a Holistic Sleep Coach, Chiropractor and Mother
I am back from maternity leave now and available for 1:1 support, if you would like to know more about me, then tuck into the story below.
I live in the mighty Manawatu of New Zealand with my Husband, son and dog.
I am a Chiropractor who has been working with pregnancy, postpartum recovery and babies for the last decade. Supporting, educating and empowering parents and families is my jam.
I became a Mother in 2019 and I will be honest, sleep became an OBSESSION due to my desperation to get more of it.
Everyone asked about sleep, “is he sleeping through yet?”
I felt an insurmountable amount of pressure to “get my son sleeping well”, yet I was failing in achieving that and I was at an all-time low. I felt like a failure as a parent, I felt like I was failing my son, and I felt like I was unworthy to be his parent.
When my son was 6 months old I hit a wall.
I needed sleep. I didn’t want to sleep train, but when I looked at support options, it seemed they were limited. My available options were “sleep train” or “tough it out”. I had NOTHING left in my tank.
We sleep trained.
It filled a space in time, and likely (if I am completely honest) saved my sanity. However, after over a year of sleep training on repeat because every tooth, every sickness, every new word or new motor skill sleep “regressed”. Finally, I gave up, I threw the “sleep training rules” out the window, I felt like a total failure (there is a trend with that), but I couldn’t sleep train anymore. I followed my instincts for what my son needed and leaned into responding to him overnight, and blow me down,
Suddenly our family’s sleep transformed for the better. He now felt safe in sleep, and his sleep improved dramatically, and I wondered….
I needed to know more about sleep, and WHY throwing the “sleep rules” out the window created positive change with sleep for our family. But my drive wasn’t just for my family, it was for those sleep-deprived parents I see in practice and the parents I speak to on social media as well. Previously in practice, I had recommended people sleep train, because what other options were there?
The entire time I sleep trained, and recommended it to parents, I struggled with the concept that sleep training methods went against everything I knew about brain development and attachment in children. But what other choice was there? Parents need sleep right?
I then had a flurry of families come to see me in practice who had all worked with sleep trainers “unsuccessfully” and were beside themselves. Who was going to help them? These families deserve support too!
I went into research mode and found two accreditations on sleep that changed the game….
I became a Possums NDC accredited practitioner which means I am qualified in the most up-to-date research we have on settling, feeding, cry-fuss behaviour and sleep.
I am also accredited through the Holistic Sleep Program which is the only university-level sleep accreditation in the world. Fun fact, did you know that the infant sleep industry is completely unregulated, and there is a LARGE variation in the quality of education from one infant sleep accreditation to the next. So naturally, I went straight to the most reliable, evidence-based and up-to-date options I could.
A combination of the Possum’s accreditation and the Holistic Sleep Progam, plus my chiropractic background means I am well equipped to be assessing and supporting families through holistic sleep solutions WITHOUT using any sleep training techniques or strategies.
It is not only baby sleep that I assess, but parent sleep too. Sleep is a dyad between parents and baby(s). It is important to assess it from a holistic and responsive perspective.
My approach is realistic based on normal infant biology and the aim isn’t always to get a baby sleeping through, the aim is to balance sleep-wake homeostasis and circadian rhythm to support a child to sleep as well as they can, based on what is developmentally appropriate while still ensuring the parents feel rested enough to be able to parent.
We cannot “make” a baby sleep. Sleep is under biological control, not conscious control. However, we can create an environment that facilitates and optimises sleep.
My focus is to educate parents and empower them in understanding how sleep works so they can navigate sleep in a way that is best for their little one and their family. I want to REMOVE sleep anxiety from parenting life. Parents have enough on their plate, we don’t need sleep anxiety thrown into the mix as well!
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BSci (chiropractic)
Holistic Sleep Coaching Program
NDC Possums Accreditation (Note that the Possums institute closed down in 2023)
I host infant sleep workshops for antenatal groups at all ages and stages, get in contact if your antenatal group would like a chat
Watch this space is all I will say *wink (not a creepy wink, like a cool wink).
I have been supporting with families for sleep since 2021. The clinical knowledge I have gathered in over a decade of working with families as a Chiropractor adds to my expertise and ability to problem solve, pivot and assess and refer appropriately for red flags.
Empathy, support, care & empowerment are 4 words I base my practice around. Listening and creating space for families is needed and my intention that all of the families I work with walk away with strategies for NOW, but also tools for the future moving forward.
If you have any other questions, do not hesitate to contact me via the contact form on the contact page
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I am your gal, I don't offer any sleep training strategies or techniques, which means I don't use any cry it out methods or strategies that have forced or timed parental withdrawal of support.