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🧠 In Support Of Mental Health Awareness Weeks - 20% Off All Sleep Packages - Quote Code MHA20 - Ends 18th May 2025 🌙

June 15, 2017

Sharon and Brendan’s 2 children had sleep problems

Millpond Children’s Sleep Clinic – a couple who had two children with sleep problems

 

Sharon and Brendan had little time for themselves. The whole family was tired and grumpy and their 8 year old’s school work was affected.

Their two children, 3 ½ year old Thomas and 8 year old Jessica, both had sleep problems. Thomas has special needs and does not like change and Jessica’s sleep had been an issue since her brother was born. Jessica screamed in the night, often waking her brother who she shares a room with, until she was allowed into mum’s bed.

Here is their story….

Before our consultation our children’s sleep patterns were up and down. Our 8 year old daughter fell asleep in our bed and wouldn’t fall asleep on her own. Our son fell asleep on his own but kept waking during the night.  We were all exhausted.

After our consultation with Millpond, our daughter sleeps in her own bed. We’ve established a routine for her which now sees her sleeping in her bed.  We’re still working on getting her to self settle but bedtimes are no longer a chore.

Our son has additional needs; he could fall asleep quickly but found it hard to sleep through the night without waking.

We now have an established pattern which sees him asleep within 10 minutes and 60% of the time he sleeps through the night. We are doing the gradual retreat method which has worked really well.

The programme Juliet devised worked really well and we were offered further support as we had to take a break because I became ill.   The advice given was so beneficial and we’ve seen a huge improvement in our children’s sleep patterns.

There is nothing I would change.  We thought the service was superb!

 

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories

November 23, 2016

Real Solutions for Baby Sleep Issues: Rose’s Story

Ben started to sleep throughAll the sleep advice on Google was just not working for Rose; her baby was still waking every 2 hours.

Rose was exhausted searching the internet for help on her son’s sleep problem; she felt she had tried everything to help her 7 month old son, Ben sleep better. He had regressed from waking twice a night at 3 months to waking every 2 hours at least as a 6 month old.

What if it’s not just a sleep problem?

Rose felt she had read everything about sleep and tried several different sleep training techniques with Ben as described in books and on reputable internet sites with no success whatsoever.  The sleep deprivation was having a huge impact upon family life and Rose couldn’t find a way to make it better, “we were losing confidence in being able to deal with Ben at night” and she started to worry that it might not just be a sleep problem.

I need to speak to a health professional

Rose felt that she needed to find a sleep consultant with a medical background who would have the experience to tackle Ben’s frequent waking issue.  “The website suggested that techniques used by Millpond were the most up to date and evidence based, and that Millpond trained NHS staff, so we would be getting help from reputable, highly qualified people”.

Underlying medical issue identified

Rose started working on her consultant’s plan for Ben and she found her approach supportive and gentle; but most importantly she was able to assure Rose and tell her that Ben’s problem was not just behavioural, but medical. “Juliet was able to point us to where to get help and was very flexible about the timetable, to allow us to seek some medical help before continuing with the sleep training consultations”.

Ben started to sleep through

Rose is now delighted that Ben’s night waking has improved, and he has even slept through for several nights.  Ben still has to see various consultants to get his tummy and skin issues under control, but Rose feels, “we feel more confident about identifying what he needs if he wakes at night and we know there is an end in sight”.

 

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: conflicting advice, frequent night waking, health professionals, rocked to sleep, sleep advice, sleep associations, sleep regression

November 7, 2016

Clare’s daughter woke 10 times a night and had never slept through!

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How I changed my daughters sleep problem

Clare’s family life was being affected by her daughter’s constant night waking…..read her story to see how she changed things around!

My daughter had never slept through the night; sometimes we could be disturbed up to 10 times.  I used to dread bedtime knowing I would be woken up very soon after going to bed and then rarely get more than 2 hours sleep at a time.  The nights were extremely stressful.  She would cry out for me unless I shared the bed with her and even then she would be very restless all night.  She was grumpy through the day and our work and home life suffered greatly. I was exhausted and depressed and unfortunately had no help from my GP.

After some investigations we discovered she had some breathing problems which a nasal steroid quickly corrected. She continued to wake frequently which is when I consulted Millpond Sleep Clinic.  They were amazing and I finally felt like someone was listening to me.  They gave me achievable tasks to do over 3 nights which Katie responded to very well.  A combination of things helped her feel confident in staying in her room on her own and after 3 weeks we got a full night’s sleep.  Six weeks later she now sleeps from 7:30pm to 6:30am at least 5 nights per week.  She is now a happy little girl who is a pleasure to be with. She runs around the house singing and laughing rather than being grumpy.  I can concentrate again at work and feel so much happier.

