FAQ's

You will find the answers to most questions below. In any case, I am happy to answer your call.

The Booking Process

See the header “How to book”, follow the link to Terms and Conditions, read them and click on "Booking Form", complete and submit it. You will receive a response within 24 hours.
Immediately prior to transferring funds, you are advised to call me so that I can give you the latest availability. Fixed booking dates are guaranteed once you have agreed to the Terms and Conditions and paid the retainer fee.
Due to the last minute nature of my work and the high demand for my services, specific dates are not held for a client prior to a confirmed booking. I am particularly careful to maintain a fair and efficient diary for all families.
Don’t worry, just advise me immediately prior to booking confirmation so that I can help you find a suitable solution. If you have a sofa/bed with some bedding this may be sufficient.
In specific cases, a one-off postponement of your consultation is possible. This is subject to mutual availability. This will incur an administrative fee because you are, in most cases, reserving many of my working hours that can't be replaced at short notice and I we have mutually committed to those hours. For more specific details please refer to the Postponement and Cancellation section in my Terms and Conditions.
Booking requests are accepted on receipt of a completed Booking Form only and on payment of the retainer or, in some cases, the full fee. Please go to the Header "How to Book'
Yes, for infants from 4 months old, in most cases you can do this. As long as you send me an e-mail request and book it before the last day of your existing text support. For rates, please see 'Options' on your chosen consultation page.
Unless you have got to the root cause(s) of the sleep issues, you would be advised to maintain your booking. An infant’s sleep can appear to improve over a period of time then it may well regress back to the original sleep issue or be impacted by further concerns. If you do decide to make a cancellation this must be confirmed by e-mail and the Terms and Conditions that you agreed to at the time of booking will apply (see: the cancellation policy).
This can vary from baby to baby and parent's expectations. I try to manage these as best as possible during the consultation so that each parent knows what to expect and how to manage and adjust to a situation when it arises. This is the advantage of in-home consultations. I am with you from the start offering real-time support so success rates are proven to be higher than for virtual consultations. I get to know your infant and your concerns so I adjust how I coach you and your little one. I work towards the goal you have requested as long as it is age-appropriate and suits your infant's personality. So, if your little one is healthy, over 6 months old and feeding well, both on solids and milk, I will give you the tools to get him sleeping well at night. in 2023 the success rate for in-home consultations was 98% whilst the average success rate for sleep training in general is closer to 94%.
There are two types of sleep disorder. The first is medical (checked prior to booking). If it is suspected as medical, I refer you to a medically qualified professional. When medical issues are ruled out, I help you sort out a behavioural sleep disorder. My training for behavioural issues was from highly renowned experts and I offer you scientifically researched advice. I also offer 'real time' support as an added bonus to help you through the most intensive phase of the tailor-made sleep plan. Altogether this is a solid 'guarantee'. With consistency, I am fully confident that your little one will have the correct age-appropriate sleep without you constantly having to resettle him. Failure in the sense of the full plan not working at all has never happened but should you really have a concern and you have been 100% consistent, then I would look at what has been done, ensure there have been no 'loopholes' and continue to work with you remotely. i am just as keen as you are to be thorough and have a happy infant and parents.

