My goodness, I don’t know a single person who doesn’t love a good night of sleep!! Naturally waking up in the morning, sun glinting through the window, the perfect temperature where you can snuggle back down into the covers and smile about the day that’s about to start.
Seems like a fantasy! Like one of the mornings from “The Truman Show” that makes us all wish for the naive joy he has on the daily.
Reality is a little more like the blare of an alarm turning the dream you just started into a police chase. The unsticking of your eyelids to your eyeballs and getting a clear look at the clock only to realize that after tucking your kid back in bed three times, on top of the dog barking at the moon, and your partner thrashing around like they’re drowning, you got a total of maybe 3 hours of sleep.
And can you call it sleep when you have the mommy/daddy-radar so finely tuned that anything that resembles a footfall in the hallway has you on your feet faster than a superhero launching into full lifesaving mode?
If you could change just one thing in that whole scenario so you could get at least ONE of those amazing mornings a month, what would it be?
We could tranquilize the dog every night… No, no. That won’t work.
We could sleep in separate rooms so the thrashing could commence all on it’s own and I won’t need to find a life preserver to knock my partner out. Hmmmm, that’s an option. Our friends did that for a little while.
But, do I really want that? Our relationship is tenuous enough, and the little foot touches in the night are one moment of connection that would be missed. We could look into a better mattress that doesn’t have so much bounce…
I could co-sleep with our kid. That could work. Do I want that though either? When would that stop? If we did that, would they be able to sleep on their own? When would they be able to do that? How would we make that transition?
Oh, wow, that’s a magical rabbit hole I’m not sure I want to navigate later on only to get a few nights of good sleep now.
Ugh...What can I do??? I just need to sleep….
The Saving Grace of Sleep Consultants
I met Bonnie Dimmick a few years ago when she joined a networking group for perinatal wellness providers. When my son was born, sleep consultants were not so easily found as they are today.
I was excited to learn more about what she was able to provide to families that were struggling with sleep and supporting their little ones. Because it’s not just the sleep that is compromised. It’s the ability to for a parent to maintain emotional stability, joy, and connection to life!
It’s not a misnomer when you’re lacking sleep and people comment that you look like the “walking dead.” Add the doubled list of responsibilities that showed up with the birth of your child, and quality sleep just bumped up a little higher on the “must have” list.
Sleep has had its heyday in the news recently with more and more studies telling us we need 6-8 and sometimes 8-10 hours of sleep every night for brain health and cellular regeneration.
Pfft. Like that’s going to happen with kids!!! (Or a partner who snores, but we’ll save that one for another time!!)
What a Sleep Consultant does…
Talking to Bonnie, she shared that as a child sleep consultant; there are adult ones too, she does a thorough intake with the parents to fully understand the challenges that they face regarding naps, and sleep patterns in the night. She supports your breast or bottle feeding choices, as well as sleep arrangements that work for your family.
From there, she walks you through options that fit your unique situation. She can make herself available the first night, or multiple nights depending on the package that best suits your needs, to support you in the best way possible. She can even come to your home if things are super challenging.
Bonnie is able to consult with baby sleep, and toddler sleep challenges. Sleep isn’t something that just comes for everyone. Sleep can fluctuate depending on physical exertion, stress/anxiety (yes, kids experience stress), nutrition, environment, and other not so easy to identify things like temperature or feelings of safety.
While Bonnie isn’t trained to consult in nutrition, there are a lot of pieces that can be discussed and flushed out or referred out. What she’s looking for are the pieces that convey a feeling of safety, a controlled environment, and ways for parents to respond when their child is struggling to sleep.
Bonnie offers tiered packages for both babies and toddlers/children up to 8 years old. She also has mini-sessions and group sessions available for continued support.
Getting to know Bonnie
It’s been 3 years since Bonnie opened Sleep, Love, and Happiness. Her first daughter was a great baby sleeper, and hit the dreaded sleep regression at three and a half months. Knowing that a lack of sleep is detrimental to her mental health, Bonnie was proactive in getting the support she needed.
