How to Talk to Your Spouse About Sleep Training If He Doesn’t Agree With It…
In my humble opinion, the parent dealing the night waking the most has more of a vote in what needs to be done.
Quite often, it’s always the mommy who has to deal with the night wakings, the catnapping and a cranky overtired child.
The adage “You can’t understand someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes” rings true here.
So I truly believe if you are the one dealing with it most of the time then it’s only fair you have the deciding vote.
If your spouse doesn’t agree, then you can ask your spouse to take over the night duties for a couple of nights and by then I am sure he will see your point better.
Sleep deprivation is literally a form of torture. Some people have a higher tolerance, but there’s only so much torture an individual can endure before they crack.
You two are in this parenting journey together and this is only the beginning. Be mindful and considerate of one another. It’s tough but with each other’s support, it will be a lot easier.
Maybe he feels that you are too involved with this baby sleep and thinks that you need to take a chill pill. Maybe it’s taking longer than he has energy for. Or maybe there are more tears than you had expected – and that’s taking a toll on your emotions. The more understanding there is for understanding each other, the more room for progress there can be!
Maybe your spouse doesn’t believe all the benefits you have shared with him. That’s okay. You can show him all the success stories of other families who were initially skeptical and yet they still took that first bold step. Read and watch all the amazing transformational stories and imagine what it would be like if you and your spouse get to have date nights, watch Netflix together once your little one is in bed without the fear of them waking up crying in the middle of the night…
Or show him this WhatsApp conversation that I recently had with a mom who engaged me (she opted for the e-Consult package by the way) and after 2 weeks during wrap up – this was our chat.
One last thing…
The only thing worse than having a disagreement about these sleep issues is having a MAJOR FIGHT while you are both so exhausted and sleep deprived. Be consistent, unified and come to a mutual understanding. The best gift you can give to your precious little one is the gift of a loving home with a happy and well rested child and united parents.
