Sleep training is bad for mental health AIBU?

[Katbum]

I’m starting to think you can trace the emergence of sleep training as a widespread practice in the 90s through the emergence and rise in young adult mental health crises from the 2010s or so on. AIBU? Is there longitudinal research on this?

I know sending babies to nursery at a very young age is an essential for a lot of people but I wonder what effect that may have on future mental wellbeing?

Just a thought not any kind of accusation.

I can’t imagine that most babies’ needs are best met by not getting a decent block of sleep overnight and being cared for by exhausted parents whose sleep is being broken.

I know sending babies to nursery at a very young age is an essential for a lot of people but I wonder what effect that may have on future mental wellbeing?

Im not sure about big nurseries for under twos. I think home/family type settings with one main caregiver are better - the government really should encourage childminding as its also possible to provide higher quality care with better ratio via childminder than it is via nursery with high premises costs.

Sorry op, but I'm laughing at the idea that my mother, 4th of 8 born in the 50s, living in a 2 bed house, was rocked to sleep in her parents arms for hours.

I think it largely depends on the type of sleep training. Leaving your baby to cry hysterically? Probably not the best for their development. My baby was a pretty good sleeper (after about 6 months old) feed her, put her down and she'd go straight to sleep. But sometimes she would cry, not a hysterical cry but more whinging - I figured out very quickly that if I went in and fussed about her she would just get more wound up and upset. If I left her for not even a minute, she'd quickly roll over and go straight to sleep. I really don't see how this kind of "sleep training" would damage her tbh. It was very obvious to me the difference between her whinging for 30 seconds and bawling her eyes out inconsolably (in which case obviously I would go comfort her)

Gosh OP, back in the 70s my mum was very much of the view that you should put babies in their cot, close the door and leave them until morning. She got this from her own mum, who had done the same thing in the 1940s (lots of kids, so no time to stand around rocking the current baby to sleep). No mental health problems amongst me and my siblings, or my mum and her many sibs.

I did the whole attachment parenting, cosleeping malarky and I do have kids with mental health problems. I have many theories as to why this might be, but sleep training definitely isn't one of them!

Fwiw I contact napped for the first 4 months of DDd life but it was much more for me than her, I loved having an excuse to cuddle her and sit on the sofa and not do housework!!

Sleep training did not "emerge" in the 1990s. It has been used by exhausted parents since time immemorial.

Lol. This is brilliant defensive work pps.

OP is clearly on the wind up.

Agree with @Myotheripodisayoto

Lack of sleep is causing far more issues. I would say an exhausted parent is far less effective than a fully rested parent. The focus should be on everyone sleeping through.

It seems you have to have them in with you for 6 months & not wean until 6 months. So it's unlikely anyone will sleep solidly.