Nighttime Parenting: How to Get Your Baby and Child to Sleep
William Sears
1985
This early work by Dr. William Sears offers a foundational perspective on infant and toddler sleep through the lens of attachment parenting. It addresses the biological and emotional aspects of children's sleep, emphasizing the importance of responsiveness and connection during nighttime hours. The book discusses topics such as co-sleeping, night nursing, and the developmental nature of sleep patterns, aiming to help parents understand and support their child's sleep needs without resorting to rigid training methods.
Why It’s Included
Nighttime Parenting aligns with our values by promoting a gentle, responsive approach to children's sleep. It challenges conventional sleep training techniques and encourages parents to trust their instincts and respond to their child's cues, fostering a secure attachment and emotional well-being.
Who It’s For
Parents and caregivers seeking an alternative to traditional sleep training methods, particularly those interested in attachment-based approaches to nighttime parenting.
“This book, published in my first child’s second year, was pivotal in my beliefs about infant sleep. It steered a different perspective for my second and third babies who simply bed-shared from the start, without guilt.
William Sear’s pioneered a different way for society to look at parenting in the night and pushed back at the embryonic sleep training industry which would explode in the coming decade.
A classic and fundamental text.”
My one opportunity to meet William Sears clashed with my daughter’s baby shower for my first grandchild! Our dear friend Pinky asked him to sign my favourite book on our behalf.
Further Reading
Sleeping Like a Baby by Pinky McKay
The Baby Book by William Sears, Martha Sears, Robert Sears, and James Sears
The Attachment Parenting Book by William Sears and Martha Sears
Parenting by Heart by Pinky McKay
Three in the Bed by Deborah Jackson
