Is Anyone Doing the "Babywise" Schedule?

I know some people love this book and refer to it almost as if it is a baby "bible", but to tell you the truth, I threw it away. It has great advice, but you can't expect your baby to follow every rule. You have a life, you go places, you take your baby.

The book just ended up stressing me out when my baby wouldn't do what the book said. My advice: Take what works from the book and get rid of the rest.

I did baby wise a few years ago, when my boys were young. Even though you would love for them to be on the schedule all the time every once in a while is ok not to be on the schedule. It will actully teach them how to fuction without the schedule. Which will help you out a lot in the future.

babywise was amazing. I give this to all the new moms I know, and it has worked for all of them. Alot of them have problems with letting the child fuss for the amount of time stated though, it goes against everything our nurturing natures tell us. But is works, 3 children, and 3 amazing sleeping through the night at weeks old children, love it, and swear by it. Hard to do at first though. Every inch of your body tells you to pick that tiny baby up when they are fussing. Remember, it's a flexible schedule, you do as as you feel. Don't give in before trying though.

I am a first-time mom in my mid 30s and have a degree in Health Education as well as Education. I taught school for 8 years and was a principal for 5. During this time I noticed MANY of my students dealing with moods, aggression, lack of attention etc. due to them not being familiar with routines and not getting appropriate amounts of sleep/rest. Thus, my husband and I knew that a schedule and routine was what we wanted to instil from the start.

We read Babywise and were willing to adapt most principles with some flexibility. I realize there are negative comments, but these people are reading and understanding the concept out of context. It is not implying that you should let your child go hungry nor does it imply that you should be cold and not comfort when needed. Thus, know that it truly does work. Our little guy was sleeping 8-10 hours at night by 14 weeks and through the night from 7:30pm-7am by 5 months. He has put himself onto this schedule and knows when it is nap time, meal time, and even bedtime in the evening. Many people who find it difficult to get into a routine are the ones that seem to debate it. Using this method has proven 110% that babies crave routine and structure and that they thrive off of it with being far less fussy, demanding, and cranky than many children I have seen using other concepts. Is it the be-all-end-all? No, but it has been a God-send to us and we will use it again for our next.

Our little man is now 13 months old and has 2 two-hour naps a day, eats incredibly well and sleeps through the night with ease. We thank Babywise suggestions for helping us create this safe and nurturing environment for our son. Ou doctor says that he is one of the most secure babies she has seen:)

As for church? We had the same issue. I would usually put him down for his nap a bit earlier before we left or let him have a cat nap in the car on the way which held him over until church was over. Once home we just got back on track. Be flexible and enjoy it!!! You will be able to leave the house without worries!

C

That book was ONE of the books I read. I took what I felt was right for me from it. I also read "Healthy sleep habits, happy child" and "The Baby Whisperer". I think I like "The Baby Whisperer" the best. It talks about routine, which I like but also keeps some "heart" in there. Sometimes I felt that the Babywise book was a bit cold...It does have some good suggestions in it though. I think when you start thinking that real life is like the book, that is when you get down and depressed. Life just is not that easy...you got to learn to be OK with going with the flow. (Belive me, it has been a hard lesson for me to learn. I have a 6 month old baby boy)

FYI. My baby did sleep 7 hours straight at night by 5 weeks. Now he sleeps between 8-11 hours. But this doesn't happen all the time. That is just it, things are not that easy for us parents, don't we wish it were!

