overwhelmed about your baby’s sleep and are trying to be gentle and responsive but aren’t clear how, welcome!In this podcast, we go beyond wake windows and bedtimes to help you understand your baby’s sleep so that you can find responsive ways to support it…without sleep training!The Baby Sleep Connection also explores all the layers connected to baby sleep --maternal mental health, nutrition, temperament, sensory processing, gentle/responsive parenting, and infant development so that sleep (and life!) feels easier. I'm so glad you're here.

The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train is a kids podcast hosted by Heather Boyd, with 78 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Heather Boyd hosts The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train, a kids show with 78 episodes published.

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  Episode #78

  Ep 78: How Big, Whole-Body Movement Supports Sleep with Kim Hawley

  Sep 24, 202644 min

  I am excited to be joined today by my good friend and sleep colleague Kim Hawley. Kim is an IBCLC and Holistic Sleep Coach from Washington, D.C., and is my go-to person for rich conversations about what matters most when helping families through sleep challenges. In this episode, Kim and I talk about how big motor movements can be a game changer for better bedtimes and easier night time sleep. In this conversation, Kim and I explore: Why we ended up connecting with each other around the idea of big body movement What is big body play, and how does it connect to the sensory system and regulation Alternatives to “too calm” and “too frantic” bedtime approaches The value of curiosity in tailoring evening routines and activities for sleep What does big body movement look like, and how does it change as your baby develops To learn more parent strategies for motor play and regulation for sleep, you can get A Guide to Big Body Play for Better Sleep at familysleep.ca/resources . Mentioned in today’s episode: The resource that Kim and I have developed together is available for purchase at familysleep.ca/resources What you can do next: Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend! Provide a review on Apple Podcasts. It truly makes a difference to reaching families who would benefit from understanding their baby’s sleep better. Sign up for weekly baby sleep emails.⁠ at https://heatherboyd.activehosted.com/f/1 Book a screening call with Heather (Occupational Therapy receipts are provided for families from most provinces in Canada) Credits: Music: Jordan Wood

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  The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train

  Ep 77: Keeping It Simple: 3 Non-Negotiables for Easier Baby Sleep

  Sep 10, 202616 min

  If I had to give you just three non-negotiables for better sleep, here is what they’d be: Ask yourself what your child needs in this moment . Not what you wish they needed. Not what you want them to need. But what they actually need. This one shift can help you move away from whackamole sleep strategies to preserving the relationship and settling your baby more easily. Keep it simple. So often, parents take the hard road because they think they are supposed to do sleep support a particular way. When that happens, the easy solutions can be missed. Find the strategy that makes sense for you and your baby –not the strategy that worked for someone on the internet. Keep your eye on the ultimate goal. Parents frequently think that a particular strategy is their goal –night weaning, moving their child out of your bed or bedroom, or putting your child down drowsy but awake. These aren’t goals: they are strategies that may (or may not!) work to get your goal. What’s your actual goal? It’s likely more about feeling well rested, having some time to yourself, meeting your baby’s needs without feeling burned out, helping your baby get good quality sleep, or having a more predictable schedule. When we focus on the goal, we start looking at strategies as tools, rather than as rules.. What’s your non-negotiable in supporting your baby’s sleep? What you can do next: Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend! Provide a review on Apple Podcasts. It truly makes a difference to reaching families who would benefit from understanding their baby’s sleep better. Sign up for weekly baby sleep emails.⁠ https://heatherboyd.activehosted.com/f/1 Book a screening call with Heather (receipts provided for Ontario families) Credits: Music: Jordan Wood

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  The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train

  Ep 76: How Important ARE Bedtime Routines?

