Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: A God Send Review: It was so nice not to be second guessing myself all day long because with the routine you know the babie's needs are met. The flexible routine brought peace to our entire family!
Rating: ![4 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-4-0.gif) Summary: Still Very Helpful with Twin Babies Review: I wrote a review a few weeks ago, when we had just started putting our three month old girls on more of a schedule. They have been sleeping through the night for the past two weeks, and not just five or six hours. They sleep from 8:30/9:30 p.m. to 6:30 or so in the morning. They take beautiful naps throughout the day and are thriving and happy. They wake up smiling. They only really cry when they are ready for a nap. Again, no book has all the answers. We have taken the info in this book and adjusted it to our needs. Again, this is with TWO BABIES! My husband and I heard lots of horror stories from people with only ONE baby - as far as colic, or sleeping, etc., to where we were really expecting hard times dealing with two. We almost feel it's too easy. This book won't work for everyone, but again, we have two babies and we are not sleep deprived and we actually look forward to when they are ready to wake up from their nap instead of praying they'll sleep longer. I plan on buying the next Babywise book. I'm not the best reviewer, and I don't know whether or not this is helpful to anyone, but to anyone with multiple babies - try it. It's worth a shot. I check back regularly to see what other people have to say. I especially enjoy reading negative 'horrifying' reviews and I just feel even more blessed that my girls are doing beautifully.
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: A breath of fresh air Review: I find it hard to believe the offense people might take to this book in some of the reviews offerred. I do believe there are multiple ways to raise an infant/ toddler- but I think we can all agree, as parents, that a routine is the most important established step in raising a healthy child. After 8 weeks of child demand feeding,as recommended by every lactation specialist I spoke with, resulting in 2-3 hours of colicky behavior a day, feeding schedules that mimicked once an hour feedings in the morning and at night, I realized that proper feeding techniques are essential. I had an excellent latcher- and a wonderful "snacker" on my hands-but not a baby who knew how to eat efficiently. Volume wasn't a problem- if I didn't mind feeding him 12 times a day, with no more than 3 hours of sleep at a time at night at 8 weeks. I just felt as a mother that by 2 months, babies should be sleeping more along the lines of 4-5 hour stretches by then. That is when my PEDIATRICIAN recommended this book by Gary Ezzo- and within 72 hours of starting the schedule at 8 weeks of age- my baby was sleeping 7 hours through the night. WHAT A GODSEND!. My baby is happy, thriving, growing immensely, and frankly has absolutely no fussy periods in the day at all. Even his bowel movements are more regular, less gassy, and he wets 8-10 diapers a day so hydration is not a factor for us. I think we can all agree that different routines work for different babies- and as mother's we have to try on many different "routine hats" to find what works for our own children. But to irately state that this is " child abuse ", by one reviewer, is offensive to the mother's out there whose babies do well with this schedule. I highly recommend this book and schedule to any mother willing to try something new if what they have isn't working. At 12 weeks- I have a bright, happy, energetic and beautiful 14lb baby- who has doubled his birth weight already, and he has two parents who are rested and ready to meet his energy demand. In fact my nephew is 15 weeks- and not "babywise" and is still only sleeping 4 hours at a time, and while he was bigger by a full pund at birth- he is now a pound down versus his cousin.
Rating: ![4 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-4-0.gif) Summary: Methods worked for me Review: This book was recommended to me by a complete stranger who had heard me speak of my lack of sleep. Her child had slept throught the night since she was 6 weeks old. I was determined to try anything. My husband and I both read the book and were a little hesitant about some of the methods, but we tried them out. As stated in an earlier reveiw, you do have to use this book with common sense. My child is eight weeks old and is sleeping through the night, she is a very happy baby and rarely ever cries. She did cry for about thirty minutes the first couple of times I put her down for a nap, and it was hard to hear her cry. But I also made sure that she wasn't hungry, wet or needed to be burped. She quickly learned to go to sleep without aid from rocking or the breast everytime. Now she goes to sleep on her own and wakes up happy. The key here is schedule, babies thrive on consistency and that is what this book teaches. I even reccomended it to my child's pediatrician when she asked me how I got my baby to sleep throught the night so soon. Of course, every parents parenting methods are different and should be respected. But these methods worked for me and others I know and I am truly enjoying my baby because I am well rested and less stressed.
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: Use Baby Wise with your Motherly Judgement Review: I received Baby Wise as a baby gift and randomly started reading it one day while breastfeeding my baby girl. Even though I'm a "common sense" kind of person, the book helped me a lot. You can't take the book as a book of rules to follow exactly. Some of it you can do without, but you read from it and derive what works for you and your baby. I learned to feed full meals (not snacking) as often as needed and to work towards a schedule which your baby initiates. My daughter didn't sleep through the night until 3 months, but that wasn't my goal. My goal was to learn what was an acceptable routine (feeding and sleeping). As always as a mother you need to use your good judgement as to when you need to make accomodations to the routines and to watch for any problems your baby may have. "NO ONE" knows your baby like you do, so use your good judgement.
