It’s that horrible time of the year where our families often get plagued by sickness – but how does that affect things if you’re sleep coaching?

My daughter, who just turned three last weekend, was sick with some fairly impressive vomiting a couple of weeks back. Everything got covered and thank goodness I’d recently bought a new larger washing machine because it got a big workout in that 48 hours. I can still remember the vomit smell…  Clients often ask me what they should do if their baby or child gets sick while sleep coaching, and so it’s important to know when it’s ok to keep going and when it’s best to hold off and start again when they’re well.

Colds – If your wee one has a little case of the sniffles or a wee harmless cough, you should be ok to proceed. I would recommend working to keep them comfortable and their noses clear though. I love Fess Little Noses saline drops and spray – this is really effective at clearing out the bogey! It could also be worthwhile chatting to your GP about whether you need to give medicine to help them feel better, and keeping an eye on things to ensure that they don’t start to feel worse.

Fevers, Serious Congestion and Illness – If your baby is really unhappy and has a fever, is very congested, or has vomiting or diarrheas', put a hold on your sleep coaching. When our babies are unwell like this they will genuinely need you to help comfort them. We all know how rubbish we can feel when really unwell – so here my recommendation would be lots of cuddles and snuggles and whatever your GP recommends to help get them feeling better as soon as you can.

If you’re sticking to a schedule and your wee one is sick, it can be quite daunting knowing what to do as they may be more lethargic. I tend to recommend during those times that you pop them down for a nap a bit earlier, but wake them at the usual time to help keep the day on track. This should ensure they get the extra rest they need to heal without your entire schedule going haywire.

My daughter Heidi is a champion sleeper… when she’s well. But just like us adults when we’re sick, sleeping well through it is much harder! I know when I’m sick I just want to curl up with someone who will cuddle me and sympathise over my feeling rubbish! From what I’ve seen, children who have really good sleep habits tend to return to good sleeping again when their sickness is over, but if your little one continues to wake and need assistance to get back to sleep when they are well again then get in touch and we can work together to get them back to sleeping well.

Sacha Barrack

Infant and Child Sleep Consultant in Manawatu