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CNN Live Today

Helping Children Sleep

Aired December 12, 2002 - 10:18   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: It's a dream that parents around the world share, having a baby that will sleep through the night. But when those parents wake up to the reality of sleepless nights and cranky tots during the day, some go off in search of help.
We are paging our medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta for some tips.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Every parent knows this sound -- a baby crying. Sometimes at 2:00 a.m., sometimes every hour for the whole night. Like Andy and Melanie Berlin's son, Benjamin.

MELANIE BERLIN, MOTHER: I was completely exhausted, and it was very hard to care for him. I was getting two or three hours of sleep a night.

GUPTA: They sought advice from sleep counselor Kim West, who told them to sit with their baby when he cried at night, but not pick him up.

BERLIN: The first night he cried for two and a half hours, and I just sat in the chair and pretended I was asleep, and then the second night, it was maybe an hour, and then the third night it went down to 30 minutes, and then after that, he really didn't wake up.

KIM WEST, CHILD SLEEP COUNSELOR: Well, I work with the parents to come up with a flexible routine and learn how to read the child's sleepy cues, so that we can get them to bed at the right time, and then allow a gentle approach where the parent is present and can be supportive and nurturing to help them to finally learn to put themselves to sleep.

GUPTA: Other points she makes, despite what you might think, the babies who sleep best at night are the ones who take adequate naps during the day.

Put your baby to bed while she is still awake so she does not become dependent on falling asleep in your arms. Stuffed animals can be a great source of comfort, although many experts say they are not safe to sleep with until the baby is at least 1-year-old.

Music can be very soothing to children. Use a night light, especially when they grow old enough to imagine monsters in the dark.

Develop a good bedtime routine.

WEST: Well, a good bedtime routine for, let's say, a 2-year-old would be about maybe 20 minutes long, approximately. And they would have, you know, perhaps a bath and brush their teeth, and change into their pajamas and read one or two books and then, perhaps, you know some kisses or prayers or a gentle, loving routine, and then put them to bed with further reassurances, and then the parent leaves the room.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: And every child is a little different, no question about it, Leon. So it can take some pretty creative approaches to get your child to sleep. My mom used to actually drive me around the block. Of course, with gas prices, you can't really do that any more.

There are some things to watch out for. If your child is over six months of age, actually frequent awakening through the night, doesn't nap during the day, those can all be signs that a sleep counselor may be a benefit. There are also physical problems, sleep apnea, where your child is actually snoring a lot, digestive problems. Obviously, see a doctor about those things.

HARRIS: Well, how do you know when it is time to see a doctor?

GUPTA: Well, you know, that is tough, because I was reading these descriptions. A lot kids meet the criteria, but over six months. First six months, really, you don't really need to see a sleep counselor during that.

HARRIS: OK.

GUPTA: Frequent night awakenings, and they don't nap well during the day. Kids should be able to nap well during the day. If that is not happening, those might be some clues.

HARRIS: OK. OK. This has raised a couple of questions for me. I have got to talk to you about. I'll be among those who have questions for you when we come back, because we are going to talk about this and continue the discussion next hour, and take your questions at home as well. If you have any for Dr. Gupta, go to cnn.com and scroll down to his picture, and then point and click, and then send in your question. Also, he is going to be joined by the sleep lady -- all right, this is an expert who has been profiled in the piece that Kim West is going to put together for us, and she is going to join Dr. Gupta and me, hopefully, that you send in. So make sure you send them in to us.

All right. See you in a bit, Sanjay.

GUPTA: All right. Talk to you later.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired December 12, 2002 - 10:18   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: It's a dream that parents around the world share, having a baby that will sleep through the night. But when those parents wake up to the reality of sleepless nights and cranky tots during the day, some go off in search of help.
We are paging our medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta for some tips.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Every parent knows this sound -- a baby crying. Sometimes at 2:00 a.m., sometimes every hour for the whole night. Like Andy and Melanie Berlin's son, Benjamin.

MELANIE BERLIN, MOTHER: I was completely exhausted, and it was very hard to care for him. I was getting two or three hours of sleep a night.

GUPTA: They sought advice from sleep counselor Kim West, who told them to sit with their baby when he cried at night, but not pick him up.

BERLIN: The first night he cried for two and a half hours, and I just sat in the chair and pretended I was asleep, and then the second night, it was maybe an hour, and then the third night it went down to 30 minutes, and then after that, he really didn't wake up.

KIM WEST, CHILD SLEEP COUNSELOR: Well, I work with the parents to come up with a flexible routine and learn how to read the child's sleepy cues, so that we can get them to bed at the right time, and then allow a gentle approach where the parent is present and can be supportive and nurturing to help them to finally learn to put themselves to sleep.

GUPTA: Other points she makes, despite what you might think, the babies who sleep best at night are the ones who take adequate naps during the day.

Put your baby to bed while she is still awake so she does not become dependent on falling asleep in your arms. Stuffed animals can be a great source of comfort, although many experts say they are not safe to sleep with until the baby is at least 1-year-old.

Music can be very soothing to children. Use a night light, especially when they grow old enough to imagine monsters in the dark.

Develop a good bedtime routine.

WEST: Well, a good bedtime routine for, let's say, a 2-year-old would be about maybe 20 minutes long, approximately. And they would have, you know, perhaps a bath and brush their teeth, and change into their pajamas and read one or two books and then, perhaps, you know some kisses or prayers or a gentle, loving routine, and then put them to bed with further reassurances, and then the parent leaves the room.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: And every child is a little different, no question about it, Leon. So it can take some pretty creative approaches to get your child to sleep. My mom used to actually drive me around the block. Of course, with gas prices, you can't really do that any more.

There are some things to watch out for. If your child is over six months of age, actually frequent awakening through the night, doesn't nap during the day, those can all be signs that a sleep counselor may be a benefit. There are also physical problems, sleep apnea, where your child is actually snoring a lot, digestive problems. Obviously, see a doctor about those things.

HARRIS: Well, how do you know when it is time to see a doctor?

GUPTA: Well, you know, that is tough, because I was reading these descriptions. A lot kids meet the criteria, but over six months. First six months, really, you don't really need to see a sleep counselor during that.

HARRIS: OK.

GUPTA: Frequent night awakenings, and they don't nap well during the day. Kids should be able to nap well during the day. If that is not happening, those might be some clues.

HARRIS: OK. OK. This has raised a couple of questions for me. I have got to talk to you about. I'll be among those who have questions for you when we come back, because we are going to talk about this and continue the discussion next hour, and take your questions at home as well. If you have any for Dr. Gupta, go to cnn.com and scroll down to his picture, and then point and click, and then send in your question. Also, he is going to be joined by the sleep lady -- all right, this is an expert who has been profiled in the piece that Kim West is going to put together for us, and she is going to join Dr. Gupta and me, hopefully, that you send in. So make sure you send them in to us.

All right. See you in a bit, Sanjay.

GUPTA: All right. Talk to you later.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com