Should You Let Your Child Cry It Out?

Recommend (8) Comments (1)

One argument against cry-it-out is often that it’s unnatural and a long time ago in cave days, our babies would be eaten by wolves if we allowed them to cry. I cannot argue with that, but times have changed and so will parenting methods. We also used to have an “it takes a village” mentality and would have many family members at our disposal to help care for our babies. If mom needed a nap, she would get a nap. Nowadays we are working moms or moms without the family structure that allows this. It is simply unrealistic to believe that all parents will be able to continually awaken numerous times per night for months on-end simply to avoid a few potential tears, depending on the severity of the child’s sleep problems. Some moms need to be alert and energetic for other children and some moms slip into depression from sleep deprivation and others will not be able to function at work with too little sleep.

There are plenty of unique situations as to why it might be in the best interest of the family to use the cry-it-out method, but it won’t be necessary or the best method for everyone. Those with “easier” babies probably would not ever understand why someone might use the method, but every parent has their own situation and breaking point and every baby reacts differently to being sleep deprived himself (some will be a little fussy and some will be a downright terror), which might influence a direction a parent will take. No parent plans to do cry-it-out and yes, it is difficult, but it doesn’t mean it can’t be an effective method for your family.