Rock-A-Bye Baby

Sleep Matters.

Think back to a night when you had a lousy sleep. How did you feel the next day: Groggy? Sluggish? Cranky? Unable to concentrate the way you normally could? Children are no different. In fact, because they need a lot more sleep than adults do, not getting enough "Zs" can have a dramatic impact on their overall health. And left untreated, poor sleeping patterns can become difficult to break over time.

Adrienne MacQueen and Allison Naidu-both with BscPTs-found there was a tremendous need for a community-based program to help children with sleep problems after speaking with many parents (mostly mothers).

"It seemed that everyone had a story about sleep-related difficulties." They stated. "It also seemed that because there wasn't anyone or anything saying what was 'normal' or what to expect for their children, most parents were accepting that their children, and, therefore they, shouldn't be sleeping soundly. In addition to this, having worked in the schools, Allison witnessed firsthand the effects of inadequate sleep-inattention, obesity, poor behaviour, learning difficulties as well as social issues. Also, having gone through the local prenatal programs through the health district, she knew firsthand that there was no mention of sleep information; this was also lacking in the New Mom's Groups."

On a personal note, Allison and Adrienne shared that each of their first-born babies cried a lot during the first three months of their lives. They said that although their children were able to sleep through the night, they struggled with their babies' daytime sleep. With all of this background knowledge in hand--professional and personal--they knew that it would be useful and less stressful to have had some information prenatally so parents would have an idea of what to expect at different ages. That's how their program Sleep Matters was born.