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Summary: Helped, but also stressed me out!
Review: I was really looking forward to reading this book after my baby was born and figuring out what he was trying to tell me. I heard good things about it from reviews and friends. I imagined tuning into his secret language and helping him become a happy little baby b/c mommy knew what he needed. While I did accomplish some of this--the pattern of E.A.S.Y. (eating, activity, sleeping) helped me understand SOMETIMES what might be wrong--I gave up trying to put him on a schedule like Hogg suggests. I kept a journal, looked for his pattern, established rituals for bedtime, naptime, eating. But in the end, I've given up because it stressed me to try to impose a schedule on him rather than cuddle him, fall asleep with him on my chest, give him a pacifier, or do whatever else seems right at the time. So, take this book with a grain of salt--use what you can, don't use what doesn't work, and don't stress about it.
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Summary: Read it before they're born!
Review: I read this book before my baby was born and started using the concepts at 5 weeks. What a difference in the sleeping, eating and playing habits of my now 8 week old son. He is a happier baby and we are happier parents who understand his needs better.
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Summary: Good tips for "reading" your babies cries.
Review: The Baby Whisperer helps you decode why your baby is crying. She presents several tables for reading baby's body language, and listening to the pattern of his/her cry. And if going by her recommended E.A.S.Y. schedule, you'll be able to differentiate between cries of hunger, tiredness, overstimulation, wet-diaper, etc... E stands for eat, which she recommends breast fed babies go every 2.5-3 hours and bottle fed ones every 4-5 (as recommended in many other texts). A for activity time which should immediately follow the feed. Usually, babies fall asleep after being fed, activity is recommended so that baby will not build the "suck-to-sleep" association and be dependent upon a breast or bottle to fall asleep. S is the sleep portion, where she provides sleepy signs to look out for to get baby to bed immediately. Y is time for you, provided your baby is able to adhere to this schedule. Problems with the book? Well, she talks about placing baby to crib as soon as you see the "sleepy signs", haha, much easier said than done. There are some tips on how to get your baby to sleep if you happen to miss the signs, such as swaddling, pacifiying, shushing, and patting. While some of these tips are helpful, there are only 4 or 5 pages of the book dedicated to showing you how to do so. Eighty percent of the book is anecdotal, she talks incessantly about families she's worked with using her techniques, but nothing really useful and practical, as these are the same tips on those 4 or 5 pages which are repeated throughout the anecdotes. If you visit the official baby whisperer website, you'll see that she's had to add a supplemental question and answer session regarding her sleep techniques as they are so poorly explained in this book. You may as well just go to the website and read it there. The bottom line is, if you're looking for a book on how to get your child to sleep, this is not it. But if you're looking to understand your babies different cries, this can be helpful.
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Summary: Waste of Money
Review: All the ideas presented can be chalked up to common sense. Spend the money on diapers instead.
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Summary: It was E.A.S.Y. for me!
Review: I started reading this book when my baby was 2 weeks old, although I had the book for many months before. Even though I raised my first child wholeheartedly AP, I was open for Tracy's technique. I tried it with my new "textbook" baby and I knew I loved it. She helps you figure out what type of baby you have: Angel, Textbook, Sprited, or Grumpy. Then you learn the traits of that type of baby; its cries and motions. It makes it so easy to distinguish YOUR baby's cries and needs. I know immediately when my baby is hungry, wanting a hug, or overtired. The schedule really helps my husband too. He knows when it is time for our son to eat, play and sleep!
NEED SLEEP? I breastfeed my son and at 4 weeks he was sleeping 6-7 hours at night! I never had that with my daughter and didn't know it was even possible with breastfed children. But the schedule makes that happen. I had only read AP books when I had her, so I did whatever I could to comfort her and fed on demand. I truly did NOT believe in schedules. By Tracy's definition my daughter was a "spirted" baby. I wonder how she would have done on this program. It may have made my life much easier!! (She is 3 now)
COMFORTING THE BABY: As I believe there is nothing wrong with doing everything, it doesn't give you any time for yourself. This way affords you that YOU time. Tracy does not condone crying it out nor does she AP. This is middle of the ground sort of speak. She never says that you shouldn't pick up your child and hold them if that is what they need! But as soon as the needs are met you put them back down so they build their own independence. For me it has worked beautifully! My baby is very happy and rarely cries because I know exactly what he needs!
