Hello and welcome to Lights Out! Before having my son I was overjoyed to be a new mum and I read all the books I could get my hands on when it came to what to expect regarding pregnancy, breastfeeding, sleep. At the end of my information overload, I thought to myself 'Okay I've got this!' In addition, having vast experience in the field, an Early Years Educator by profession, & only ever working with children I thought it was something I would easily be able to master. Boy was I wrong. As he grew my well-rested newborn became a difficult sleeper and combined with a reflux diagnosis things took a turn drastically when he was 3 months old and I was unfortunately diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder - Multiple Sclerosis.

Sleep was now more than ever something I needed to get right as my own sleep in regards to MS is a vital fundamental to my everyday wellbeing. I was mentally and physically exhausted and although I knew I couldn't change much in regard to my situation at the time, the one thing I was determined to change was my son's sleep. Although I had been given a book by a friend to help with 'sleep training' children written by a well-known author, I found the strategies and advice to be very strict, rigid, and a cookie-cutter type view without taking into account that each child is different with a range of needs.