Ep 59: Managing a Sleep Emergency Part 2
In Part 2 of Sleep Emergencies, Heather Boyd, occupational therapist and sleep coach, explores a shift she has seen in her private practice away from “preventing” sleep challenges towards more sleep emergencies, and increased parent stress.
The impact on mental health is significant, and getting the appropriate support is crucial.
At a time when stress and information overwhelm are high, parents who are struggling with their child’s sleep are also experiencing feelings of guilt and shame. This only adds to the burden parents are carrying.
Listen in to explore:
How Bad advice can be worse than no advice at all.
How social media and information overwhelm are making parents feel like they are not measuring up
How to shift to more preventative measures when sleep or parenting is getting challenging
How creating a sleep emergency plan may actually lead to options you have not considered that actually help your baby sleep.
Why getting support can make all the difference
Ep 59: Managing a Sleep Emergency Part 2
In Part 2 of Sleep Emergencies, Heather Boyd, occupational therapist and sleep coach, explores a shift she has seen in her private practice away from “preventing” sleep challenges towards more sleep emergencies, and increased parent stress.
The impact on mental health is significant, and getting the appropriate support is crucial.
At a time when stress and information overwhelm are high, parents who are struggling with their child’s sleep are also experiencing feelings of guilt and shame. This only adds to the burden parents are carrying.
Listen in to explore:
How Bad advice can be worse than no advice at all.
How social media and information overwhelm are making parents feel like they are not measuring up
How to shift to more preventative measures when sleep or parenting is getting challenging
How creating a sleep emergency plan may actually lead to options you have not considered that actually help your baby sleep.
Why getting support can make all the difference
Ep 58: Managing a Sleep Emergency
What is a sleep emergency? How is it different than difficult sleep that needs coaching, and when is it a mental health emergency requiring medical attention?
Heather Boyd, occupational therapist and certified infant and family sleep specialist, explores these questions and offers strategies for getting support and managing a sleep emergency, including:
Signs and symptoms of a mental health crisis that warrant intervention without delay
Who to reach out to in a mental health crisis
Signs that what you are experiencing is a sleep emergency
What to do about a sleep emergency
How sleep coaching plays a role (and when it’s not enough)
Preventative steps for sleep emergencies
How to consider caregivers and feeding in a sleep emergency
Ep 57: Sleep Associations: The Good, the Helpful, and the Misunderstood
Sleep associations often get a “bad wrap”, being labelled as crutches or bad habits.
In this episode, Heather breaks down what a sleep association is, what it isn’t, and how to appreciate the role sleep associations have in making bedtimes more pleasant.
Sharing parallels with routines and habits we have during the day, as well as sleep associations that we as adults use, Heather makes a case for judgment-free sleep associations and why doing what works, and changing what doesn’t, is a helpful approach at any age.
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at www.familysleep.ca/links
inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Find previous episodes of the podcast at infantsleep.ca/podcast
Ep 56: Laila on Her Personal Journey with Antenatal Depression
Laila, mom of two and host of the popular Learning To Mom Podcast, shares her personal story about discovering what prenatal depression is and why she has come to understand that prenatal depression may have been part of what made her unexpected pregnancy at age 24 so challenging.
This is a heartfelt conversation that runs the gamut from laughter to vulnerability.
Although the circumstances of Laila’s journey are unique to her, and where she found support may be different than for you, her message is important: when you understand your experience, and you know what may be happening to you, it becomes easier to get the support you need to survive and thrive at a very challenging time. It can also reduce the guilt and shame you may be feeling around how you are navigating pregnancy and motherhood.
In this episode:
Laila talks openly about her personal struggles and what helped her.
She outlines the common symptoms of prenatal depression, what the risk factors are, and 8 tips she has for families based on her experience.
If you are struggling with depression (prenatally, postnatally, or outside of pregnancy altogether), talk with your doctor or mental health professional today, be honest with what you are feeling, and get the support you deserve.
If you are the spouse, partner, or loving family member or friend who sees your loved one struggling, do not hesitate to help them get help.
Ep 55: The Language of Sleep-What is Your Baby Saying With Their Sleep?
What if your baby’s sleep was a language you just haven’t become fluent in yet?
It can be frustrating to try to figure out what interrupted sleep, resistant naps, or frequent waking are telling us. But if we start looking at this as a language we can learn, the cues become like words, and patterns begin to form sentences that help us understand what our baby needs.
Mentioned in this episode:
Listen to the clues that help you figure out sleep.
Know that sleep may be communicating something outside of sleep altogether.
The need for connection and safety may be the key thing your baby is communicating.
What are the clues we see when sleep is going well? (It’s not just long stretches of sleep!)
How do we translate what we are seeing with baby sleep when it’s not going well?
