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Label Me Merrit

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Recent Posts

How to Safely Co-Sleep
5 Minimalist Newborn Essentials for First Time Moms
Natural Birth Tips for First Time Moms
Lovevery Play Kits Review: Worth It? • My Honest Thoughts After a Year
5 Steps to Pick the Perfect Toddler Lovey

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Latest News · Tips · & Tricks

Let's talk sleep training and mom guilt/mom shamin

Let's talk sleep training and mom guilt/mom shaming. Particularly in the gentle parenting community.⁠
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Within the short time that I've really been in the gentle sleep training space here on Instagram, I have found that there is a heavy dose of shame that is placed on any parent who chooses to sleep train their little.⁠
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Sleep training is used as a dirty word, as well as synonymously with cry it out methods. There is no room for any amount of separation during bedtime routines, and those that use it are seen as uncaring, uneducated and selfish.⁠
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That's why I felt it was so important to create Gentle Sleep for Littles. I wanted to create a sleep program that helps parents build the gentlest possible sleep training plan, customized to fit their family and their child.⁠
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I work with parents who understand the importance of Gentle Parenting, but I also support and guide them if they choose to include separation in their sleep plan.⁠
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I will be the first to admit, before having kids, and before my daughter's sleep problems, I would adamantly say I would never use separation in sleep training.⁠
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But then I did my research, and learned how to implement it in a way that was as gentle as possible, while also getting our family the sleep we all desperately needed.⁠
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And I am so happy to say that we are so much happier as a result. We are now over a year out from our sleep training experience, and Stella is still sleeping full 11 hour nights. Our bond is still extremely close, and she still shows all the signs of developing a healthy and secure attachment style.⁠
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If you're struggling with your little one's sleep, but you're guilting yourself out of sleep training, I urge you to send me a DM. You deserve rest. Your little one deserves rest and a rested mama. You are not a failure for looking into sleep training. Let me help 💕

One of the core principles of Gentle Parenting is

One of the core principles of Gentle Parenting is respect. Respecting your child as a whole individual. And with that comes respecting their right to bodily autonomy.⁠
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As their parents, we are responsible for teaching and protecting their bodily autonomy while they are still learning to do so.⁠
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There are a few things you can do in your everyday life to help your child grow with a strong sense of self, and ownership of their body.⁠
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👉🏼 Using correct terminology for all body parts⁠
👉🏼 When they say stop, listen right away⁠
👉🏼 Ask their permission to touch/move their body⁠
👉🏼 No forced physical contact⁠
👉🏼 Advocate for their bodily autonomy until they can themselves⁠
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By prioritizing these things, you will help build your child's confidence, as well as give them the tools they need to protect their body. Even though their bodies are still small, they still deserve the right and dignity to decide how it is treated🤗

Hey friends! There have been a few new faces joini

Hey friends! There have been a few new faces joining us around here lately, so I wanted to take this opportunity to show my face and share a little about myself so we can get to know each other!⁠
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So hi, I'm Merrit 👋🏼 first time mom to my almost 2 year old daughter, Stella Noel. Married to my best friend @milesroesner for just over 4 years now, though we've been happily together for 11(!). Our little munchkin @dakotapom completes our little family, though we hope to add more babies in the future.⁠
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I have always felt that motherhood was my calling in life, and nothing has brought me greater joy, and opportunity for growth. I am passionate about gentle and attachment parenting, and love to learn, grow and share on those topics!⁠
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I also recently launched a gentle sleep training course and coaching program, Gentle Sleep for Littles! We hit a huge bump in the road with my daughter's sleep at 6 months, and avoided sleep training like the plague because nothing fit with our parenting style.⁠
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So after 2 sleepless months and lots of research, I came up with my own gentle sleep training method! I'm now thrilled to be able to help other exhausted mamas gets the sleep they need, while still prioritizing their child's emotional health and development.⁠
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Now I'd love to hear a little about you! Whether your a new follower, or you've been around for years, leave me a comment sharing a bit about yourself, and what you'd like to see from me so I can serve you best!