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: effects of constant night waking, I dread bedtime, my child frequently disturbs my sleep, my child is restless all night, my child wakes frequently through the night, my daughter has never slept through the night, my daughter woke 10 times a night

September 18, 2016

From waking seven times a night to sleeping through in 3 weeks!

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 Archie now sleeps through the night

Archie was just over six months old when exhausted parents Helen and Benny realised that their son had a sleep problem and that it was not going to go away on it’s own.“He was waking up to seven times per night and needed help falling asleep every time. His daytime naps were also irregular. We had read several books and tried making changes to his sleep associations, all without success,” says Helen honestly.

The couple contacted Millpond after a recommendation from their health visitor. After their initial consultation with Millpond’s Mandy Gurney they were given a clear program that was tailored to Archie’s specific sleep problems.

“We started to see results after about a week. The second week in the program he was waking up a couple of times per night and after the third week he started sleeping through the night. We couldn’t have done it without Millpond,” says Helen.

We are so glad that Helen and Benny took action by contacting Millpond as soon as they realised their son had a sleep problem and that it was sorted completely after just three weeks.

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: daytime naps were irregular, frequent night waking, my child frequently disturbs my sleep, my child wakes frequently through the night, recommended by our health visitor, sleep associations, tailored sleep programme, waking 7 times a night

June 16, 2016

I needed help with my toddler’s sleep – Anna’s Story

Toddlers sleep

I needed help with my toddler’s sleep, I was struggling to cope at work on 3-4 hours sleep a night.

Before using Millpond we were absolutely exhausted. My toddler Sam (18 months) was waking up 3 – 4 times most nights and often staying awake for more than an hour. Bedtimes were becoming very stressful and we were exhausted. Both of us work full time and it was extremely difficult to concentrate at work with often having only 3 or 4 hours sleep. The weekends involved sleeping in shifts to catch up, which meant no time as a family, which was really tough as that is the only time we get to spend with my two teenage stepsons. Sam was tired and grumpy a lot of the time, so even when we were all awake together he was often crying or overtired.

Getting advice from my sleep therapist

I felt that Juliet, our Millpond sleep consultant, took the time to listen to us and understand our situation and how we wanted to handle things. I didn’t feel that we were being forced to take actions we weren’t comfortable with. It all seemed to work quite naturally. I also liked the follow up calls and the fact that Juliet adapted the sleep plan a little as we went along to take into account our feedback.

No more bedtime battles

After a month following the tailored sleep plan, Sam now sleeps from 7 pm through to 5.30 am almost every night. Bedtimes are now a pleasure rather than a battle and we have loads more energy for work and enjoying the weekends together as a family. Sam is much happier and really enjoying the new routine. His nursery nurse at nursery says he is like a different child, having much more fun and joining in games and songs with the other children.

No cry sleep solution

What is really amazing is that we have done all this with very little crying. I had resisted sleep training in the past as I thought it would just involve leaving him to cry. Juliet’s method was very gentle and Sam cries and gets upset a lot less now than he did before we started this. I just wish we’d done it sooner!

 

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: bedtime battles, frequent night waking, helping my toddler sleep, my partner and I sleep in separate beds

May 21, 2016

Baby Sébastien was taking a long time to go to sleep

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Sebastien was taking a long time to go to sleep

Véronique & James realised their son, Sébastien, had a sleep problem when it began to take increasingly longer periods of time to get him to sleep.

“We had created so many sleep associations, a bottle of milk last thing at night and/or multiple times at night, cuddling him and/or putting him in our bed until he fell asleep. He’d wake numerous times at night, needing resettling,” explains VĂ©ronique.

This situation led to the couple having very little time for themselves; Sébastien would wake badly rested, while they were shattered, cranky and concerned.

They chose to contact Millpond after seeing founder Mandy speaking on one of the sleep DVD’s in the Essential Baby Care Guide. Their sleep advisor, Jackie, guided them through a programme of gradual retreat, which included the elimination of each sleep association to slowly wean SĂ©bastien off each association.

“Since working with Millpond Sébastien consistently sleeps for 11 hours straight. He also takes 1 hour 45 minute to 2 hours daytime naps. We’ve been putting him into his cot after a story, walking out of his darkened room and he now self settles within 20 minutes,” explains Véronique. “Sébastien gets himself back to sleep in the wee hours which is great news not only for us but we know it’s an important skill for him now and in the future – we are delighted”, she continues.

We are so glad the whole family are now getting the sleep they need and deserve.

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: cuddle to sleep, frequent night waking, settling problems, sleep associations

March 7, 2016

Natasha tells her story of how her son’s sleep problem was turned around!

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Family life for Natasha and her son had become so affected by lack of sleep. The whole family was incredibly tired and unable to function properly. Millpond had been recommended her by a good friend who had used the service recently, so Natasha contacted us for help.

