Parents searching for sleep training advice may have read about "progressive waiting" or "Ferberizing." While generally regarded as safe and effective, the Ferber Method has still engendered controversy among parents.
Who is Richard Ferber?
Richard Ferber is a pediatrician who is currently director of the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Children's Hospital in Boston. His book Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems [Simon & Schuster] was released in 1985 and revised in 2006, containing a 7-day program for training a baby to soothe himself to sleep and sleep through the night.
Outline of the Ferber Method
According to Ferber, many babies who sleep poorly at night do not know how to soothe themselves. If they are constantly nursed or rocked to sleep at bedtime, then every time they wake during the night they will need the process repeated by a caregiver in order to go back to sleep.
Ferber's technique for infant sleep training revolves around the concept of "progressive waiting." With a little consistency from parents, babies quickly learn to go to sleep on their own. Here's the Ferber method at a glance:
- After a soothing bedtime routine, put the drowsy (but not sleeping) baby down in his crib.
- The baby will inevitably cry after the parent leaves the room, but the parent must wait 5 minutes before going in to console him or her.
- Soothe the baby by rubbing or patting, but refrain from picking him or her up. After briefly comforting the child, leave the room again.
- If the baby is still crying after 10 minutes, return to comfort him or her in the same manner and leave the room again.
- If the baby is still crying after 15 minutes the parent should check on him, then repeat the same 15-minute cycle until he falls asleep.
This method should not be attempted until a baby reaches 6 months of age.
Progressive Waiting vs. Crying It Out
In the traditional "cry it out" method, parents lay a baby in his crib to cry indefinitely without checking on him until he falls asleep. Though it bears certain similarities to progressive waiting, Ferber does not advocate this approach. In the 2006 edition of his book, he says that "simply leaving a child in a crib to cry for long periods alone until he falls asleep, no matter how long it takes, is not an approach I approve of. On the contrary, many of the approaches I recommend are designed specifically to avoid unnecessary crying."
Pros and Cons of Ferber Sleep Training
The Ferber method is effective and usually teaches a baby to sleep through the night in about a week. A 2007 publication called Sleep Problems in Children from the American Academy of Pediatrics endorses the same basic concepts of sleep training (though without the detailed timetables), such as letting baby fuss and refraining from picking him up.
Disadvantages are that Ferberizing a baby entails listening to a lot of crying – at least at first. Some parents find it helpful to set a timer and find something in another room to keep them occupied until it goes off. Another drawback is that if a parent attempts the Ferber method and gives in after a while, it may only encourage more nighttime waking and make it harder to sleep train in the future.
Controversy Surrounding the Ferber Method
Some parents shun the idea of any degree of letting a baby cry it out, including the Ferber method. Many proponents of attachment parenting say that forcing a baby to cry himself to sleep scars him emotionally and undermines the parental bond.
Modifying the Ferber Method
Of course, there's no rule that says parents can't adapt the Richard Ferber method in any number of ways. Some parents choose to let their child cry in 5-minute increments but feel uncomfortable with longer periods of time. Others pick up the baby to calm him or her when necessary.
Infant sleep training methods are a highly personal decision, and the bottom line is that parents are the ultimate authority on what is best for their baby. Whichever method parents choose, the important thing is that they apply it consistently.
Jenny Evans - Jenny Evans is a freelance writer and editor specializing in parenting and the family. She is also the Mormonism Topic Editor for ...
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