Do you know the Ferber method? Experts say that in the long run it is best suited to create a sleep routine for babies. We talk about how to put it into practice as well as its advantages and disadvantages.
What is the Ferber method?
Many parents try to have their little ones sleep well at night and get used to sleeping alone, without the need to have someone nearby; for this they use several techniques like allowing weeping for a few moments, putting relaxing music, read a story… sometimes successful and others without it. Babies, especially those who have not yet reached a year old, they need not to be alone and to feel the skin contact most of the time, who are accustomed to sleep alone is something complicated, however the Ferber method gives us ideas on how to do it.
The goal of this technique is for the baby to sleep alone, for this it is recommended to parents to leave the baby alone in the room when night comes and not to enter when they hear complain.
The Ferber method has been created by the pediatrician Richard Ferber and is very similar to the well-known technique known Estivill. According to the pediatrician, the baby does not know how to cope with the sleep because he sees it as a discomfort so he asks for the help of his parents. He further states that the child will be able to sleep only if he is accustomed to a sleep routine.
How to implement the Ferber method
Richard Ferber recommends following these steps:
Leave the baby in the crib and leave the habituation, when he starts to cry or to attract attention, wait 5 minutes before entering the room.
After this time, the parents will be able to enter, calm the baby, talk to him and then go out again. It is best to comfort him without taking him out of the crib.
Once this is done and if the baby cries again, waits 10 minutes before going back into the bedroom. And so increase every time 5 minutes more. Richard Ferber also states that one must look at one’s circumstances and one should never let the small cries during a long time.
Benefits of the Ferber method
The creator of this method and some parents who have succeeded in carrying it out, say that after the first cry of tears, the baby gets better at night, the sleep is deeper and he wakes up less often.
Keep in mind that if you decide to use it, you have to carry it out from beginning to end, if after the first five minutes or the second day you give up, you have not served anything. A technique that, they say, gives great results but in the long run and in babies from 5 months of age.
Disadvantage of the Ferber method
On the other hand there are detractors, those who think it is a way for parents not for children. A baby of only a few months of life cannot put aside his basic needs to learn to sleep alone.
In turn, if you are breastfeeding your child, you will see that carrying out these steps will be impossible, as your baby will most likely fall asleep at night after the last shot.
The affective bonds between the parents and the baby can be damaged by not receiving the affection that needs at any moment as well as affect the self-esteem of the creature as it grows, there are numerous investigations that say that the children and the babies that have all the necessary affection, of older will be people with more self-esteem and confidence in themselves.
So we ask ourselves: is it a method to create a sleep routine in babies? Or is it a technique for parents to eventually have more time for themselves?