We read and followed the guidance of this book and the baby started by sleeping 5 hours straight. She later went to 8 hours straight and now is at 11-12 hours stright through the night. great book.

I used this book for my first child and he was sleeping 6 hours a night from 3 months old. Every single mom that I know who uses it loves it. It is flexible and practicle and realistic for our changing schedules. These critiques sound like they only read half the book. Ezzo says over and over that you need to be flexible.

He does NOT encourage you to let your child cry it out until they are 3 months old. Even then he says to let them cry for 5 minutes then go and check on them and then 10 minutes and go check on them then 15 minutes then check on them. This is not barbaric and is very short-lived. Most moms that I know only had to let their child cry it out for 2-3 nights.

THAT's IT! You know what happens after that? Your child learns to self soothe and gets more sleep, not to mention your own sleep. RESULT: Everybody is happier :) Moms that I know who co-slept from the start regret it by a few months old. Imagine a todler in your bed. There is no scientific basis to the "Attachement Style of Parenting". I know this because my husband is a social psych professor.

My son slept for 8 hours by 5 months after losing the binky and now at 2.5 years old sleeps 12 hours and has since he was 9 months old. Doesn't that sound nice? He is one fo the happiest, most social and confident children you will meet, people comment on this all the time.

Get the book- if you read the whole thing and still think it's not for you, then that's your choice. I recommend it to every single new mom I meet and have only heard bad feedback from one of my friends that co-slept instead and now at 1 year old regrets it.

I tell people our next child could be completely different, but there must be something to the method.

My wife and I (mostly her) followed "Baby Wise" and at 5 weeks our baby was sleeping 8 hours or more a night, every night, and was measured by a doctor to be in the 95th percentile for weight and length.

That all I have to say about that!

Dave

This is absolutely one of the best books for any mom-to-be (or mom-to-be-again). Whether you decide to follow the advice strictly or not, this book gives you great insight on life after bringing baby home. The basic principals set up in this book (like flexible scheduling and encouraging a sleep-eat-wake schedule) can be applied to almost any situation. Though, yes, bringing a baby home is a huge challenge and this book will not relieve you of all your future parental worries and frustrations - it will however give you a guideline to follow when uncertainty sets in. And it worked for us! We flexibly used this book with both our daughters and both were sleeping through the night by 8 weeks (despite many early on frustrations and complications with our youngest). I would recommend this book to any mom-to-be - but I do think reading this coupled with other strategies as well will give you a more complete picture of what works best for you.

All the legitimate childcare experts are against this! Use your common sense and love for your baby to see that these methods are wrong! Stay away from this book.

Those were the words I typed into my Google search during yet another night of screaming, sleepless baby. "Baby screaming in the middle of the night." There was oodles of advice. I'd tried it all. But my 8 month old was screaming at 2 am, and had been every night for I don't know how long.

I had decided after my first two babies that I was exhausted from "attachment parenting," especially when it came to matters on sleep. Show me a Dr. Sears baby who sleeps through the night and I'll show you a kangaroo sporting lipstick and false eyelashes. My third baby was my toughest one. He started crying three days after he was born, and never let up. Not only did he cry endlessly, he rarely slept. Especially in the middle of the night. I had already been through the battle of weaning my first child from his 2 a.m. feedings when he was 2 1/2 years old, following Dr. Sears' advice and explaining gently, "num nums go nighty night too." But my toddler was too busy ripping out my hair, biting me, and screaming at the top of his lungs to hear my loving words. Son #2 was even harder to wean from those dreaded all-night feedings.

So I swallowed my pride, and decided to "baby wise" my 3rd son. I figured I had nothing to lose. Now I'll grant you that Gary Ezzo is perhaps not the most charming fellow in the neighborhood. But don't get your feelings hurt. I was a super thin-skinned attachment parenting mom, and I got over it. The whole neighborhood is thanking me. Now baby #5 is 5 months old and sleeps all night long, and she has been since she was 3 months old. (I didn't start "Baby Wise-ing" until she was 2 1/2 months old.)

Homeschooling and household chores are also much easier to accomplish because my baby sleeps great during her naps. Even traveling is easier. I put her in a little Moses basket whereever we are staying, and she goes right to sleep at bed and nap time. I never, ever thought you could teach babies to be good sleepers. I thought they had to be born that way. But I was wrong.

If you are looking for a book to show you how to get your baby sleeping through the whole night by 8 or 9 weeks old, this is the book for you!! I am pregnant for my 3rd, I followed this book for my first two kids and they both were sleeping through the night by 9 weeks old! I recomend this book to every mom with a newborn and every mom that follows this book has told me they have had the same results as I have. It's all about getting your baby on a schedule. I loved this book and I will be following it again with my 3rd baby!

that twists scripture and that doesn't work!! Well, it might work depending on what your goal is. But to raise a healthy, happy, loving, confident child I would base on actual biblical teachings not Ezzo's version! I know well intentioned moms who used this method and underfed their child. I know many mothers who used this method and heard the same story over and over - "I tried to breastfeed but by x months my milk dried up/wasn't enough/didn't keep up with the babies needs". This book is off track biblically, medically and psychologically and is dangerous. We read and researched and glad we answered our babies needs and followed God's original designs. By the way, some readers might be confused as Baby Wise doesn't mention scripture etc, but it is just the secular version to "Raising Kids God's Way".

I actually thought this book was very helpful to get your baby on a schedule. My baby is currently 8 months old and I started reading this book just after I had him.