She was able to get help from a sleep consultant and did a lot of her own research, which completely changed her life. The sleep her whole family started getting created a new vitality that gave them so much more to approach life from.
The change in the quality of life was enough to set Bonnie on the path of becoming a sleep consultant herself. It’s not just the ability to help a little one sleep, it’s being able to support families to shift their dynamics and ability to relate because they’re getting high quality sleep!
Bon-Bon, as her family calls her, has a passion for breakfast. Which is another reason getting enough sleep is important. Yes, yes, we all know you can eat breakfast foods for dinner, or lunch, or brunch.
The fresh cup of coffee with any sort of breakfast food (she said crepes first, so let’s sink our imagination into that deliciousness) while she checks in with clients to see how their night went is one of the best ways to get the work day on the best foot forward.
When this ideal morning isn’t a reality, she’ll refer to any one of her amazing lists to bring her back into focus. She also uses weekly and monthly goals to stay on track, while keeping the challenge hard enough to sustain personal and business growth.
Going for a run or a spin class keeps her physical body happy enough to support quality sleep! So do the hugs from her daughters. The go-to guilty pleasure that we all indulge in on the occasion for Bonnie is cookies and an episode of The Bachelor/ette!
Her 10-year-old self was aspiring to be a teacher, so it’s no surprise when I asked Bonnie what she’s reading right now, she responded with two books, “Unorthodox” by Deborah Feldman and the “Whole Brain Child” by Daniel Siegel and Tine Payne Bryson.
You can contact Bonnie here on her ‘work with me’ page and read through the check list if you want to set up an evaluation call: https://sleeploveandhappiness.com/work-with-me/
Getting in touch with sleep
There are a lot of sleep consultants in Denver to choose from, and choosing someone who has quality training as well as the ability to listen to your needs is a must for something so very personal. Bonnie has done and continues her training with recognized sleep programs, and is part of two recognized sleep associations.
To visit her website and learn more about her philosophy and schedule a time to get to know her a little more, visit: www.sleeploveandhappiness.com
You can also sign up for her newsletter to get great tips if you have a baby, toddler or young child and want sleep tips to improve sleep or keep their sleep on track. This is a great resource for partners and other care providers (family, nannies, postpartum doulas) that support parents of young children.
Bonnie’s newsletter link: https://sleeploveandhappiness.com/3-secrets/
If you’re a Woman In Business here in Denver, CO I’d love to hear from you and feature you in my next blog. I’m always looking for great entrepreneurs that are willing to share with others what gets them going, fills their cup, and makes them laugh out loud. Fill out this submission form, and I’ll be in touch!
A big shout out to Bonnie for the fun photo shoot and getting to know her a little more!! Thank you to all of the amazing women I’ve met this year. It’s been great doing this part of my blog again!
Here are some great articles that Bonnie has written that you can check out!
Crib climbing: https://sleeploveandhappiness.com/2020/10/20/climbing-out-of-crib/
Ready to drop nap: https://sleeploveandhappiness.com/2020/07/02/drop-the-nap/
5 tips to ditch the bedtime drama and get your kid to go to bed: https://sleeploveandhappiness.com/2020/06/18/get-your-kid-to-go-to-bed-easier/
Cheers,
~Kim
This peek into Kim’s life was brought to you by Emily Kamala. Emily is a freelance writer and life coach who loves to share stories, write blogs, and experience life so fully she has to bring it to life on the page. If you’re interested in reading more of her work, you can visit: ConsciousLivingLLC.com
Kim Morgan has brought her passion for connecting and telling stories through photography to life. Her ability to put you and your family at ease is so palpable you don’t even realize she’s behind the camera getting those precious moments for you to carry with you many years later. She lives in Colorado with her husband, son, and dog, where they enjoy exploring the mountains and laughing at every opportunity. Her website is KWDesignsPhotography.com to see her amazing work and set up your session.