Raising Sound Sleepers
Helping Children Use Their Senses to Rest and Self-Soothe
Quick Look
- An empowering resource offering practical sleep solutions for parents and carers of children from newborns to teens
- Reveals how parents and carers can support children to use their senses to rest, sleep well and build resilience
- Written by an experienced child-development consultant and holistic physician, and based on extensive research
Help children of all ages learn life-long skills -- how to sleep, self-soothe and feel calm – using their senses. An easy-to-absorb, holistic guide from doctor and child-development consultant Adam Blanning.
Description
What can parents do to avoid bedtime meltdowns? Why do established settling routines stop working? How can children be encouraged to fall asleep more consistently? What simple, natural steps can parents take to help children feel calm?
Sleep and rest aren't always the natural processes we expect them to be. Dr Adam Blanning, child-development consultant and holistic physician, suggests that they are learned skills which grow with children alongside physical developmental stages. In this insightful book he offers practical ways in which parents and carers can support children to use their senses -- from taste, smell and touch, through to balance and movement - to self-soothe, sleep and ultimately build resilience for life.
Based on extensive research and using clear examples, Dr Blanning explores a range of methods for children of all ages, from newborns to teenagers, and tackles key parental concerns, including:
-- Tips for settling toddlers who always say ‘No!’
-- How to establish calming daily rhythms
-- Ways to help children settle during times of anxiety
-- Self-soothing techniques that can improve disruptive behaviour
Raising Sound Sleepers is an invaluable resource that will empower parents and carers to guide children towards rest, sleep and feeling calm -- skills that will last a lifetime.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1: What Is the Inner Sensory Pathway?
2: Soothing Patterns for Babies
3: When Soothing Gets Stuck and How to Shift It
4: Finding Balance from Age 1 Onward
5: Rhythms and Routines from Age 1 Onward
6: When Older Children Struggle to Sleep and Settle
7: Independence and Boundaries from Age 2½ Onward
8: Building Well-being and Resilience for All Ages
9: Stuck Sensory Behaviors and Therapeutic Applications
10: Common Times of Anxiety and Transition
Afterword
About the Author
Endnotes
Acknowledgments
A Note on Anthroposophic Medicine
Index
Reviews
'I would like all prospective parents to read or hear about the contents of this book. It is gentle and non-prescriptive but clearly explained and wise too... This book is laid out to be as helpful as possible, not too long and with good signposting[...] It will certainly help a parent or carer to support good sleeping and resting habits for children, and, more than that, will deepen understanding of many developmental needs of young children.'
-- Jill Taplin, Kindling
'Adam Blanning's Raising Sound Sleepers is groundbreaking. He beautifully describes how to care for children's inner space, their inner life, with its wise messages of health and regeneration. His language is refreshingly common-sense. Without obscure or technical concepts, he guides us in observing our own children through a new lens... This book is an insightful gem, and a gift for the children of our time. I heartily recommend it to parents, teachers and doctors who care for children.'
-- Alicia Landman-Reiner, Anthroposophic Medicine Trainer and Consultant
'This book is about so much more than helping your child be able to sleep independently. It helps with so many other issues regarding children’s behaviour such as thumb sucking, restlessness, trauma and so on. It contains a lot of practical advice and is useful no matter how many children you have or what their ages are.'
-- Large Family Mama (Instagram)
'With easy-to-absorb examples, I was really impressed by this book. I like the breakdown of information and the clear diagrams to help aid my understanding of the point.'
-- Posie's Book Club, (Instagram)
'I have learnt SO much from this book and now have lots of ideas to try at home, to slowly and gently, give my little one the independence he is capable of achieving now. This book has really helped with my understanding of the developmental milestones in the early years and how these affect behaviour and sleep.'
-- Mum.Wife.And.Midwife (Instagram)
Author
Dr Adam Blanning practices integrative and anthroposophic family medicine in Colorado, USA. Alongside his work as a doctor, Dr Blanning lectures and teaches internationally on topics relating to holistic medicine and the dynamics of human development, with a special interest in supporting children. He organises training courses in anthroposophic medicine for doctors and other healthcare providers and works regularly with Steiner-Waldorf schools as a developmental consultant. Dr Blanning is a past president of the Anthroposophic Health Association (AHA) and the author of Understanding Deeper Developmental Needs, an in-depth exploration of challenging behaviours in children. He lives in Denver, Colorado, USA.
