Say Hello to Better Sleep with The Full Feedings Method
Say Hello to Better Sleep with The Full Feedings Method
I’m going to go out on a limb and assume if you’re reading this, you have a baby (or one on the way), and are really tired.
The only thing I cared about when I got pregnant with my first was how I was going to get my daughter to sleep through the night without compromising her needs or leaving her in a dark room to cry it out. When I didn’t find what I was looking for, I created it.
Enter The Full Feedings Method.
Using this method and having a consistent daytime routine you can get your baby to sleep through the night by just 8 to 12 weeks old! If you focus on meeting their food and sleep needs fully at each age, you’ll establish consistent nighttime sleep as long as you stay on top of the monthly changes that occur during the first 18 months.
Here are some important tips to pay attention to…
All feeds should be full feeds.
You can feed your baby on-demand, just do so fully. Each time you sit down to feed, work to have baby nurse for 30-minutes and/or finish an age-appropriate bottle in the same amount of time. This includes burp time and applies to babies 6 months and under. (Over 6 months, a “full feed” will be less time.) Eventually you will get to more fixed feed times, but while you are working on establishing consistent nighttime sleep, it’s far easier to be flexible.
Make sure baby doesn’t stay awake too long.
Overly tired babies are a nightmare. Consistently work to have baby asleep by their age-appropriate Optimal Wake Time (OWT: the amount of time baby should stay awake, not necessarily the amount of time baby could stay awake). This will ensure they don’t get overly tired at any period in the day, which will give you the best opportunity for consistent nighttime sleep.
Don’t allow baby to sleep too long during the daytime.
Either you wake them during the day or they wake you. Limiting daytime sleep is essential to making sure baby can always sleep 12-hours a night.
Maintain 12-hours of daytime for 12-hours of nighttime.
7am to 7pm is my personal favorite. While you may want to sleep in, it’s important to think about what works best long-term for your work, school, etc. needs. Consistency is key!
Ensure baby’s food and sleep needs are fully met before getting rid of night feeds.
This is really important! If baby’s needs are not fully met, they will still wake at night, even after removing feeds. If after removing feeds at night, baby is still waking after a week, go back to work on their daytime and try again once you’ve made some changes.
Want to learn more? Check out my Online Program or follow along on Instagram for tons of daily sleep tips.
Ann Elaine Branca
Ann Elaine Branca is a single-mom of three, who created The Full Feedings Method as a way to help other parents get their sleep back. She is devoted to changing the misconception that sleep is something you have to give up when you become a parent. The FFM is a simple way-of-life that can be safely implemented from birth and will alleviate the need for sleep training. The method is focused on meeting baby’s sleep and food needs fully, which ultimately gives parents the confidence and peace of mind to stop feeding their child during the night. The only tears you will be crying with this method are tears of joy when your baby finally sleeps through the night!