I didn't follow the book to a "T" because each baby is different and you have to meet the needs of your own baby (which is what the book tells you). Yes there were times that my baby would follow the schedule and days that he would be starving and want to eat every hour and half to two hours.

Reading a book doesn't TELL/SHOW you how to feed your baby. However, the book can act as a guide line but you as the parent still have the choice on how to feed your baby and how to put him on a schedule.

I recommend this book to everybody now, because I think that it works as a great guide (not as a baby user's manual).

Babywise is a terrific source of information for breastfeeding and bottle-feeding moms who want more information on a flexible sleep schedules. Not only does the author provide his explanation of a baby schedule, he also provides the statistics from research he has performed using the flexible schedule. In addition, the author includes his interesting research on some of other hot topics including: breastfeeding technique, attachment parenting, co-sleeping, demand feeding, baby slings, SIDS, and much, much more. Included in the book are sample schedules that a mom can copy and use to track her own baby's schedule. Also included is information that a breast-feeding mom can use from the moment she gives birth.

I've read some of the negative reviews here and after having read the ENTIRE book, I have to say the criticism is unfounded. The author prescribes a very flexible approach to establishing a schedule and includes his proven research as to why the flexible schedule can prove healthful (yes, I did use the word healthful) to the mom and to the baby. (Who knew there were different types of breastmilk, some more full of calories than another?) The only thing that the author does not agree
with is the constantly providing of the breast or bottle whenever a baby stirs. If you agree that the breast or bottle should be offered all-day at any time whenever the baby stirs, this book is not for you.It Gets Easier! And Other Lies We Tell New Mothers

I have a 2 month old son and have been using the Baby Wise technique since he was born. I have found it to be very successful! Since he was born he has only woke up once a night for a feeding. I was at first concerned that my baby would not benefit from this book because of some of the reviews saying that it is an unhealthy way to feed a baby. I decided to give it a try anyway because it was very successful for my sister in law and her son. I followed the books advice, the advice of other moms and my own common sense and my son is a very healthy 2 month old. His doctor even mention how well the breastfeeding was going since he was gaining a healthy amount of weight. There were times when I thought maybe he was hungry 30 mins after his feeding. So I feed him just a little longer the next time. I know the book says that you should only feed for around 30 mins but that is just a suggested time since all babies are different. If you have a fussy baby after feeding check for other things that maybe would make him cry like gas or temperture. (My mom told me that babies aren't always hungry, but they will always take more food because it is soothing to nurse or eat) Another thing I discovered with my son was that he might act hungry, but he really just like the idea of sucking on something so I gave him the pacifier (which took a couple days for him to get use to). Anyway the point is the book will not be the cure all for everything but it helps to get you started. My son has now sleep through the night several nights and it sure feels good to sleep! Good Luck!

I bought this book along with several others while I was still pregnant. I read all of them before my son was born. I am glad I did. I also read 12 Hours Sleep by 12 Weeks Old and with the two books, I had a plan for my son. By 8 weeks he was sleeping 5 hours a night. By 12 weeks, he was sleeping about 12. He is now 6 months old and has a wonderful sleeping, playing and eating schedule. He is curious and on, or ahead of, all of the developmental milestones. I am constantly being told how "lucky" I am by other mothers with babies my son's age. I don't think it is luck at all, I think it is what I learned from the book. With everything, you will have to read it to decide if it will work with you and your values. It did with me and I'm glad because I have a beautiful, happy, thriving son and I give a lot of credit to what I learned from this book.

This book is the best baby book available. It not only guides you on sleeping but eating and any other questions you may have. My son was sleeping through the night by week 11 and I didnt read the book until he was 6 weeks old. Very easy to implement. I buy this book for all my pregnant friends and the most recent has given birth and by 10 weeks her son was sleeping through the night. Yours will too if you just follow the guidelines.

I was recommended this book by several people whose babies slept through the night as a result of the scheduling that is layed out in this book. So for that I gave this 3 stars because I know it works for some people. I did try this method for a while but it just didn't work for my son. Actually as a result of the more sleep that the book suggests (more napping) my son woke up much more during the night. I was convinced that all the people who recommended this book to me couldn't be crazy so I stuck with it for quite some time before I realized that it just wasn't going to work for us and that I needed to read my sons cues and not go by a formula. My 3 month old began developing his own schedule once I gave him the freedom and didn't try to force him into my schedule and it's worked out much better for us. He naps less often than the book recommends for his age. Also because my baby would spit up so much I had to begin feeding him before his nap times in order for the food to settle in his stomach and then I would feed him again after he woke up but much less. If I fed him an entire meal right after he woke up he would spit up atleast half of his meal. So for those of you who have babies who spit up a lot try doing wake/ eat/ activity/ eat/ nap. Also this book says that in order to get a baby to sleep longer at naps cut back on his wake time. This has worked for many mom's. BUT This backfired on me - I had to lengthen his wake time in order to get him to sleep longer on a nap. I have used some of the recommendations in this book though - for instance, atleast having some sort of schedule has been helpful for me. And also putting him to bed and waking him up at the same time each day is very helpful.
Remember though that your baby is an individual and what works for some babies may not work for yours! ... and that's OKAY! Follow your maternal instincts..

Every day that my child did not sleep through the night after reaching 12-13 pounds, I bought another book with sleep advice. This is the fifth and final book that I bought. Every friend I recommend it to is incredibly grateful and I am forever grateful to the friend who recommended it to me.

