Ep 230: Sleep, Babies, and Sanity: What Parents Need to Know, with Chrissy Lawler, The Peaceful Sleeper

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Sleep is one of the most common—and stressful—concerns for parents, especially in the first year of life.

In this episode of Your Child Is Normal, Dr. Jessica Hochman sits down with therapist, sleep expert, and mom of four Chrissy (The Peaceful Sleeper) to talk about how to approach sleep in a way that actually works for real families.

Chrissy shares a practical, intuitive framework for understanding baby sleep—from the early newborn months to teaching independent sleep skills—without rigid rules or one-size-fits-all approaches.

Together, they discuss:

• What’s normal for newborn sleep (and what’s not)
• How to build a healthy sleep foundation in the first months
• The difference between “sleep training” and “sleep learning”
• How to think about crying—and when to step in
• The “10-minute method” and how to adapt it to your child
• Co-sleeping: when it works, and how to transition away from it
• Why parental sleep matters just as much as baby sleep

About Chrissy:

 Chrissy is a licensed marriage and family therapist, mom of four, and the founder of The Peaceful Sleeper. She is the author of The Peaceful Sleeper: An Intuitive Approach to Baby Sleep, where she helps parents navigate sleep in a flexible, individualized way that supports both children and families.

Instagram: @thepeacefulsleeper
Website: thepeacefulsleeper.com

Your Child is Normal is the trusted podcast for parents, pediatricians, and child health experts who want smart, nuanced conversations about raising healthy, resilient kids. Hosted by Dr. Jessica Hochman — a board-certified practicing pediatrician — the show combines evidence-based medicine, expert interviews, and real-world parenting advice to help listeners navigate everything from sleep struggles to mental health, nutrition, screen time, and more.

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YouTube channel: Ask Dr Jessica

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The information presented in Ask Dr Jessica is for general educational purposes only. She does not diagnose medical conditi...