If you or your child is having difficulty sleeping it can have a serious impact on your daily lives. If you're tried everything you can such as tablets or visiting the doctor, it may be time to call a sleep consultant.
Over the past few weeks we've been looking at the best certified infant, child, teenager and adult sleep consultants from around New Zealand, whom offer face-to-face and virtual consultations to help you sleep better, with very promising results.
While no consultant has a secret formula for success, they can help you with things such as healthy sleeping habits, schedule creation, environment layout and more.
There's plenty of skeptics out there as to whether this type of consultation works or not, but these are the highest rated consultants online with many positive reviews from satisfied clients.
Best Sleep Consultants In New Zealand
1. Just Love Sleep
Cherie Richards is a Certified Infant and Child Sleep Consultant who has helped countless families finally find precious hours of sleep.
As a mother of 4 children, she understands the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation that both parents and children fall victim to. Richards offers a wide range of services that cater to both newborns and toddlers up to the age of 4.
This includes advice on how to set up healthy sleep habits, curating an everyday schedule and minimising the risk of middle-of-the-night wakeups. For older toddlers, she provides frameworks to help adapt to their own room.
For first time parents struggling with a newborn, Richard has various settling techniques available. With Just Love Sleep, parents and children both benefit due to the individualised plans available.
Customer Review
The Gavin family left this glowing review:
“I honestly cannot recommend Cherie’s service enough! We had a toddler who wouldn’t sleep in his own bed and a 4 month old waking 5-6 times a night.
Cherie worked with us to create a tailored sleep plan for each child and was so understanding and supportive throughout the entire process.
At the end of our program our toddler was sleeping all night in his own bed and our baby girl only waking once a night for a feed. It’s amazing how much better some extra sleep can make you feel!”
Address: Auckland Wide
Phone: 021 422 820
Services: Sleep routines, phone consultations, in-home visits, follow-ups
2. Baby Sleep Consultant
All consultants at Baby Sleep Consultant received training and qualifications from Baby Sleep Consultant Ltd. This business has been featured in big-name papers like The New Zealand Herald, Woman’s Day and Sunday Star Times.
Baby Sleep Consultant works with newborns and toddlers to the age of 4. There are both in-home and phone consultations available to suit every lifestyle and budget.
The in-home services allow sleep experts to instruct parents on evidence-based techniques to help settle babies and deal with tantrums.
Regardless of which option is chosen, a tailor-made plan that takes into consideration the diet, environment, sleep aids and child’s personality will be curated.
Sleep experts offer counsel on how to grow accustomed to newborn schedules and adjust to a toddler’s terrible twos period.
Customer Review
Beth left this heartfelt review:
“Before we got help from Jo, our 15 month old was waking 2-3 times a night and often coming into our bed after midnight as we were just too tired to handle anymore wake ups.
It was exhausting, to say the least! I knew it needed to change, but I had no idea where to begin. We saw a positive change within a few days of starting to work with Jo.
We got Ethan back in his bed overnight, and taught him to self-settle. I feel like the best part was the support Jo gave me; the phone calls checking in as I made the changes helped me to stay consistent and knowing I could ask questions in the morning was very reassuring.
Ethan thrived on his new sleep plan, and I had my happy, bubbly baby back! Jo was amazing – always positive and never letting me doubt myself or the decisions we made together! Thanks Jo!”
Address: Auckland Wide
Phone: 021 724 362
Services: Tailor-made sleep plans, phone consultations, in-home visits
3. Sleep Works
Tamara Bruce holds an international certification from The International Institute for Complementary Therapists and is a certified sleep consultant.
Her experience with children dates back to her nanny days when she was in her teens and in 2016, she founded Sleep Works.
Bruce’s own experience with having a child who had a silent reflux fueled her passion to help families dealing with sleep deprivation.
There are a variety of packages available that suit both budget-conscious parents and those who prefer hands-on instructions with home care visits.
With the in-home services Bruce teaches parents and guardians science-backed strategies to lure newborns and toddlers into a deep sleep. Bruce can curate sleep schedules that accommodate both the needs of the child and the guardians.
Customer Review
This is a glowing review from Danielle Wells:
“No question went unanswered. Tam went truly above and beyond for our family.”
Address: 584 Matangi Road, Hamilton 3284
Phone: 020 4143 0271
Services: Care plans, calls, home visits, group consultations
4. Serene Sleep
Annette Faamusili has 20 years of experiencing collaborating with parents and guardians, as well as their little ones. She comes from a multi-industry background with experience in mental health, child development and nutrition.
Her services are ideal for both infants and toddlers. Faamusili has several packages such as home consultations, video calls and phone packages.
Home consultations are best suited for children with detrimental sleeping habits and allow parents to learn tried-and-tested techniques.
She will not only offer advice on curating healthy sleep habits but will evaluate the child’s surroundings to weed out any distractions. Other parents and those situated overseas can opt for a video call package.
The Serene Sleep website allow lists many recommended products that have proven to help babies and toddlers gain a good night’s sleep.
Customer Review
Here is a testimonial from Katherine:
"I can’t recommend Annette enough. In just two weeks we’ve gone from our baby waking every hour at night to sleeping through from 7pm to 6am. Annette’s method is gentle, simple and so effective. We’ve been blown away by the transformation and level of support."