The Consultation

I can not recommend applying an official ‘sleep training’ method to babies under 6 months of age. Studies have shown that not all younger babies are mentally or sometimes physically ready. However, with 30+ years experience in young baby care, I have created very gentle and more gradual sleep shaping techniques which help set strong foundations for healthy, longer term sleep.
Yes. If you have booked an In-home consultation which covers overnight hours, I will be available to advise as needed.
Your infant’s safety is my utmost concern so I kindly request that you provide a good working baby monitor to hear and preferably to see your infants' every sound and movement. If your baby is not sleeping in your bedroom, I will be checking your infant’s well-being throughout the night.
I always promote safe sleeping practices and explains them to you. My duty as a professional sleep consultant is to give you the latest advice regarding safe sleep practices as provided by The Lullaby Trust. For any infant under 6 months old I would expect to be in the same room as your baby or at least have an adult in the room so that your baby can be observed correctly. If you specifically do not want me to be in the same room as your baby and you are not with your baby too, then you will be required to sign a disclaimer to this effect.
As long as your infant has the appropriate pain relief throughout the sleep training, teething can be managed successfully and should not affect the sleep plan. For correct dosage you are advised to check this with your infants’ medical practitioner.
As a professional Sleep Consultant, My role is to inform you of all existing, evidence-based sleep training methods, from the most gentle to the more controlled. I talk you through these methods, how they work and the pros and cons of each one. You therefore make the informed choice as to the sleep-training method that suits your family. Once your choice is made, I refine the sleep plan with you and coache you through your unique sleep plan.
This is not always an easy question to answer because I believe all babies are unique. From previous experience a holistic approach greatly reduces the crying. Each baby’s age and unique personality offer a different reaction. Some babies adapt so quickly that parents ask “why did he cry a lot less than he usually does when we rock him to sleep?” On the other hand, It would not be honest to guarantee a completely ‘no cry’ solution
I will certainly never force you to continue the sleep training method you yourself have initially chosen. If you decide that it is not working for you, I will endeavour to give you an alternative option. Hopefully this will allow you to take a step back and perhaps go at a slower pace.
You will see some encouraging signs within the first few days. Fully established sleep 'habits' can take between 6-8 weeks. The key to success is your ability to maintain consistency in implementing the advice given during the consultation. Oh, not to forget patience, lots of it!
Most of the in-home consultation package has been carefully designed to offer you post consultation text support for varying periods of time. For specific details please see the full description of your package.
You are kindly requested to provide a bed or comfortable sofa for me to sleep on whilst your infant is asleep. If the consultation is for more than 24 hours, I am required to take a daily break and catch up on sleep in your home or go out for a walk.
The clear advantage of a holistic approach and 'real time' professional guidance and support, is that when an unexpected situation arises, you have the answer from me right beside you. With 20+ years of professional experience I can give you the answers and rule out niggling doubts. I can tell you how to respond in unexpected situations. We become an empowering team! That's why the success rate is so high.
By getting to know your parental views, your baby's personality and your concerns, I adjust how I works with you and your infant towards sleep habits that you have requested. It is important, of course, that they are age-appropriate and suit your infant's needs and personality. A parent will, of course, respond to illness, nightmares etc. but this is certainly not every night occurence.
There are two types of sleep disorder: The first is medical and, to rule this out, even before you book, I will rule it out after asking a series of specific questions. The second is behavioural which as a CPD trained Paediatric behavioural Sleep Consultant is my area ofexpertise. I am advising you in real time during the most intensive part of the tailor made sleep plan. Consider it as an intensive, fast tracked learning experience! The full new sleep habit of any sleep plan takes approximately a further 6-8 weeks and relies on your ability to be consistent in carrying out the advice offered.
‘Failure,’ in the sense of the full plan not being suitable, has never happened because my advice is backed by the latest evidence-based sleep science and 30+ years of professional experience. Theoretically speaking, should there be no improvement whatsoever during the 6 to 8 week period, I would look into what has been done and, according to my findings, I would continue to work with you remotely whilst you provide a detailed daily log of events. My aim is, above all, for your infant to have healthy sleep patterns.

'Milk Matters' - Bottle refusal

Each baby has a different personality and age. Both of which play a part. The amount of weeks or months your baby has refuse the bottle prior to the consultation date and how many times you offered the bottle impacts the depth of the refusing behaviour. As a guideline, in 2023, the average time was between 24 and 48 hours for bottle refusals in babies who had not had previous complications.
No, the family member takes on full care. I am there uniquely to encourage bottle feeding and observation of your baby's well-being. In my experience, babies accept to bottle feed quicker and more easily when my role is purely bottle feeding at first. It also allows me to be fullyobservant of feeding cues, your baby's overall emotional state and well-being etc. I am available purely to coach your baby in positive bottle-feeding. This is a golden opportunity for another family member to spend quality time with your baby whilst you have some precious ‘me time' away from the home.
Once you have confirmed the booking I will provide you with a short list of specific items to help you prepare for the consultation. Not forgetting you will need a breast pump for yourself!
Yes, of course you can! That choice is always yours. I will happily advise you on expressing, storing your milk and how to do combination feeding on a regular basis. If you choose, I offer advice for re-introducing breastfeeding following the consultation to maintain flexible feeding
For your baby’s emotional well-being I separate the two issues. During a Milk Matters - Bottle refusal consultation I advise that you maintain all your baby’s familiar sleep settling habits. You will need to wait at least two weeks between the Milk Matters -Bottle refusal consultation and starting a holistic sleep plan.
My method currently brings an extremely high success rate for bottle refusal consultations. I use my own intuitive and gentle method and I'm calmly confident that your baby will learn to enjoy bottle-feeding. This is the most honest 'guarantee' I can give you before I have actually met your baby or have a detailed feeding history.
This is variable from baby to baby. It sometimes takes up to 48 hours to come to see improvements and you will still need to follow the advice offered carefully after that. So in some cases, for the mother, an overnight stay away (breastpump in hand!), occasionally it's two nights, may be envisaged.
This is variable from baby to baby according to your baby's age, personality, and previous feeding history. Generally speaking, you can gradually re-introduce breastfeeding within about 72 -100 hours. I will, of course, advise on a case-by-case basis.
When you temporarily change a baby's habits (feeding or sleeping) in favour of learning any new skill, it is normal that a baby might be a little unsettled. However, with my extensive experience I haven't experienced a baby crying all day long during this consultation and wouldn't see this as 'normal'. I create a calm, relaxed and balanced environment sometimes offering some fun activities too.
I monitor your baby constantly to ensure there are enough wet nappies and your baby is alert and healthy. As your baby’s well-being is foremost in my mind, if I ever had any concerns whatsoever regarding your baby's health, I would not hesitate to share them with you. I respect your choices and decisions and I work with you. Very occasionally, in the many hundreds of bottle refusal cases, I did call the mother home and asked her to breastfeed her baby so that we could continue when she wanted to.