Hi N.! I did Babywise for my twin boys! This system worked GREAT for us. My biggest benefit I see from the system is their sleeping habits. The boys were sleeping 12 hours at around 4-5 months and took 3 naps per day. Now they are sleeping between 12-13 hours at night and take on little cat nap in the morning and a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. It helped the boys learn to soothe and comfort themselves and helps me when I'm by myself and they need to go to sleep. I never let the boys cry more than 5 minutes at a time and they usually were asleep by 10 minutes. It only took about a week for them to learn to soothe themselves and rarely cry when I lay them down. They are now 14 months old and will lay in bed for about 15 minutes and talk and then go right to sleep! No one ever believes me, but I truly believe it was Babywise that helped do this! The boys will also fall asleep in their jumper, my lap, carseat, swing, just about anywhere! They always sleep better in their bed of course, but I don't have the problem of them only wanting to sleep in their bed. I'm a very structured/everything has to be organized kind of person! Yes getting out was VERY difficult because it would throw our schedule completely off and make my mind go crazy! When we would go to church, I would try to move their schedule a little so it would be nap time about the time we got there! That way they didn't go the nursery and slept the whole time! I would just know about what time I needed to feed for them to take their morning nap and try to move it a little earlier/later. I loved their schedules and tried to go by the book by the most part, but you have to make it your own. After a year of using the book, we are still very structured and the boys do great with it! I wish you the best of luck and know once your little girl get a little older, getting out and adjusting the schedule will get a lot easier! Take Care!!

PS-Just to respond to the previous post about this system being "bad". First off, N. did not ask for an opinion on the system, she wanted to know how to work the schedule when she wants to go out and about. Secondly, you obviously haven't read the book because it clearly states you feed your baby every 2 1/2 - 4 hours depending on their age/needs AND if they are hungry and crying between feedings, FEED them if you feel that is what they need. NO where in the book does it say starve your kid just to stay on the schedule. Everyone has different methods they feel works for their family and Babywise is what we have used and it worked!

We did babywise with both of our kids. We even gave our schedule to the nursery workers at church and they did their best to stick to it for us. The downside is the fact it is hard to get out and about. I planned everything around their schedule - which meant when they were that small - we didn't leave much - just for short errands. In hindsight - my biggest error was not allowing my kids to be held once in a while or sleep somewhere else once in a while. They would not sleep anywhere but in their own bed - This went on until they were toddlers. They would just fuss if we were out. For the sake of your sanity - I would once in a while throw a wrench into your schedule on purpose or allow a sleep in the carseat or swing (you may already do that - we were die hard!). It worked out well for us though - having them on such a routine. Good luck!

eta: Babywise is not about deprivation (for the previous poster)it is about responding to your baby's cues and setting a routine from there!

I have never heard of babywise. But I do have five kids that, as babies, I did try to keep them on somewhat of a schedule, so I can offer me experiences. I also go to church every Sunday and I noticed that my babies' schedules always got mssed up on those days, also. My advice is to try to plan for those interruptions. For example, knowing naptime comes right during the service, plan to feed your baby a little later so when his/ her naptime is later, it's not too upsetting because everything has been later that day. If you aren't having any problem getting back on schedule on Monday, I wouldn't worry about Sunda or any other special day. Schedules are great, but they become cumbersome when parents are afraid to veer off form it. We need to remember that even thought we (the parents) are following the schedule, the baby is really the one setting it.
I hope this helps!
~C.

I am a mother of 8~5 sons and 3 girls we also have 23 grands with 2 on the way and 2 great grands~Believeme when I say they will walk when they are ready~trying to force them into walking will only confuse them, every child is different, we had some that walked by 8 mos he barely even tried crawling lol we had a grand who refused to try to walk untill she was 20 mos that grand now is on her schools track team and always places first so u see her late walking did not harm her~we raised our children with the motto all in their time now ours and as long as they were healthy and happy we did not worry about who did what first
Your boys are showing they are almost ready to let go but remember for them to let go takes a giant and i mean giant leap of faith in not only themselves but in the newworld they are discovering~~one day you will look back and laugh at how u worried~~
wishing u the love and happiness
jstmerue

We did Babywise and loved it and plan to do it with the next. It does recommend flexiblity, so when we go to church we just adjust the schedule a little on that day, and he learns o respect others, social skills, etc. as for the failure to thrive, this isn't and never intended to be a do NOT feed your kid until this exact time type of schedule, he even says he he is hungry, feed him, just adjust the schedule a bit. Our son started sleeping 8 hours a night by 7wks old and is 19 mths now and sleeps 12 hours a night plus a 2 and 1/2 hour nap a day. He is in the 95% for weight and 90% for height (I know, he's huge). And best of all, he is happy because he knows what is going to be happening in his life. Children like predictablitly, it helps them learn- Ex: "after breakfast, we go to the park, then have a snack" and it helps them feel safe, especially when there is something new going on ( new big boy bed or a new babysitter). Good Luck!