My wife and I are were very skeptical about this book, especially after reading all of the negative stuff on the net. But after hearing some rebuttals by people who actually read and used the book, we decided it couldn't hurt to read it.

After reading it, we decided to give it a try, with our radar on full alert to anything that might rub us the wrong way. Long story short: we don't know what we would have done without this book. True, we had to slightly modify the method for our baby (something the author encourages), but by 4 months our son was sleeping through the night (from 8pm to 8am), taking nice naps in the day, and eating (breast feeding)... all more or less on schedule. It was like a miracle.

We happen to have a bunch of friends who had babies around the same time, give or take a year. Most of them are what you'd consider "hippies" (heck you might consider US hippies too), and all of them are followers of the "attachment baby" method of parenting. For those of you that don't know what this is, do a Google search. Since they tend to be very judgmental about other methods of raising children -especially of the "BabyWise system- we largely kept kept the details of many aspects of our parenting from them. They eventually found out that we weren't co-sleeping or "wearing" the baby 24/7, but that's about all they knew. They certainly were wondering why our baby was sleeping through the night at 4 months, while their much older babies were waking up many times throughout the night. Maybe they also noticed behavior differences in our son, but we never really talked about it.

Suffice to say that my wife and I are soooo happy we went this direction.

People always comment about how happy and personable our son is. He's full of love, and positive energy; and he seems to be just well-balanced and strong for his age. And my wife and I couldn't be happier or more well-rested. :)

Love, love, love this book!! This is my 4th baby and I wish I had this book years ago! My freind told me about baby wise and I am so happy I got the book. They should send you home from the hospital with it!
At first I was a little lazy with the schedule (stuck in old ways). Once I read the whole book and followed the guild lines she was sleeping 8 hours a night at 6 weeks, and 10 hours at 9 weeks. Its so wonderful to have schedule to follow.
I was a little put off by the bad reviews at first but if you read the book and stick to the main idea of the schedule its fool proff.
I passed on the book to a friend and she loves it as well! Of the 5 familys I know personaly that have done Baby Wise, they all have wonderful things to say about it and would do it again!
It is nice to have someone you know that has done it to ask questions, because some things you do have to figure out yourself as all babys are not the same.
My baby is so happy and sweet, people alway tell me how lucky I am to have such a happy alert wide eyed baby. She is never fussy unless its nap time :) Now I know why my now 3 year old was such a fussy baby... he was always sleepy because I never knew when to give him naps.

Love, love, love this book!! This is my 4th baby and I wish I had this book years ago! My freind told me about baby wise and I am so happy I got the book. They should send you home from the hospital with it!
At first I was a little lazy with the schedule (stuck in old ways). Once I read the whole book and followed the guild lines she was sleeping 8 hours a night at 6 weeks, and 10 hours at 9 weeks. Its so wonderful to have schedule to follow.
I was a little put off by the bad reviews at first but if you read the book and stick to the main idea of the schedule its fool proff.
I passed on the book to a friend and she loves it as well! Of the 5 familys I know personaly that have done Baby Wise, they all have wonderful things to say about it and would do it again!
It is nice to have someone you know that has done it to ask questions, because some things you do have to figure out yourself as all babys are not the same.
My baby is so happy and sweet, people alway tell me how lucky I am to have such a happy alert wide eyed baby. She is never fussy unless its nap time :) Now I know why my now 3 year old was such a fussy baby... he was always sleepy because I never knew when to give him naps.

I absolutely disagree with the comments telling you to throw BabyWise in the trash and that feeding on demand is the only way to stimulate an adequate milk supply, limiting and scheduling feedings is a sure path to a lowered milk supply, early weaning, and even failure-to-thrive in your baby.

Schedule feeding will not diminish your milk supply and schedule feeding is not the ONLY way to stimulate an adequate milk supply, the entire time you breastfeed. I do believe that it helps establish your milk supply, but you do not have to do it to maintain your milk supply. And if you read the book you would note that in the beginning they recommend feeding your baby whenever the baby wants in order to get your milk supply started and stimulate the baby's growth (for the first few weeks). Then you can, with your established milk supply happily set up a routine for you and your child. You have long consistent feedings that let your child take in what they need.

I cherished feeding times cause it was such a time of bonding and closeness. My children never failed to thrive, and never weaned early. I did use schedule feeding with my children and I had a more than adequate milk supply. I breastfed all for a full year, with scheduled feedings and never once had a problem with my milk supply. My doctor was even surprised at the amount of milk I produced. My children were happy, healthy and well-fed. Their bodies were able to regulate and their little digestive systems were not all out of whack from inconsistent meal times or meal sizes.

This is such a great point in this book that people seem to miss. If you feed your child at erratic times throughout the day, or just give them a nibble here and there then a full meal later...how in the world will their little bodies get regulated? It helps give their bodies a rhythm, and helps the child know what to expect. Once they wake up they know moms here and its time to eat, then they get to play and have fun and bond some more, then they get to take a good rest and mom can rest too, read a book, do some laundry, work, whatever she needs. Then the child can wake up again, knowing what's coming next. How does this not help establish closeness, dependency and love. The child will eventually sleep through the night because its body is in a rhythm all of ours falls into. Day and night, eat and sleep cycles. Do you not eat, sleep, and work, pretty close to the same time each day? Its human nature, we all do it and doctors tell us its good for us (try to go to bed around the same time every night...) This book is just giving you tools to help your baby establish the same kind of cycle.