Address: Auckland
Phone: 021 0811 8990
Services: Phone consultations, video calls, home visits, plans
5. Little Sleep Coach
Deb Jansen is an Internationally Certified Baby Sleep Consultant and holds several other qualifications like a nanny certificate.
Additionally, she is a registered nurse who has worked in both New Zealand and abroad as a maternity nanny.
Jansen places a large emphasis on developing an individualised care plan for every client that is dependent on a holistic evaluation.
Specifically, Jansen examines the child’s physical development, personality, nutrition, as well as parenting disciplines. There are services available for newborns and toddlers up to the age of 5.
Her home consultations are ideal for new parents struggling with newborns. Phone and email consultations are recommended for those outside of Auckland and more budget-conscious.
Group talks can be arranged with family and friends to receive common information pertaining to healthy sleep habits.
Customer Review
Lauren Bell left this glowing review:
“Absolutely recommend! We now have a baby who can self settle…feels like a miracle.”
Address: Christchurch
Phone: 021 122 2076
Services: Email packages, video calls, phone consultations, plans
6. Cherished Sleep
Kim Corley is a Certified Sleep Sense Consultant whose difficult experiences with her own 2 children led her to establish Cherished Sleep.
Corley is unique as she is one of the few consultants who work with both newborns, toddlers and older children up the 10 years of age.
Her teachings involve the Sleep Sense™ Method, which has helped thousands of babies and children sleep seamlessly through the night.
With the Sleep Sense™ Method, she works to curate plans that cater to different children and various parenting styles. Corley has several packages available that include phone consultations and at-home visits.
Her in-home care consists of her teaching effective techniques and assessing sleeping conditions to bring about change. She can also host seminars where friends and family can all learn.
Customer Review
A grateful mother left this testimonial:
“Kim you’ve changed our lives! It’s not just babies who need sleep support and our family will be forever grateful for your practical advice, ongoing support and cheerleading.
We’ve got our evenings back and I’ll never forget who did that for us. The very best money we’ve ever spent by far! I’m now one of those smug people who takes normal bedtimes for granted.”
Address: Nationwide
Phone: 027 566 6035
Services: Phone consultations, at-home visits, customised care plan
7. Little Nappers
Kate McKay is a Certified Infant and Child Sleep Consultant who has experience working as a Registered Anesthetic Technician.
Her own experience with parenting led her to establish Little Nappers who help aid parents, guardians and children who suffer from sleep deprivation and its disastrous effects.
Her philosophy centers around creating a customised care plan that takes into consideration the child’s personality and parents’ parenting style.
In-home consultations are recommended for babies 16 weeks and over, making it ideal for starter parents or just children who have extreme battles with sleep. Phone and email services are recommended for those situated around the globe.
Phone and email packages cater to general concerns and are great for babies and children who have minimal to moderate sleep problems.
Customer Review
Lauren Petersen left this glowing review:
“Tear free options that worked!”
Address: Ashburton, Canterbury
Phone: 027 386 4923
Services: In-home services, email consultations, phone consultations, plans
Why hire a sleep consultant?
Having a newborn or toddler that refuses to sleep or has trouble getting to sleep can affect not only the child ina bad way but also the parents from all having a lack of sleep.
Leaving this problem unattended to can also have severe consequences for the child long term in terms of energy levels and overall well being.
Sometimes a parent can sort this issue out themselves but in the event that you can't or are finding it too difficult we highly suggest trying out one of the sleep consultants listed above.
These companies have a lot of experience in dealing with this specific issue and they know how to help you and your child get on track when it comes to healthy sleeping habits and patterns.
The majority of these businesses are parents themselves so they are speaking from personal experience and they care for their clients and their children.
Give one of them a go and you will not be disappointed.
How much do sleep consultants cost?
Usually you'll pay an hourly fee for a sleep consultants time. Depending on your requirements they may require few more sessions, or you may only need one session.
Prices usually range from around $75 per hour up to $300 per hour depending on the consultants background and experience. You don't always get what you pay for, so don't overlook a consultant who is offering services at a lower price.
Sleeping is very important and finding a solution to your own problem, or your child's sleeping issues can often appear expensive, but is definitely worth it, if it can be resolved.
How to choose the best sleep consultant?
When hiring a sleep consultant you should ensure you do some research and be careful who you trust. There are no regulations in New Zealand on sleep consultants, and while some claim to be certified, it's not that easy to check that certification, like you might be able to do with an Immigration Advisor for example.
You'll want to reach out to a few different consultants and explain your situation. Everyone will have a similar issue but chances are, your situation is a little bit different. You'll want to see what their response is.
Some will likely say, book a session and we can discuss, however I'd say someone who gives you some free or encouraging comments and guidance is a far better option.
Most consultants who value their clients will happily provide some guidance for free, to encourage them to signup to a paid session.
Get a few quotes and compare them. Higher price doesn't always mean better outcomes, and lower price doesn't mean less value for money. All consultants need to start somewhere, and someone may be starting out hence their lower price, vs someone who's been in this industry for 15+ years.
Now that you know who the best sleep consultants are for your child give one of them a call and get your child (and you) back to enjoying a good night's rest.
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