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: Worked for me! Review: A friend loaned me this book, and I'm glad! Baby slept through the night by 6 weeks just like it said. How can this be "cruel" as some people say if the baby's so happy? Admittedly, I am a person who wants a lot of structure and order. I think parents' opinion of this method has more to do with whether they are a good match for the approach, than whether it works or is good or harmful to a baby. Is Babywise for you? Take this quick test! 1) Do you like to wear a watch? 2) Are your CDs alphabetized? 3) Do you keep your appointments and contacts on an electronic organizer? 4) Do you like sleeping? If you answered "No" to any of these questions you might not be cut out for Babywise! ;-D
Rating: ![1 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-1-0.gif) Summary: WARNING!!! Review: A warning to those of you considering using BabyWise. The American Acadamey of Pediatrics put a warning out on baby wise due to the high numbers of infants showing up in hospitals with dehydration, failure to thrive, and yes, SIDS! These parents said they were just following baby wise. I am shocked at the number of people who boast using this book and recommending it to others. You can't expect a baby less than 3 months old to sleep through the night! They need to eat often and crying to tell you so is the only way they know how to communicate! Why would parents do this? Because they are brainwashed into thinking that all babies are the same but in fact have different needs. One common fact, however, is that all newborns must eat every few hours, so why would you deny feeding your baby?! This author is not a doctor and I got nothing from his book! I listen to my baby's doctor and not some author raking in the bucks who doesn't even have a medical degree and didn't even have kids when he originally authored the book. Plus, sorry, he's a man! What does a man know about a mother's instinct? Follow your instincts, Mommies, because when your baby is crying in the middle of the night, you know in your heart you need to pick them up. There is a reason for this---they need you, they need to be held, they need to be nourished by their mother and through feedings. Please don't let your baby cry it out because they will eventually shut down if you don't answer their cries. Why would you want to do this to your baby? Your baby needs to be held, needs regular human touch to know their needs will be met. They aren't crying because they are spoiled and want to ruin your night's sleep, they cry because they need you. This book is cruel punishment and it breaks my heart that a new life is denied what they need from their parents---that is what I see this book teaching. There are other wonderful sources out there with Dr. Karp's Happiest Baby on the Block, Dr. Sears, etc. I hope parents will think twice before using this book and consider the AAPs' warnings. Thank you for considering my feedback.
Rating: ![2 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-2-0.gif) Summary: Doesn't work for everyone Review: I have heard some wonderful things about this book and was thrilled to receive it as a gift before I gave birth. I read it immediately and followed their suggestions to the letter with my son. And guess what - it didn't work. The main example is my son's sleeping habits. He woke up 2 to 3 times per night until he was 7 months old, and started sleeping through the night at 9 months. He did not nap more than 30 minutes at a time until he reached 7 months old, regardless of what I did. I have friends who didn't read the book and didn't follow any of the principles, and their kids slep through the night at 2 or 3 months old. Based on my experience, I now firmly believe that each child has his own temperament and that people who believe that these books "worked for them" would probably have had the same experience even if they had not read this book.I would also like to note that the book is unbelievably repetitious. They probably could have covered the exact same material in about half the pages.
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: 8 years of experience with this book Review: I have had wonderful experience with this book. I first read the book about 8 years ago about 6 months after my first child was born. The change in his sleep was dramatic. My children are now 8 and 5.5. They have good sleep habits. We read a few books together, they get into their beds, they look at a few books on their own, and then the lights go out. They go to sleep on their own (They have since they were babies). They sleep in their own beds the entire night (My son from 7 months, my daughter from 3 months). My next child (due in September)will be raised as a Baby Wise baby. I do agree that you can take what you want from the book. There is flexibiltity in the schedule. This is just a guideline. Good luck feeding and sleeping on a demand schedule.
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: It Works! Review: When I had my daughter 6 years ago, I knew nothing about Babywise. I breastfed my daughter for 17 months, and I never slept through the night for the 17 months because I breastfed my daughter to sleep. Everytime she woke up, I had to breastfeed her to sleep. I was very tired. I had no idea why she was waking up every night. Not only that, my daughter slept in our bed until she was 3 yrs old. When I had twin boys in October 2003, I knew I couldn't breastfeed two boys to sleep every night, wake up 5-6 times a night to breastfeed them. There is no way we would sleep with the twins until they are three! When I went to my grandma's for Thanksgiving dinner, my realtive loaned me Babywise. So, I read it and tried it. I was so amazed! I was happy! Putting my twin boys on schedule really worked! They were 3 months of age, and feed/play/sleep pattern really worked. Babies slept for 6-8 hours at night. They did cry at night for the first few days, but after that, they only cried for five minutes or even no cry. When I told my aunt, who is a lactation specialist and neonatal ICU nurse, she warned me about Babywise, called me, send me copies of articles against Babywise. My aunt has no children, and never tried Babywise on her own. I read the book, I tried it, and my babies are healthy and chunky. They cry less when they are on Babywise method. I still breastfeed them, and they eat more when they are on schedule. During recent vacation, I didn't follow the schedule, and my babies were snacking. I went back to the old method of nursing them to sleep or rocking them to sleep. They cried more. I hated waking up at night to breastfeed them or rock them so they can go back to sleep. I was so tired, no energy left to care for my babies during the daytime. My husband and I would argue more since we were both so tired. Now I am back to Babywise, and babies sleep better, and they are happy, and so are we! The book is not the Bible, but has lots of good things. I am glad that I believed in what I saw with my eyes. Now my twins are 6 months old, and I am going to buy Babywise II. I would recommend Babywise to other people. Whatever book you buy, good luck with your babies!
|