And I loved the freedom it gave me when going out or planning activities. I would have a pretty good idea of when the children would wake up and what was going to happen throughout the day and I could plan accordingly. Instead of not knowing when they'd wake up or when I'd have to feed. I knew they were getting fed well, sleeping well and playing well. And yes, there were times this got knocked completely out of whack and my baby was hungry and crying 30 minutes after she just finished...nothing else was wrong, but she still showed signs of hunger so I fed her. Or she slept a little less/more, whatever. She is a little human, we are all not perfect and we all have good days, bad days, growth spurts, etc. Life happens and you have to be able to go with the flow. But these instances were few and far between, and they were not a big deal when they did happen.

You have to use good judgement. The book and author are not the parents and no one knows your child better than you. Don't get freaked out by people saying this book is DANGEROUS. Have a little bit of common sense and let your heart tell you what is best for you.

I can honestly say that the guidelines in this book worked wonders for me. My children are great sleepers and they wake up happy and content. Not all the time though, they still have their rough mornings...but who doesn't. This book will not make your child the perfect error free child...who wants that? But it helps you to establish routine, consistency and some peace of mind.

I have had atleast 15 families that are close to me use this book. Some followed the guidelines rigidly, some (like me) used what made sense and felt good for them and I do not know anyone in any of those families who does not emphatically recommend this book to other friends and family. Breastfeed or bottle feed, schedule feed or demand feed...whatever is best for you. But this book is not dangerous and if you are looking for some help or guidelines its a great option.

I absolutely disagree with the comments telling you to throw BabyWise in the trash and that feeding on demand is the only way to stimulate an adequate milk supply, limiting and scheduling feedings is a sure path to a lowered milk supply, early weaning, and even failure-to-thrive in your baby.

Schedule feeding will not diminish your milk supply and schedule feeding is not the ONLY way to stimulate an adequate milk supply, the entire time you breastfeed. I do believe that it helps establish your milk supply, but you do not have to do it to maintain your milk supply. And if you read the book you would note that in the beginning they recommend feeding your baby whenever the baby wants in order to get your milk supply started and stimulate the baby's growth (for the first few weeks). Then you can, with your established milk supply happily set up a routine for you and your child. You have long consistent feedings that let your child take in what they need.

I cherished feeding times cause it was such a time of bonding and closeness. My children never failed to thrive, and never weaned early. I did use schedule feeding with my children and I had a more than adequate milk supply. I breastfed all for a full year, with scheduled feedings and never once had a problem with my milk supply. My doctor was even surprised at the amount of milk I produced. My children were happy, healthy and well-fed. Their bodies were able to regulate and their little digestive systems were not all out of whack from inconsistent meal times or meal sizes.

This is such a great point in this book that people seem to miss. If you feed your child at erratic times throughout the day, or just give them a nibble here and there then a full meal later...how in the world will their little bodies get regulated? It helps give their bodies a rhythm, and helps the child know what to expect. Once they wake up they know moms here and its time to eat, then they get to play and have fun and bond some more, then they get to take a good rest and mom can rest too, read a book, do some laundry, work, whatever she needs. Then the child can wake up again, knowing what's coming next. How does this not help establish closeness, dependency and love. The child will eventually sleep through the night because its body is in a rhythm all of ours falls into. Day and night, eat and sleep cycles. Do you not eat, sleep, and work, pretty close to the same time each day? Its human nature, we all do it and doctors tell us its good for us (try to go to bed around the same time every night...) This book is just giving you tools to help your baby establish the same kind of cycle.

And I loved the freedom it gave me when going out or planning activities. I would have a pretty good idea of when the children would wake up and what was going to happen throughout the day and I could plan accordingly. Instead of not knowing when they'd wake up or when I'd have to feed. I knew they were getting fed well, sleeping well and playing well. And yes, there were times this got knocked completely out of whack and my baby was hungry and crying 30 minutes after she just finished...nothing else was wrong, but she still showed signs of hunger so I fed her. Or she slept a little less/more, whatever. She is a little human, we are all not perfect and we all have good days, bad days, growth spurts, etc. Life happens and you have to be able to go with the flow. But these instances were few and far between, and they were not a big deal when they did happen.

You have to use good judgement. The book and author are not the parents and no one knows your child better than you. Don't get freaked out by people saying this book is DANGEROUS. Have a little bit of common sense and let your heart tell you what is best for you.

I can honestly say that the guidelines in this book worked wonders for me. My children are great sleepers and they wake up happy and content. Not all the time though, they still have their rough mornings...but who doesn't. This book will not make your child the perfect error free child...who wants that? But it helps you to establish routine, consistency and some peace of mind.

I have had atleast 15 families that are close to me use this book. Some followed the guidelines rigidly, some (like me) used what made sense and felt good for them and I do not know anyone in any of those families who does not emphatically recommend this book to other friends and family. Breastfeed or bottle feed, schedule feed or demand feed...whatever is best for you. But this book is not dangerous and if you are looking for some help or guidelines its a great option.

I completely do not understand the controversy over this book. It merely advocates putting your child on a three-hour feeding schedule.

We did this with our baby (without reading the book first) because, as new parents, we had no idea what we were doing and wanted to try and establish a bit of routine. In the beginning, you don't know if your baby is crying because he/she is hungry, wet, tired, or gassy--you just have to figure it out as you go along.

What I did find quite unrealistic in the book was the expectation that the baby would nap on schedule. It seems like most babies take a while to establish regular naps.

