10 Steps to Sleep-Training Success

You don't have to cry it out to eliminate your baby's nighttime wakings. Kim West, author of "Good Night, Sleep Tight: The Sleep Lady's Gentle Guide to Helping Your Baby Go to Sleep Must-Know Advice from the Sleep Lady" and "The Good Night, Sleep Tight Workbook", explains how to implement her Sleep Lady Shuffle -- and have the whole family snoozing better in two weeks.

By Cara Birnbaum

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1. Make sleep a priority.

Why should you worry about your baby's sleep habits? Remember that the human brain -- yours and your baby's -- runs on sleep. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has linked babies' frequent night wakings to everything from postpartum depression in moms to future obesity and behavior problems in kids. As Marc Weissbluth, MD, the author of "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," explains, children who don't get enough consolidated REM sleep have shorter attention spans, so they don't learn as well. These babies also release more of the stress hormone cortisol, setting them up for frequent night wakings and stunted naps. Tired yet?

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