Self soothing and self settling are terms that are

Self soothing and self settling are terms that are frequently used interchangeably in the baby sleep world. Makes sense, they seem similar enough right?⁠
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Well they actually mean two completely different things, and in fact self soothing is a harmful myth that isn't actually possible for your baby to achieve, so it's important to know and understand the difference.⁠
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I shared my completely thoughts on self soothing and why it is such a harmful idea a few posts back if you'd like to learn more. Today I wanted to talk about self settling!⁠
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As opposed to self soothing, self settling is a completely natural skill that babies are truly capable of learning and mastering. Self settling is simply the skill of moving from an awake and relaxed state, into a state of sleep, and doing so independently.⁠
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Basically, it's falling asleep.⁠
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Teaching a baby to self settle is an important step in gentle sleep training, as it enables baby to fall asleep independently, which is the goal.⁠
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In Gentle Sleep for Littles, I personally walk you through helping your little one learn and develop their self settling skills. I provide proven tools and personalized support through your gentle sleep training journey.⁠

Ready to chat? DM me SLEEP so we can talk about more about helping your little learn to self settle!

Bed sharing was never part of my parenting plan. I

Bed sharing was never part of my parenting plan. I had nothing really against it, but I knew it just wasn't something I had a desire to pursue. I was passionate about room sharing, and loved having my daughter close by for the first 14 months of her life, and I was happy in that decision.⁠
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But as many of you know, we ran into a bit of a sleep snag around 6 months, when we really had to toss all our previous thoughts out the window when it came to our daughter's sleep.⁠
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So when my husband and I began to become so sleep deprived that we were afraid of accidentally fall asleep with our daughter one night, I made it a point to research safe bed sharing practices before it got to that point.⁠
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I was one of the 60-75% of moms who ended up bed sharing with my baby, even with no previous desire or plan to. That is why I think it is so important that every mom is educated on the safe way to do so.⁠
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So I wanted to share the safety guidelines and some of the products that I used when I bed shared with my daughter. I hope this can help spread safety information to all the mamas out there struggling with keeping their eyes open while trying to rock baby back to sleep night after night!⁠
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Head to my YouTube channel to watch the video, link in bio.

Nursing is so much more than just feeding your bab

Nursing is so much more than just feeding your baby, and I think it's important that we talk about that.

Your little will nurse for so many reasons, all of which are just as valid as hunger! There are so many things nursing can provide for your baby beyond a full belly.

🤱🏻Nursing is the easiest way for your baby to seek comfort and connect with you. Your feel, smell and presence is all they've known and is the feeling of home for them.

🤱🏼 Nursing is a great pain relief, as it releases Oxytocin. So any minor pain or discomfort (sore gums, tummy troubles, etc) can be eased by nursing.

🤱🏽Breastmilk also contains melatonin and other components that help your baby fall asleep.

🤱🏾Breastmilk transfers necessary nutrients and personalized antibodies to your baby if they are fighting off sickness.

🤱🏿Babies just have a natural instinct to suck, and so the breast is an obvious outlet for that urge.

🤱🏻Baby may also seek to nurse if they are overstimulated. Again Mom is their safe place to relax, decompress and process their experiences in this big world.

This isn't even an all inclusive list, there are many more reasons your baby may want to nurse.

But the point I want to make is to never let anyone tell you not to nurse your baby because for any reason. Especially because they believe "your baby isn't hungry"

So often Moms are shamed for nursing their baby “too much” or “too often”. So I wanted to share some reasons for those mamas to feel confident and proud of their decision to listen to their instincts and their babies💕

*I also want to make a point that just because breastfeeding is a great way to provide these benefits to your baby, it is not the only way. This point is in no way meant to shame mamas who cannot or have chosen not to breastfeed, only to support those who do*

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