Anyway--I am convinced the main reason this book is controversial is because the author is a strict Christian. The methods demonstrated aren't that unusual nor I would think particularly harmful for most healthy infants.

I have read so many things about this book being dangerous. The only DANGEROUS thing is a parent not using their god given brains to make a decision on the health of their own child. Like anything....it works for some and not others. My son has been on a schedule since he was 2 weeks old and still sleeps great. Slept from 11:00 to 8:00 AM at 8 weeks old. Now he's almost two and still sleeps from 7:30 PM to 8:00 AM EVERY NIGHT!! Even if I hear him wake up he puts himself back to sleep. My friends all envy me and ask me what my secret was. This is the secret. Although having a schedule really isn't new...some mothers think that letting a 3 week old run the show is the way to go. These are the same kids who are completely out of control at 3. So you make that decision. My son is very well rested and also naps well. His temperment is very consistent and I credit his getting a good night's sleep with that too. Don't listen to the crazy people out there....TRY IT!!!!

This book receives such controversial review. I've spent some time on the internet reading the negative criticisms. It seems that those who are so negative towards these techniques arrived at their conclusion because of other situations with their baby that affected the effectiveness of the methods.

I have used the methods in this book with all three of my children. All three of my children were sleeping through the night by 9 weeks, were not crying to be fed, and gained confidence that their needs would be met. All three of my children today (ages 8, 5 and 2) have no issues with bedtime and have not had issues with bedtime. They all three sleep in their own beds and have since birth. I will also add that two of my babies had severe reflux.

I loved the freedom that I felt in the teachings of Ezzo. I knew what to expect every day in regards to my daily schedule with feedings and naptimes. I also encourage you to note Ezzo's explanations of being flexible with your baby. It is not a strict regiment, but a framework that is established. Flexibility is allowed when baby is sick, has reflux, has growth spurts, etc.

I know some moms who had difficulty with Ezzo's methods and the reasons were due to allergies and repiratory issues. Once these issues were addressed, the methods were succesful.

I highly recommend the teachings in this book. Along with your wisdom as a parent and the guidelines in the book, you will benefit your baby and you will enjoy the freedom and success you will experience.

I know this book may be a bit controversial, but I personally highly recommend this book. When my daughter was a little over a month old, she would finally fall asleep for the "night" around 4am, in my arms. She was also demand-fed/nursed, fell asleep mid-feeding, wanted to nurse all the time, and threw up once a night. I was sleeping through the day and awake at night- I couldn't even go out during the day! I thought nursing and being a mom was a natural thing, but my natural instincts/lifestyle was making me go insane! That was when my dentist recommended "Babywise". I basically "reprogramed" myself with Ezzo's philosophy- which worked GREAT! I followed his simple "Eat-Play-Sleep" method immediately, which took out the guessing as to why my daughter was crying. (Before, I always thought she was hungry when she cried, but with a full feeding each time, she didn't cry for hunger so soon- less nursing!- and since she didn't overeat, she wasn't throwing up!)He also had a sample schedule that served as a great template for me to build upon for my daughter. With a strict Eat-Play-Sleep schedule, my daughter soon was sleeping earlier and earlier for the night! I used to hold my daughter until she fell asleep (going against Ezzo's method) for awhile even after reading this book, but when my daughter got too heavy and woke up/cried when I put her in her crib, I knew I had to follow Ezzo's method of teaching her to self-sleep. It was hard to hear and see her cry...but I had to remind myself that she'll be able to sleep better and feel better (who likes being sleep deprived?) in the long run. But in the morning, she was happy and didn't seem to hold a grudge on me. Now as a one year old, she sleeps by 7:30pm and wakes up around 8:30am, with two naps during the day. Most of the time she barely makes a sound before going to sleep! Looking back, I realize I never did follow everything Babywise said from the beginning. I took what I wanted and left the rest. But when I had a new problem with my daughter, I always went to Babywise and took some more advice. Now that I think about it, it may have taken almost a year to fully implement most all of the Babywise philosophy! So my advice is to take what you want from this book, use some common sense, and try it out! It's worked for me and others so something must be right about this book!

A colleague of mine recommended this book to me - she used it with her children, and both slept 9-10 months a night at 12 weeks of age. My husband and I followed the tips in this book and our six-month-old baby goes down easily for naps, and sleeps at least 9 hours per night (and has done so for about three months now). We have an extremely happy, well-rested baby. There have been set-backs and a few bumps and starts, but the overall approach has worked extremely well with our child. What I appreciated about this book was its suggestion from the outset that parents take charge and do what is best for THEIR child. I liked the idea that this book be taken as a guideline. As such, it has been very very useful. I mailed it to a friend, and they have found it equally useful.

I read this book a little later, but that is okay. My baby girl was 2 1/2 months old when we started the routine. It was actually pretty easy to get her into the sleep, eat, wake routine. The only hard thing was the sleeping at night. She is almost 3 months now and we moved her into her own room and is falling asleep (with crying) in like 10 min and stays asleep anywhere from 6 to 8 hours.
I was a little stressed with the book, I felt like it was so strict and I was so off from where I needed to be.
My friend, who started from the beginning with her baby, was the one who recommended the book. It was after I talked to her about my frustrations that she said the authors numbers ( like your 2 month old can sleep 9 hours straight) aren't something to measure up to.
The book is a guide, not law. The important thing is to get into routine and to teach your baby to fall asleep by themselves.