“Joseph had always been a fantastic sleeper so when he started to not sleep well, we were all surprised. Family life became incredibly tough. We were all so tired and totally confused as to what the problem might be and how to fix it. I knew I needed to seek the support of a professional so my friend recommended the Millpond programme.

It was the best decision I made!

Very quickly Joseph responded to all the techniques and within 3 nights his sleep was so much better. Before the end of the programme he was sleeping perfectly again. We are so thankful to Mandy for helping us through such a challenging time.”

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: can my child's sleep improve within 3 nights

October 12, 2015

19 month old Yusuf was waking frequently in the night

As a GP, Vanessa is a busy working mum trying to cope with a career and parenting a lively toddler.  Vanessa was woken repeatedly during the night by her 19 month son. She had no time to herself in the evening as Yusuf needed cuddling to sleep and she was exhausted through endless sleep deprived nights. Now expecting her second baby, Vanessa was struggling to manage and knew she had to take action…….

Toddler asleep new 2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I was exhausted and finding it difficult to cope juggling being a working mum before coming to Millpond.  I just want to say a huge thank you to Mandy. Your wealth of knowledge and solutions made me feel I was in safe hands and helped me have total confidence that what you were saying was the right thing to be doing.

It was so helpful to have a structure to work too and filling in the diary really helped see how bad things were initially and how dramatically they improved so quickly.

I am a GP and would recommend this to any sleep deprived parents who are struggling that I see. You cannot put a price on sleep. Bedtime now takes less than 20 minutes and I can then get on with my evening.

I know I will have a full nights sleep every night. We are expecting a new baby soon and feel so much more relaxed knowing I won’t have two children up at night and that there is a place I can go if we run into problems.

Thank you so much. I only wish I hadn’t waited 19 months.”

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: frequent night waking, my child frequently disturbs my sleep, my child wakes frequently through the night, sleep through the night, Toddler waking

September 18, 2015

Four year old Alfie was awake for hours at night

 

Alfie 4 years old
Four year old Alfie

 

Alfie was awake for hours at night

Before I got in touch with Millpond four year old Alfie could not self settle at bedtime.  Myself or husband would have to lie with him until he fell to sleep and he would wake multiple times in the night and be awake for hours.

He didn’t go to sleep much before 9 pm leaving no quality time for myself or husband; as soon as Alfie was asleep we’d go to bed ourselves.

Alfie would wake up every single night, sometimes twice, sometimes 4/5 times.  Alfie would be awake for anywhere between 10 minutes and 2 hours, even waking at 3.30/4.30 and not going back to sleep.

Alfie has learnt to settle himself to bed

Then I got in touch with Millpond and everything changed.

Alfie now goes to sleep by himself, usually around 7.20 pm and sleeps ALL night on his own till 6.30 am!

Our lives have totally changed.  I am no longer a walking zombie whose days go by in a hazy, grumpy, blur.  The whole household is happier, calmer, less stressed and I am thoroughly enjoying my time with Alfie instead of being too tired or grumpy to enjoy our time together.  Alfie is happier; he’s in a great routine and has embraced the whole experience.

I’d recommend Millpond to anybody who is having sleep problems with their child, because the time spent with our children is truly precious and to not enjoy it because of sleep deprivation is such a shame.  My only regret….that I didn’t contact Millpond sooner!  The help and support I received from Juliet was amazing, she kept me going giving me help and advice and praise whenever I needed it.

She’s truly my little sleep fairy and I’ll always be thankful to her and Millpond for how much they have improved our lives 🙂

BIG THANKS TO YOU ALL

 

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: anxiety about sleep, bedtime routine, millpond sleep clinic, sleep, sleep advice, sleep success, sleep through the night, wont sleep alone

June 24, 2015

5 month old Harvey was waking every 2 hours

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Harvey was waking every 2 hours

Flavia’s Story:

Before starting to work with Millpond, 5 month old Harvey would not settle to sleep on his own.  He was waking every 2 hours in the night time and would only go back to sleep by being breastfed.  In the day time the main solution to get him to sleep was taking him for walks in his pram or carrying him in the baby carrier, which can be quite heavy after a while.After speaking to Millpond we were full of hope that our little Harvey will learn how to fall asleep on his own without resorting to the “cry it out” technique and our dreams came true.

Harvey took really fast to the new way of getting him to sleep and it felt like a really gentle approach. We had a few nights when Harvey cried a little but the experience was a pleasant one and now Harvey knows how fall asleep on his own, life is definitely much easier now.

Thank you Millpond, thank you Juliet!!

Filed Under: All, Our families success stories Tagged With: frequent night waking, how to teach my baby to self settle at night, my baby only sleeps in the pram, my baby relies on the breast to sleep, my baby will not settle to sleep on his own, my baby will only breastfeed to sleep, my baby will only settle on the breast, my five month old is waking every two hours

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