Hi all,
What is a Babywise schedule?

I did Babywise (although with a few tweaks b/c I couldn't let them cry haha) and it was wonderful. And don't worry about those that don't support this method--the book itself even addresses the "failure to thrive" issue and states that this is a basic schedule but if you feel like your child is hungry before the time then by all means feed them! It is not a strict schedule that doesn't let you meet your child's needs-it just helps them get onto a schedule so that you can leave the house and feel like you know what they will need at any time of the day. I brought my little guys to work with me so this was wonderful-I knew exactly what they'd need during our time at work etc. I recommend it to everyone--and yes, it even works if you have to tweak it a bit to meet your schedule needs.

I did that with my kids... but it's been awhile (7 years..) so I don't remember too much. I do know that it works, so try to stick with it. But if you have to make alterations once a week for church, try not to sweat it. In a way, it's neat, because they learn from day 1 that there is something special about church! It can be frustrating, so try not to stress about alterations to the schedule... just do what you can and try to enjoy these days.

FYI, this "method" has been renounced by the American Academy of Pediatrics among others. Many cases of failure to thrive and attachment disorder have been attributed to this program. A newborn baby's wants = his needs and he should not be "scheduled" you baby needs to nurse/be fed every 2-3 hours ON DEMAND to assure proper nutrition and growth.

Read more about the potential risks of this at www.ezzo.info

please read everything on this website about the *dangers* of babywise:
http://www.ezzo.info/voices.htm
I'm a maternal/child RN and have seen babies with serious physical and emotional harm from their parents' attempts to force them to conform to these unnatural expectations.

Kudos on going Babywise. My good friend, who had two kids before i had one, made me read that book while I was pg, and then called me repeatedly to help and support me. We did babywise with a little bit of Baby Whisperer thrown in with my son (which helped with understanding the cries and knowing whether to go in or let him CIO).
It IS hard to leave the house especially in those early months when they are taking 3-4 naps a day--it's gets a bit easier once you switch to the 4 hour schedule--which you do around 12-15 weeks if I remember correctly. Trying to time outings while she is awake, or doing like you do with church which is to just go and get back on track the next day are really the way to go.

My advice is try to keep the routine on track, but don't beat yourself up over it when you get a day that isn't perfect. I stressed over it sooo much--which was really unnecessary. Look more at the order of things (sleep, eat, awake) and setting a consistent bed time, more than fretting over them waking up 15 min early from a nap, and then wondering if you should feed them right then or wait 15 min.

If you do have a lot of errands to run in a week, then just give yourself a morning to do so. Keep the feedings on track as much as possible and let her sleep in the car seat if necessary (and if she will). Just like with your Sundays, that day may be off, but you can get right back on track the following day. the key is too not have too many of those off days so that it confuses the routine, if that makes sense.
Also, get your husband to run errands too--especially in these early months--picking up things on the way home, etc.

Finally, just to plug the whole routine method like advocated in the Babywise book (and now others too). We are a total success story. My now 2 1/2 year old was sleeping 11-12 hours a night through by 16 weeks (he would still wake sometimes and still does but can usually get himself back to sleep unless he's sick or something). We had a hard time with naps at first too, but by 5 months he was a great napper and still is. My toddler rarely objects to nap time or bedtime--he goes down very easily--so those early weeks were soooo worth it especially when I talk to other moms of toddlers who are not on a nap/sleep routine...
Good luck and hang in there. Once she goes down to one morning nap, one afternoon nap and an mini nap in the early evening, you'll find time to do things in between naps, and once she goes down to one nap--you won't know what to do with yourself in the mornings!!