This book was recommended by a co-worker and my only regret is that I didn't read it before the baby was born. Fortunately, it's a fast read. After implementing the methods recommended in this book, my 2.5 month old started sleeping from 6-9 hours every night. Also, he now takes regular naps which last 1-2.5 hours. This is not only great for his temperament, but great for me as I can now get at home errands done. My suggestion is to use common sense when implementing the strategies. There are some days when my son doesn't sleep as long as he should and seems to want to eat more frequently. The book is merely a guideline since it's up to the parent to make alterations as necessary. Highly recommended.

are looking for a quick solution for the long term! The heart of this book is to give you key information on how to have a schedule that is flexible around a baby's feedings.

Seriously, this book (and all the other parenting books) does not say you have to follow his method exactly, but use the information as guidelines for your child. I really don't understand the folks who claim to read this book and have let their child cry for 1-2 hours without feeding. The book doesn't suggest this at all.

I'm actually using a combination of this book and the "No Cry Sleep Solution ..." by Elizabeth Pantley. My views as a parent uses the best of both books. No one says you have to follow one book and one point of view ... uh, that's common sense!

I'm a new time mom who's daughter just turned 8 weeks and recently started applying information I read in this on her. I found this book to be extremely valuable. Yes, I may not agree with some of the things they say but only because it doesn't agree with my parenting style. For instance, I don't agree that you should have such a strict feeding schedule when a child is under 6 weeks. They're still adjusting to life on the outside.

But overall, ever since I've started following the eat, wake, sleep method I've notice the quality of my daughter's naps become better and she sleeps longer at night. I'm still not consistently at the point of having 2.5-3.5 between feedings, but I notice she is getting closer. I really liked the section that emphasizes good quality feedings over the number of feedings, espcially since I breastfeed exclusively.

Want to nurse your baby? Throw BabyWise in the trash. Feeding on demand is the only way to stimulate an adequate milk supply. Limiting and scheduling feedings is a sure path to a lowered milk supply, early weaning, and even failure-to-thrive in your baby.

If you're considering using this book, I suggest checking out [...].

We made such a mistake putting this book into play with our first child. As new parents we found the author's promises persuasive and in the best interest in our family. Looking back I realize the tone of the Babywise method is completely anti-baby. The Babywise method is a very convincing theory for well-intentioned, type-A, organized parents. However it takes the baby into very little account, portraying the newborn as a parasite seeking to destroy the new mother's every last minute of sleep. Our poor daughter fussed and cried through many nights after our days of trying to keep her "on schedule." We threw these theories out the door for our second baby with much better results, simply following his cues and going with the flow. What a difference it has made. No fussing, no crying!

My husband and I read this book with our first born. She began sleeping through the night on avg 7.5 hours a night by 8 weeks. This book is a must read. I would strongly recommend it to friends! I checked with our baby's pediatrician and she did not see any problem with the schedule given in this book. Our daughter started out with feeding problems in the beginning but once we got through that the Dr gave us the go ahead on becoming baby wise. She's thriving now 6 months later loving her schedule and we love it too. I nursed our baby so it is very do-able as a nursing mother to stick with the schedule the book suggests. It encourages mothers to nurse until baby is full, not to watch the clock and let the clock be the hound dog. So long as baby gets the necessary calories during the daily feedings nighttime is reserved for sleeping. So it is with everything else one must custom make other's advise to fit each families unique lifestyle. I'm so thankful we came across this book. I will use it and implement the book's strategy with the next baby. it helped me as a new parent and saved me from the demand feedings and crazy sleepless nights.

I have a very good natured, happy daughter. The only problem we were having is getting her to go to bed at a decent time at night. She also had trouble napping during the day. My happy little baby melted down almost every day at around 6pm. I read Babywise and within just one week she was sleeping 9 hours straight at night, napping during the day and the evening melt down disappeared! I am only sorry I didn't read this sooner. I love this book and am recommending it to all of my friends, who are new parents.

Its a good book. You need to adapt the methods for each child but it's got some great points

Can you give zero stars, this book should recalled because it threatens the lives of children. I am not going to go on and on because it is really very simple. These methods have been associated babies DYING, is that the parenting book you were looking for. I have read this and it terrifies me, I feel sick to my stomach thinking about this. Please try The Baby Book by Sears.

After my baby was born, I read "The Baby Whisperer" book. I thought the ideas where great, but I wasn't quite sure on how to implement the eat, activity, sleep routine and I had so many questions. This book definitely answered my questions and laid out a good plan of attack that is working already after using it for only a few days (my baby is now 9 weeks old). Our baby has a set routine of which we know when eating, activity and sleep will occur. It actually just naturally happened, with a little guidance from us and we can now read our baby's cues so much better. The routine sets our baby up for a good night's sleep, with no worries about whether or not there was adequate nutrition or naptime during the day. Our goal is to have our baby sleeping until 6 or 6:30 am, uninterrupted, and this book tells you how (I wish I had read and started this sooner). I've read the negative reviews and I am blown away by people who don't understand how important uninterrupted sleep is, especially for a baby whose brain is growing at such a rapid pace. Sleep is when the body repairs itself and is the most important thing, besides nutrition. Is it easier to just feed the baby every time he/she cries in the middle of the night? Yes. But think of the long term effects of continuing to do so as the baby grows older. You make the sacrifice in the short term for the best long term goal, which is to get a good night's sleep, not interrupted by feeding (unless they are premature or have a medical condition, of course). Will you encounter some resistance? Of course you will. Nobody enjoys hearing their baby cry, ever, but if it means that he/she will be healthier and more focused in the long run, it is worth the 3 days to a week that it will take to teach them the right way. Your baby won't be sitting on a psychiatrist's couch when they are adults saying that their parents let them cry for a short amount of time for a few nights. All they will have memory of is that they were happy, healthy children that thrived because they had what they needed to function day to day (a good night's sleep and nutrition), and that their parents cared enough to make those tough decisions to do what is best for them, not just what was easier.

