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This is a preview of the Shortform book summary of Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old by Suzy Giordano.
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1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old

In Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old, Suzy Giordano presents a method for teaching infants to sleep through the night by the age of three months. The book offers a structured approach to sleep training, emphasizing the importance of establishing consistent routines and empowering parents to take control of their child's sleep habits. Giordano's method is designed to help families achieve restful nights and create a foundation for healthy sleep patterns.

Giordano is a pediatric sleep specialist with over 20 years of experience helping families establish healthy sleep habits for their children....

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Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old Summary Core Principles of the Giordano Method

Giordano's method aims to enable babies to sleep all night by the time they're three months old. By the age of three months, your baby will sleep through the night, such as from 7 PM to 7 AM or 8 PM to 8 AM, without needing to be fed, rocked back to sleep, or having a lost pacifier replaced. If your baby stirs, she'll be capable of falling back asleep on her own or quietly occupying herself in her bed.

Giordano uses a "Limited Crying Solution" during training, a compromise between the "cry it out" technique—difficult for many parents to manage—and the "no cry" approach, which doesn't work for many babies. Older infants who've established bad sleep patterns will often cry a bit while adjusting to improved ones.

The Behavioral Sleep-Training Tradition

Giordano’s promise of all-night sleep by three months and her “Limited Crying Solution” are part of the behavioral sleep-training tradition. This tradition views infant night waking as a conditioned habit shaped by parental responses and changeable through systematic adjustments to those responses. Behavioral sleep training emerged in the 1950s and...

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Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old Summary Implementing the Sleep Plan

When implementing the sleep plan, Giordano advises that you allow your baby to comfort themselves. Babies need to learn to get to sleep by themselves. If you always soothe your baby at bedtime, they’ll become dependent on you and won't be able to sleep for the whole night.

To assist your baby in self-soothing, lay them down in the crib when they're not yet asleep. If they cry, wait three to five minutes prior to checking on them. If they calm down within that timeframe, reset the timer. If they continue crying beyond five minutes, enter and reassure them without picking them up. Avoid speaking to them or looking them in the eyes. Once they settle down, exit the room and remain there a few more minutes before going back in.

The Potential Downside of Letting Your Baby Cry

One potential downside of waiting three to five minutes before checking on your baby and then reassuring them without picking them up is that your baby may still be stressed even if they stop crying. In a research article, researchers found that babies who were left to cry for 20 minutes before being soothed by their...

Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old

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Shortform Exercise: Implementing the Giordano Method for Baby Sleep

Explore the specific moment when you're implementing Giordano’s sleep plan and allowing your baby to self-soothe.

What are your thoughts and feelings when waiting three to five minutes before checking on your crying baby?

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