GOING BACK TO WORK? My daughter had a hard time starting at day care when I went back to work..due to the schedule. I believe my son will have a much easier time because he is on EASY (Eat, Activity, Sleep, YOU). I think the day care teachers will also! I have adapted his EASY schedule to fit perfectly with his new daycare. So it should be a pretty good transition. I love the EASY program because it is exactly what you do as an adult. You don't go to sleep after eating dinner so why should your baby? I always put my daughter to bed already asleep (bad thing) and she almost always fell asleep on the breast. It took her a LONG time to learn how to fall asleep on her own because I did this in her infancy. Having activity time after my son eats not only provides such a wonderful time with him (happy and alert..tummy full) but also keys me in to when he really is tired (the yawns, the 7 mile stare). I cannot say enough. What a lifesaver (and marriage saver at times) this has been! Ladies, if you are new to parenting, get this book! If you want to figure out what your baby is saying with those cries, get this book! And if you want some time for yourself and want your baby to be content, get this book!
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Summary: Not Bad...
Review: Tracy Hogg, nanny-to-the-stars, has a pretty solid philosophy when it comes to babyrearing. I didn't like it at first, but then I started to understand it a little better. She's a bit ethnocentric and sometimes comes across as a little preachy, but this book can be very helpful when you've got a crying child and can't fathom a reason why. More useful for 2-4 month old babies, since it's pretty tough to put a newborn on a routine (they pretty much run the place for the first few weeks). In a nutshell, though, that's what she advocates: get 'em into a regular pattern...
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Summary: I am a Attachement Parent
Review: Well alot of this book conflict with what I do. BUT what I bought the book for was to figure out her cries and ect. Which helped, though I don;t do the EASY plan or anything else. I am a active AP and I found this book to be infomitve in that area. If your not a AP, you'll like it if you are, don't get it.
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Summary: It Works!!! Please try it!
Review: My child was 2 (not really a baby anymore) and it took us anywhere between 2-3 hours nightly to get him to go to sleep. We tryed everything but he refused to sleep. My husband and I were exhausted when my sister visited who also has a two year old. She had used this book at about 9 months to get her daughter to sleep and helped me with the technique. Within 3 nights it took only less than a minute for him to go to sleep. My husband and I are still lost for what to do with this time! Please, read the book, and stick with it. Don't give in to them. I promise that they only benefit from this method! If we have a second child (which is more likely now that our son sleeps) I will start this from day one. No more rocking for me!
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Summary: No answers for better SLEEP
Review: I had heard that this was a good book to find out how to get your baby to sleep through the night, but it really isn't about sleep at all - just a few pages. As a mother of three, much of the rest was common sense, although sometimes too much so: very much the author's opinions (not always meshing with mine). I don't like that she presents herself as against breastfeeding, having choice is good but discounting science (which she does repeatedly) to justify choice is not. If you are looking for a book on SLEEP though, try The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night
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Summary: Its the book du jour isn't it - but it is worthwhile
Review: I read this book along with Brian Symon's book 'Silent Nights' and they both work. They did for me anyway. Both books are easy reads although have different strengths - I think they both compliment one another and make mothering an easier thing - well it did for an older mother like myself without a plethora of support around. I really like Tracy's 'Easy' system, not just for the baby but also for my partner who was having difficulty figuring out what to do next. It was easy to explain and he didnt' have to read the book (which he flatly refuses to do). Tracy has a whole section of analysing babies crys which is kind of useful - apparently all cries are the same world over no matter how individual we think our babies are. But in the end once you have a happy baby in a sort of routine then the cries don't usually matter as you seem to be able to predict what a baby needs pretty easily. She also helps to analyse what sort of baby you have and the best way of treating them to give them the best in life. I like the confidence she gives to mothers in dealing with the babies needs and I also like the fact that this is a short relatively straightforward book. If thereis one thing I dislike in all self help books it is the 'real life problem solved' stories. No matter how good Tracy is I got a bit sick of hearing how she solved everyone's problems - I know the book would be no good if she didn't and so that isn't really fair comment, its just a dislike I have for those sort of stories I guess. Even though Hogg is the 'author of the moment it is a worthwhile read. If you are having problems with your baby, not having proper sleep, your baby is crying alot and you don't know why, or you know someone about to have a baby I would reccommend this book. I would also recommend you read the book by Symon as well though.
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