After you read BabyWise cover to cover, then you are entitled to an opinion! I have three children and would never have another if I was told I couldn't do BabyWise! It simply is wonderful in raising well-adjusted children -- children who sleep well, eat well, are extremely secure and are hardly ever fussy. The opposite of this book is Dr. Sears. If you don't like BabyWise, you're sure to love Dr. Sears. And, you are sure to have a child or children who completely run your household.

I'll keep it short and simple. I don't understand all the complaints and fuss over this book. They advocate using discernment and routine, not just one or the other. They emphasize that the husband and wife relationship must stay as the most important relationship to maintain a healthy family. They caution that children do not always know what is best for themselves and that parents need to use wisdom to determine this... Sounds like plain common sense to me...

I received this book, TWICE as a baby shower gift. After reading it in it's entirety, I felt horrible for not wanting to apply the "strong arm" tactics to my firstborn (as if I were a bad mom or something). Even though she was sleeping for long chunks of time at night, she still was waking for meals (breastfed) at 1 am and again at 6 am (normal). I wasn't going to deny her food/let her cry it out for MY convenience. I gave it 3 stars, as I know that it will and has helped some people, especially those families with multiples, or even those on strict work schedules, but it didn't fit my personal parenting style. I intuitively felt a need to meet the baby's needs at almost all times ( I am the mommy after all). No one said parenting would be easy. After a few weeks, I stumbled across Dr. Sear's website on attachment parenting, which was almost exactly the way I felt MY parenting style should be. So for those of you who don't agree with a strict regimen (it's alright for some), you may want to check alternate styles. Just a note, my 7 yr old sleeps through the night (she has for a very long time, and sleeps in her own bed)! ;-) Reading it won't hurt, but use your brain and your heart it might not be your cup of tea either.

Every new mother should read this book. Had our 7 week old son sleeping through the night. It was a great help.

Please consult your pediatrician before beginning any type of "sleep" regimen with a newborn!!!!!! I would not recommend this book to anyone.

This book is perfect for mom's & dad's who like routines & want their babies to sleep through the night. I read this book & started our son on the feeding, awake time, nap time routine at 4 weeks. It was a little hard at first because all my son wanted to do after a feeding was sleep. I kept him away for at least 20 minutes then put him down for a nap. My baby was sleeping through the night at 6 weeks old! He would take his last feeding at 10:00 or 10:30 pm and sleep until 6 am. Now he is 12 weeks old & sleeps until 7:30 or 8 am. This book was a life saver. There are ideas in this book that I didn't follow. I had to use my mommy instincts. I am not big on the "crying out" routine. My pediatrician said do not let him cry for more than 5 minutes before checking on him. During his day time naps, I would wait 5 minutes (if he was crying) and go check on him. I would put his pacifier back in, rub his belly & leave the room. It worked great. Other people who disagree with this book totally misinterpret it. The doctor says over and over that you must use your instinct. This book will help you get your baby to sleep through the night & nap on his own. My baby has become very independent & goes to sleep on his own without being in a swing, swaddler, car seat, etc. I put him down for a nap in his bed (while he is awake) & he soothes himself to sleep. I will use this method on every one of my children. It really works!

Newborn babies do not need a schedule...they need to be loved and nutured...this means feeding him or her when they are hungry..not when it is convenient for the parents.

Save your money and follow your instincts instead.

While walking in a park four days after my first daughter's birth, three different ladies told us that we needed to get this book--and we're so glad we did: by following the principals in this book, all three of our kids were sleeping through the night within two weeks of birth!!! Also, since our children ate on schedule, the only time they cried for food was when we were more than a few minutes late for their scheduled feeding time--our babysitters loved this aspect of watching our kids or dreaded it if they weren't punctual.

On a cautionary note, if you subscribe to the "demand feed" philosophy (i.e., feed the baby when he/she cries), then this book isn't for you. I supports the notion of "parent directed feeding" where the parents control the child's feeding times--and I wouldn't implement their guidelines immediately. You should slowly adjust what you're currently doing into the program Ezzo proscribes.

Good luck!

This book was highly recommended by my friends who were new moms. It was given to me as a gift last May (2007) and I still refer back to it. My son was sleeping through the night at 10 weeks old! This book also promised me that if I followed their routine I would have a happy baby and that people everywhere would not be able to believe what a good baby I have. THEY WERE RIGHT!!!! I have the happiest baby! I get compliments on how good he is all the time. I heard a my sister-in-law's mother-in-law asking her if my baby ever cried. I just sat back and smiled!! I refer this book to every woman I know who is having a baby. You will be happy you bought it when your baby is happy and sleeping through the night!!

I don't know how we would have done it with twins other-wise. They were sleeping through the night at 8 weeks and we were ready for sleep. They are now 15 months and are doing great... Thanks to Ezzo-

I am a first-time mom of a now 6 month old baby, and I have read SEVERAL books including the No-Cry Sleep Solution, Baby Wise, The Happiest Baby on the Block, a wonderful little book called N.A.P.S., and parts of Ferber's book. Baby Wise was recommended to me by 3 very good friends. I read the book before my child was born and was ready to put him on a schedule at 3 weeks of age. That was my first mistake. I have come to realize over the past few months that it's easy to say that every baby is different, but the truth of the matter is that no one program could possibly work for every child. If it could, then there wouldn't be so many books and theories out there.

