What It Means
Gentle sleep trainingSleep trainingTeaching a baby to fall asleep on their own, both at bedtime and after waking in the night, using a planned, consistent method. See more is an informal label parents use for sleep training methods that avoid leaving a baby to cry alone for long, either by keeping a parent in the room or by stepping back in small stages. Pediatric and sleep medicine bodies don't define it, so which methods count varies. The ones Cleveland Clinic presents as gentler options are the chair methodChair methodA gradual sleep training method where a parent sits in a chair by the crib until the baby falls asleep, moving it farther away every few nights. See more, pick up, put down, and graduated check-ins in the style of the Ferber methodFerber methodA sleep training method, also called graduated extinction, where parents check on a crying baby at timed intervals that lengthen over time. See more.
Try It: Flip Through Three Gentler Methods
Tap each card to see how the method works, as Cleveland Clinic describes it.
Chair method
Sit by the crib until your baby is asleep. Every few nights, move the chair farther away until you're out of the room.
Pick up, put down
Lift your baby to soothe them, then lay them back in the crib before they fall asleep. Repeat until they drift off.
Graduated check-ins
Leave the room and return for brief check-ins, waiting a little longer each time. This is the Ferber method.
All three start with a baby who is drowsy but awake, lying on their back in their own crib.
How Parents Say It
- "We wanted something gentler than cry it out."
- "I'm doing the gentle version, with the chair."
- "Pick up, put down took us two weeks, but it worked for us."
The Breakdown
By age
| Age | What the sources say | Source |
|---|---|---|
| NewbornNewbornA baby in the first 28 days of life, the stage doctors also call the neonatal period. See more | Too young for any sleep training | Cleveland Clinic |
| About 4 months | Often ready to start; some earlier, some nearer 6 months | Cleveland Clinic |
| Older baby or toddlerToddlerA child from 1 to 3 years old, the stage CDC's parenting guidance places between infancy and the preschool years. See more with separation anxiety | The chair method can be especially helpful | Cleveland Clinic |
The gentler options side by side
| Method | Where you are | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Chair method | In the room, moving out over several nights | Takes a series of nights to fade out |
| Pick up, put down | In the room, lifting and settling | Can take more time and patience, with many pick-ups |
| Graduated check-ins | Out of the room, returning briefly | Some crying between check-ins |
When to talk to the doctor. Ask your pediatrician before you begin if you're unsure your baby is ready, and call any time your baby seems unwell or feeding changes.
Good to Know
"Gentle" describes how a method feels to the family and doesn't signal that it's been shown to work better. A 2016 randomized trial in Pediatrics tested two approaches, graduated extinction and bedtime fading, and found both improved infant sleep with no adverse stress responses and no long-term effects on attachment, emotions or behavior. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, as that trial notes, calls graduated extinction an effective and recommended treatment for bedtime problems and night wakings. Safe sleepSafe sleepThe AAP's rules for lowering the risk of SIDS and suffocation: baby on the back, alone, on a firm flat surface in their own sleep space, every sleep. See more rules apply with every method: on the back, in the baby's own sleep space, on a firm, flat surface with only a fitted sheet.
FAQ
What is the gentlest sleep training method?
Parents often point to pick up, put down or the chair method, since a parent stays in the room. Cleveland Clinic notes pick up, put down can take more time and patience than the others.
Is there a no-cry sleep training method?
None of the methods Cleveland Clinic describes promises no crying at all. The gentler ones keep you nearby while your baby learns to fall asleep, and Cleveland Clinic notes that some parents feel this is gentler.
When can I start gentle sleep training?
Cleveland Clinic says babies are often ready around 4 months, some earlier and some nearer 6 months, and that newborns shouldn't be sleep trained.
Do It in Buhata
Notes and Reminders
Write down the gentle method you're trying and how each night went in Notes (Premium) in Buhata, and set a Reminder for a steady bedtime.
Open BuhataRelated Terms and Categories
- Sleep training
Teaching a baby to fall asleep on their own, both at bedtime and after waking in the night, using a planned, consistent method.
- Chair method
A gradual sleep training method where a parent sits in a chair by the crib until the baby falls asleep, moving it farther away every few nights.
- Pick up put down
A sleep training method where you lift a crying baby to calm them, then lay them back in the crib before they fall asleep, repeating as needed.
- Ferber method
A sleep training method, also called graduated extinction, where parents check on a crying baby at timed intervals that lengthen over time.
- Cry it out
A sleep training method, also called extinction, where a baby is put to bed awake and not comforted again until morning.
- Gentle parenting
An approach that pairs empathy for a child's feelings with clear, consistent limits, with the parent acting as a coach through hard moments.
Sources
Cleveland Clinic, "How To Do the Chair Method of Sleep Training for Babies"; Cleveland Clinic, "Pick Up Put Down Sleep Training Method"; Cleveland Clinic, "What Is the Cry-It-Out Method of Sleep Training?"; Cleveland Clinic, "Sleep Training Your Baby: When and How"; Gradisar and colleagues, "Behavioral Interventions for Infant Sleep Problems: A Randomized Controlled Trial," Pediatrics, 2016; AAP, "Safe Sleep and Your Baby"
- health.clevelandclinic.org/chair-method-sleep-training
- health.clevelandclinic.org/pick-up-put-down-method
- health.clevelandclinic.org/cry-it-out-method
- health.clevelandclinic.org/when-and-how-to-sleep-train-your-baby
- publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/137/6/e20151486/52401/Behavioral-Interventions-for-Infant-Sleep-Problems
- publications.aap.org/patiented/article/doi/10.1542/peo_document088/79989/Safe-Sleep-and-Your-Baby-How-Parents-Can-Reduce
Last updated .