What to expect when you arrive at the sleep clinic
Fortunately, even the most extreme cases of bedtime resistance can be addressed with behavioral techniques that can lead to improvement in a few weeks with consistent follow through. When you arrive for your initial consultation with the sleep team, the team will spend time evaluating your child’s medical history, developmental history, family history (including medical history, psychological history, parenting skills, and limit-setting abilities), and your child’s behavioral history. A detailed history of your child’s sleep behaviors will also be discussed. Your child will also likely have a brief physical examination.
Treatment
Treatment for limit-setting sleep disorders includes the development of good sleep habits including establishing a set bedtime, a consistent sleep/wake schedule, and a consistent bedtime routine. Daytime habits including napping, types of physical activities, and foods consumed will be reviewed to ensure your child is developing good sleep hygiene practices. Our sleep psychologist will work with your family one-on-one to develop a personally tailored sleep behavior medicine program to fit your family’s needs. This intervention may include multiple behavioral strategies including the use of positive reinforcement, consistent parental response, clear limit-setting, the development of independent sleep skills, graduated extinction, bedtime fading, the door closing procedure, and the bedtime-passcard. Following the initial consultation and treatment session, your family will be asked to complete a 2-week sleep log so that our providers will have detailed information about how the changes you are making are working. The frequency and duration of follow-up depends on each families needs, but you can expect to return in approximately 2 weeks following your initial visit.