Baby Wise did not work for me. And yet without it, my son slept through the night at 2 months of age. I think I'm just lucky. I don't believe it's necessarily because of anything special that my husband and I did. I do think it might have had something to do with The Happiest Baby on the Block because that book led us to swaddle our baby which lengthened his nighttime sleep and naps dramatically. And yet we dropped swaddling at night at 2 months of age.

Here's my main issue with Baby Wise. It states ideas like "Mom, not baby, decides when the nap begins and when the nap ends." There's also a similar statement about Mom deciding how much comes out of the bottle, not the baby. At the time I didn't think much of it. Now when I think about those statements, it makes it sound like a power struggle between a parent and a baby. An infant does not have an agenda. He or she is not trying to manipulate the parents. That comes later. :-)

I was talking to a friend whose baby is due in 2 months. I told her that what I had truly learned in the past 6 months is that no one technique works for every baby and that what works for my baby one day may not work for him the next. I also told her that it is easier for me to adapt to my son than for him to adapt to me. And that part is tough because he doesn't nap well. And I've left him to cry, thinking I would try that idea that Mom decides when the nap ends. Whatever. I don't want my son sleeping from exhaustion due to screaming his head off for an hour or more. That's not Baby Kind.

The irony here is that I am very much a control freak. And this book is too controlling for me. It's too much, and I think it expects too much out of an innocent, helpless baby who has no agenda or the ability to manipulate. And guess what? He's a really happy baby, laughing and talking and still sleeping 11 hours at night. I hope every night that it lasts, but I imagine that one night soon, he might wake up. And I'll go to him because I'll know he needs me.

All of this said, I only have the one child. A routine and schedule is more than likely more necessary if you have more than one child. So I can see why friends recommended it. But to expect this rigid routine from a baby whose nervous system is still maturing is just expecting too much. Let your baby be a baby, and enjoy him or her through every stage, no matter how trying.

Bottom line...this book expects too much of a baby. There is a lesser-known book called N.A.P.S. that got me through a trying period of short naps, and like I said earlier, The Happiest Baby on the Block got me through the early weeks due to the swaddling. I also really love the theory that Karp promotes of the 1st 3 months of life basically being the 4th trimester. I think that's what he calls it anyway.

So you see, 2 books helped me along the way,and I'm sure I'll read more as the need arises. Just be realistic if you buy this book and expect your baby to be a baby, not a miniature adult.

I am four months pregnant and have read this book cover to cover. I am very impressed with the "Babywise" explanations and advice. Obviously I don't know how the principles expressed in this book will work once put to the test because I haven't had my baby yet. However, I found this book to be invaluable because it gave me somewhere to start. Now, I have a plan for how to manage the early weeks and months of my new baby. It seems like a well-balanced plan to me (kind of middle of the road between some of the other theories). You can use it as a foundation and then deviate as necessary to suit your needs and preferences. I highly recommend this book.

This book was quite helpful. I think I bought it too late, as my child was already a month old or so. I would recommend starting to read it when one is pregnant with the first child. It's not a Bible for baby raising but has good suggestions. My child has pretty much slept through the night since he was 2 months old (is now over 4 months old).
A good baby shower gift, too. I would recommend it for any new mom.

When I became pregnant I was more nervous about what to do when my little girl arrived than I was about the pregnancy. My sister and best friend both recommended this book to me. I followed its guidelines and by 3 weeks my daughter was only waking up once during the night and by 11 1/2 weeks she was sleeping all night. Furthermore, it was such a comfort to know how often to feed her and when to expect growth spurts.

I do not typically review items I have purchased, but I feel compelled to share my experiences with Babywise. This book was recommended to me by friends when I was expecting my son (now 11 1/2 months). We found it to be extremely helpful and a lifesaver as we were muddling through parenthood for the first time. As other reviewers have stated, the principles in the book really are based on common sense and learning to decipher the cues your baby is giving you. It certainly doesn't create fanatical, controlling parents who are determined to micro-manage their babies. It's about developing your little ones into happy, independent, loving chldren.

Many Babywise parents talk about how their babies slept through the night very early (ours was 7 weeks old), but it's about so much more. It's about teaching your child to be flexible, caring, respectful, and a part of the family. Our son couldn't be nurtured or loved more, but he also knows the behavioral limits that are acceptable. As far as failure to thrive, that is absolutely ridiculous. Our son was in the 90th percentile for weight and height until his nine month check-up where he was still in the 74th percentile. Hardly failure to thrive! He is such a happy baby and hasn't had more than a minor cold this past year. Even teething has been a breeze! Everywhere we go people comment on how lucky we are to have such a healthy and happy baby.

Just like any parenting book, you need to read the principles and adjust them to fit your philosophies and your comfort level. Setting a schedule for our son was the best thing we could have done for him....it certainly wasn't rigid and uncaring. In fact, the schedule has allowed us to be even more flexible than we could have been otherwise. Because he has the sense of security to know his needs are being met, he adjusts easily to changes in our routine and he adjusted very easily to daycare after I went back to work.

I couldn't recommend Babywise any higher. I have also used Babywise II and am about to move on to Toddlerwise. Just use common sense, love your baby, and relax!!