Q&A BabyLove Spokeswomen And Midwife Cath

Meet Cath, Midwife maternal and child health expert, and Spokeswomen for BabyLove. 

Cath Curtin - is a trusted expert in women’s health, pre-pregnancy, antenatal care & education, pregnancy, labour & birth, postnatal care, breastfeeding & parenting. She has delivered over 10,000 babies during her 42-year career.

Trained and fully-qualified as a nurse, midwife and maternal & child health nurse, Cath has an incomparable depth of experience. Thousands of parents have attended her Master Classes on childbirth education, parenting and sleep & settling.

Cath also has a private consulting business, allowing her to work directly with parents over the phone or via FaceTime or Skype. These sessions focus on problem-solving specific challenges being faced by parents with their baby or toddler, such as breastfeeding, sleeping routine, introduction of solids and developmental progress of the baby. She also consults on issues concerning the health of the mother, especially anxiety & postnatal depression, and refers whenever necessary.  Cath works with parents across Australia and internationally.

Her book, The First Six Weeks, was published by Allen & Unwin in 2016 and went into reprint after 4 weeks. This title is now being translated for international markets. Her next book will be published by Allen & Unwin in 2018

Cath is a regular keynote speaker and has a strong social media following on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. She is frequently interviewed in the media.

You can see how WONDERFUL Cath sounds! I have prepared some questions below about sleep, that I know SO many mums constantly ask, in groups and forums and in my own group of friends. 

How do I get my baby to stop waking so early?

A common question.  It all depends on the age and the weight of the baby.  

A toddler usually wakes up at 5-6am and this is very common. You cannot make a baby sleep longer, especially if they have gone to bed at 6-7pm. Putting a toddler to bed later will not make your toddler sleep longer – it will however, often result in a very tired toddler!

What are some “sleep” myths for babies?

Here are some common myths regarding baby’s and sleep.

• Newborn babies cannot self-settle.  They need to be older and need to weigh about 8-9 kgs…that’s a lot of feeding!

• There is no such thing as “4month sleep regression”!!! A four-month old’s sleeping patterns are usually all over the place as Mums tend to sit babies more, put them in walkers and play centres rather than have them do lots of play on the floor.

• Putting the baby to bed later does not mean they will sleep in.

• Feeding the baby to sleep when they are under six months is okay. This will not harm the baby’s sleep habits but rather encourage a sounder sleep.

How do I transition my baby from sleeping in my arms/in my bed/in the swing/etc. to sleeping in their crib?

Newborn babies are best to be fed to sleep up until six months of age. Once they are six months if you continue to rock and cradle in your arms OR keep the baby in a swing the baby will not be able to go to sleep by themselves.  Babies need lots of feeding and lots of play to encourage them to sleep well day and night. To transition a baby that has been constantly sleeping in your arms, in your bed or in a swing, to their cot, is to practice some passive settling. However, I wouldn't attempt this unless the baby is over 8 kg or over six months of age.

What advice can you give to new mums and sleep?

The best advice I can give is for new mums to have a sleep when the baby sleeps, especially during the day.  Babies tend to sleep 3 to 4 hours during the day for the first 2 to 3 weeks, and then wake up and tend to sleep less during the day. So it's best for new mums to have a sleep in those first few weeks the baby is asleep during the day. I also encourage the mums to go to bed before the bath. I encourage the partners to bath the baby around 10 PM at night, then wrap the baby and give them a bottle of either expressed breast milk or formula. If the mum goes to bed before the bath she can get up to 4-5 hours’ sleep.

Can you share any other secret successes with us or tips and tricks for new parents?
It is most important that all babies have lots of time playing on the floor. If you put babies in bouncers, jumpers, swings etc the baby doesn't use up enough energy and therefore doesn't sleep as well. Tummy time is best to start from day one just a few minutes in between breastfeeding. This will really help the baby use up energy and then will suck vigorously at the breast. The key to successful sleeping for newborn babies and toddlers is that they're fed well and they have good weight gain. Then they need to balance with play so they need lots of calories in and lots of energy out.

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