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at
Work with Heather inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Find previous episodes of the podcast at
Ep 54: What If The Problem Isn't Your Baby's Sleep Schedule?
Have you been doing “everything right” with your baby’s schedule, following the rigid instructions of a nap and bedtime schedule you found in a book or online, and still feel like sleep isn’t working?
Listen to 3 key perspectives that will have you rethinking your relationship to your baby’s sleep schedule.
Ultimately:
Sleep schedules are tools, not solutions.
Stress (in you or your baby) can lead to sleep disruptions that no schedule can fix. Address the stress, connect, and regulate the nervous system.
Regulation strategies that focus on connection help you see more clearly what sleep routine or schedule works best for your baby in this moment
Sensory strategies that use movement, proprioception, heavy work, and vestibular experiences are an important foundation to a regulated nervous system that can fall asleep more easily.
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at www.familysleep.ca/podcast -it includes a breakdown of how much sleep to expect at each age
Work with Heather inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Ep 53: Three Things I Wish Every Parent Knew About Baby Sleep
Whether you are a first-time mom or have multiple kids, there are a few things Heather would want to share with you over a cup of tea (or decaf Americano) to make sleep development easier to navigate.
Listen in as she reassures listeners that:
Your baby is not broken (and you did NOT break their sleep)
Your approach is going to be unique and doesn’t have to follow the rules of any one approach.
There’s no “good enough parent club” you have to tick boxes in to be a member in good standing.
You deserve support and you aren’t supposed to do this all on your own.
Worth exploring after this episode:
Self-Care versus Community Care: Episode 18 of The Baby Sleep Connection with Mr. Chazz https://infantsleep.ca/podcast/ep-18-mr-chazz-lewis/
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at www.familysleep.ca/links for a resource on how much sleep your baby likely needs at each age and stage and more
Book a Sleep Screening Call familysleep.ca/contact
Find previous episodes of the podcast at familysleep.ca/podcast
Ep 52: Birthing Through a Yoga Lens with Angela Sacco
Angela Sacco talks with Heather about how to give birth through the perspective of yoga.
In the interview, we talk about:
How sounds during labour support the opening of your cervix (and what sounds to make)
Breath, and its role in birthing your baby
How the vagus nerve supports you in staying in a regulated parasympathetic state and staying out of sympathetic fight or flight
The connection between fear and pain
Visualizing (and how it’s ok if it’s not a strategy that you lean on)
How much a sense of community is underestimated in supporting pregnancy and motherhood
The number one question parents ask Angela
Trusting your instincts
What you really need when you have your baby (spoiler: it’s not as much as you think)
Angela’s roles, past and present, as doula, yoga instructor, and owner of Between Mothers in St. Catharines Ontario
And much more
We also get interrupted by a phone ringing and a cat meowing (#reallife)
To learn more about Angela, go to betweenmothers.ca, facebook.com/betweenmothers
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Don’t miss the next episode of The Baby Sleep Connection: Sign up for weekly baby sleep emails (which includes a heads up when a new podcast episode is released
Work with Heather inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Find previous episodes of the podcast at infantsleep.ca/podcast
Ep 51: You Ask, I Answer: How to Bridge to the Next Connection and How to Reduce 2 Hour Bedtimes
You Ask, I Answer!
Join Heather as she answers questions about how to bridge to the next connection without interrupting the bedtime routine, and how to problem-solve 2-hour bedtimes.
She covers:
What is bridging to the next connection?
How to use the Boomerang method of leaving your child at bedtime, but returning before they call out to you (or chase you out of the room!)
Ways to reconnect and build trust that you’re coming back
How to use connection, play, and song to allow sleep to happen.
Why 2-hour bedtimes are usually a timing issue
How to change naps, gaps (between last nap and bedtime), and bedtimes to solve 2-hour bedtimes
How total sleep in 24 hours can impact bedtimes and bedtiming
How to use temporarily late bedtimes to eliminate long bedtimes
How to roll back bedtime to a reasonable hour!
Mentioned in this episode:
Episode 49 Bridging to the Next Connection
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at www.familysleep.ca/links
inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Ask your sleep question! Email Heather at (use the subject line You Ask I Answer Podcast)
Find previous episodes of the podcast at infantsleep.ca/podcast
Ep 50: Using Light to Support Sleep: A Conversation About Quantum Biology with Carrie Bennett
Join Heather Boyd as she talks to Carrie Bennett, a health educator in the emerging field of quantum biology, about using light to optimize health and sleep. Carrie has a background in biology, nutrition, and bodywork. Her work focuses on supporting clients by translating and applying research and knowledge on the use of light and water to promote optimal health.
In this episode, Heather and Carrie talk about:
Quantum Biology: What is it?