  Sep 3, 202620 min

  Summer is drawing to an end, which brings many parents a desire to get back to “routine”, to get some predictability in their schedule, and to tighten up bedtimes. In this episode, Heather explores where routines and rhythms really come from (it’s not all on you as the parent!), and how to put in some sense of routine and predictability for yourself, even when your baby’s routine or rhythm is not well-established yet. Listen to this episode to learn how: Rhythm is a neurophysiological process that comes from the inside. Your baby’s developing nervous system –and yours!-- influences what sleep and daytime activities will look like. Routine and rhythm is influenced and supported from the outside -the physical, relationship-based, and social environment. That’s where you come in! To claim some control over predictable routines in order to support your own need for routine, even if your baby’s routines are not well-developed yet. Here’s to finding a routine and rhythm that support both you and your baby. What you can do next: Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend! Provide a review on Apple Podcasts. It truly makes a difference to reaching families who would benefit from understanding their baby’s sleep better. Sign up for weekly baby sleep emails.⁠ https://heatherboyd.activehosted.com/f/1 Book a screening call with Heather (receipts provided for Ontario families)Credits: Music: Jordan Wood

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  The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train

  Ep 75: The Core is Key: Movement, Milestones, and Infant Development with Shelley Mannell, Physiotherapist

  Aug 27, 202659 min

  I’m joined today by Shelley Mannell, pediatric physiotherapist from St. Catharines, Ontario, and champion of the concept that core stability is key for movement, infant development, and emotional regulation. In this conversation, Shelley and I explore: How infant developmental milestones are just the beginning of the story Why core stability supports postural control, balance, and sensory processing How the recruitment of core muscles is as crucial for post-partum moms and babies alike The unintended consequences of “Back to Sleep” and what to do to balance this out Understanding movement for children with neuromotor differences and neurodiversity Tummy time and babywearing Shelley Mannell is a mentor, physiotherapist, and international speaker who co-created Dynamic Core for Kids, an evidence-based approach to central stability for children with motor and sensory differences. Through teaching, mentorship, and clinical practice, Shelley has shared her knowledge and experience with clinicians and families internationally. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook at @heartspacept, on HeartspacePT’s learning platform, https://heartspacept.thinkific.com/ , and at her website, https://heartspacept.com . Her course for pediatric therapists, Foundation for Function: Understanding Dynamic Systems in Postural Control is available at https://heartspacept.thinkific.com/courses/foundation-for-function Shelley's course , Dynamic Core for Kids: Stability in Action , co-taught with Julie Wiebe, PT, is available at https://heartspacept.thinkific.com/courses/dynamic-core-for-kids-stability-in-action Mentioned in today’s episode: Julie Wiebe, California-based sports medicine and women’s health physiotherapist, and co-creator of Dynamic Core for Kids, and Pediatric Pelvic Health: Dynamic Core for Kids Edition Paul Hodges, Australian researcher of central stability, https://shrs.uq.edu.au/profile/157/paul-hodges Karen Adolph https://as.nyu.edu/faculty/karen-adolph.html What you can do next: Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend! Provide a review on Apple Podcasts. It truly makes a difference to reaching families who would benefit from understanding their baby’s sleep better. Sign up for weekly baby sleep emails.⁠ https://heatherboyd.activehosted.com/f/1 Book a screening call with Heather (Occupational Therapy receipts are provided for families from most provinces in Canada) Credits: Music: Jordan Wood

  ListenShow Notes
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  The Baby Sleep Connection: Holistic help for tired, responsive parents who don't want to sleep train

  Ep 74: Are We Over-Optimizing Baby Sleep?

  Aug 18, 202616 min

  Are we over-optimizing baby sleep and trying to make it “perfect”? Strategies that make sleep easier are worthwhile, but when we expect that if we simply “do it right”, we’ll reach the finish line with sleep, we forget that sleep is not a machine or circuit board that just has to be put together right to “work”. In this episode, Heather Boyd, pediatric occupational therapist and certified sleep coach explores optimizing strategies that support sleep while also taking the pressure off of thinking that you need to work harder on your baby’s sleep to make it better. What you can do next: Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend! Provide a review on Apple Podcasts. It truly makes a difference to reaching families who would benefit from understanding their baby’s sleep better. Sign up for the Podcast Listener’s Guide with Heather’s list of favourite podcasts, episodes, and books. ( familysleep.ca/podcast ) Book a screening call with Heather (receipts provided for Ontario families) (familysleep.ca/contact) Credits: Music: Jordan Wood

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