How to use natural light exposure to improve sleep and health
The value of true darkness at night
The biology of ultraviolet light
What times of day should be considered light exposure
Carrie’s simple recommendations for increasing light exposure safely
UVA’s link to serotonin, melatonin, and tryptophan
Sunlight’s link to serotonin and healthy bowel movements
How you place your lighting impacts your circadian rhythm
Red light, blue light: what colour and kind of bulbs are best?
Why you can still get the benefits of sitting on the grass in the shade of a tree
Mentioned in this episode:
My Circadian App
Hooga lights
The Carnegie Curve
Published Research about concepts covered in this episode:
Red blood cells have a negative charge, zeta potential, and Rouleaux Formation
Earthing restores negative charge on red blood cells
Environmental light exposure and melatonin
What you can do next:
Subscribe to this podcast and share it with a friend!
Download the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide at www.familysleep.ca/links
inside the Confident & Connected Baby Sleep group program or one-on-one.
Find previous episodes of the podcast at infantsleep.ca/podcast
Ep 49: Independent Bedtimes for 15 month old and a 3 year old -You Ask, I Answer
In this episode, Heather answers real questions from tired parents looking for solutions.
We cover two questions about independent sleep:
How do I stop holding my 15 month old’s hand for her to fall asleep?
How do I help my 3 and 5 year old fall asleep independently?
To answer these questions, Heather describes sleep support strategies that respect your baby’s need for safety and security, stage of development, and temperament.
Listen in to hear how the Loved to Sleep method can help you change how a 15 month old falls asleep, and what the Boomerang Method and Bridging to the Next Connection can do to support your preschooler’s sleep.
Mentioned in this episode:
Andrea Strang and Jen Verela's Loved to Sleep https://lovedtosleep.com/
Gordon Neufeld’s Roots of Attachment neufeldinstitute.org
Lyndsay Hookway's Holistic Sleep Coach lyndsayhookway.com
Do you have a question you want answered on the podcast?
Leave a text or voice note for Heather in Whatsapp at 905-749-8254 and I may use your question on a future episode.
Ep 48: How to Handle the 4 Month Sleep Regression
Let’s talk about the 4-month sleep regression: what it is, what it’s not, and how to manage it.
In this episode, Heather Boyd, occupational therapist and sleep coach, explores what’s happening at the 4-month mark and how to move past the worry and fear about this stage of your baby’s development.
You’ll learn:
An alternative perspective on the entire idea of a 4-month sleep “regression
What’s happening in your baby’s brain and body at 4 months
Why is sleep sensitive at this stage
What makes this stage difficult for some babies
4 strategies for supporting your 4-month-old baby
That if sleep is difficult, it doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong
Mentioned in this episode:
Parent Self-Care resource https://heatherboyd.vipmembervault.com/products/courses/view/1090681
Baby Sleep Mini Course (50% off in June 2025 with the code JUNEBUG): https://familysleep.ca/baby-sleep-course
Listen now!
Explore past episodes of The Baby Sleep Connection Podcast here.
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Sign up here to get access to the Baby Sleep Connection Podcast Listener Guide PLUS access to resources mentioned on the podcast including resources like:
The top episodes to get you started
The Tired Cues printable from Episode #46, and
“How Much Sleep Does My Baby Need” from Episode #13
Heather’s top book recommendations
Links to free resources
Next steps for getting more support
Ask Your Question!
Submit your burning sleep question!
I may answer it on an upcoming episode of The Baby Sleep Connection Podcast.
You’ll be added to my email list (so that you don’t miss the next episode!).
I LOVE being the guest!
Explore my guest interviews below. Email me about being a guest on your podcast.
PODCAST INTERVIEWS
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Chasing the Connection
“Keeping the Connection Through the Night” Laura Newman, Speech Language Pathologist
Podcast interview, October 2023.
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Make Joy Normal
Sleep Matters: An interview with Heather, a woman supporting tired parents with Bonnie Landry
Podcast Interview, April 2022
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The OTs Gone Rogue Podcast
“Infant Sleep and Environmental Health” with Melissa LaPointe
Podcast Guest Interview at OTs Gone Rogue April 12 2021.
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Boss, Babies, & Bottles Podcast
Podcast guest at B3 Boss, Babies, & Bottles, 2021.
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Joyful Mud Puddles
Podcast and Guest Article for Parenting coach Meaghan Jackson at Joyful Mud Puddles
WHERE ELSE YOU’LL FIND ME
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Everyday Heroes
“What All Babies Need to Sleep”,
Guest Article, Everyday Heroes Pediatric Professional Website, ehkidshealth.com
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Joyful Mud Puddles
Podcast and Guest Article for Parenting coach Meaghan Jackson at Joyful Mud Puddles