
Trying for a baby	Pregnant	Birth & labour	Baby	Toddler

Susie Whytock: Interview of the week

Susie Whytock has had over twenty-five years of experience working with children and babies, she has run her own nursery and given individual advice to parents over the last eight years as a night nanny and maternity consultant. She has also participated in two documentaries and one four-week series for ITV.

Susie founded her company Simplynights to help parents with those everyday parenting problems that are getting on top of them, giving group and individual advice and assistance.

Gurgle: Why did you set up Simplynights?

Susie: A lot of parents felt they weren’t getting the help they needed from midwives, GP’s or health visitors once they got home and started to deal with things like routines, sleeping through the night, colic and breastfeeding; things that cause lots of parents anxiety if they don’t feel they are doing it right. I also understand that Health Visitors, GP’s and midwives are doing an amazing job, but are completely over stretched so they can’t give that individual help to parents every time.

Gurgle: What kind of problems do parents approach you about?

Susie: Feeding is probably the most asked about problem, both breastfeeding and bottle-feeding. Most parents say that they have had so much conflicting advice from books, from midwives and their own friends and families that they don’t know what is best. Although health professionals do a marvellous job, many are restricted by government guidelines and will not give out personal advice. That’s where I differ; having worked with children and babies for over twenty-five years I often see the same problems in infants again and again and I can use a tried and tested method to help solve the problem.

Gurgle: So do you get 3am phone calls from stressed out mums?

Susie: Actually we mostly get phone calls from the Dads! Probably because they can see their partners getting more and more stressed, they can see the baby becoming upset and they need a practical solution fast! Most parents phone me in the first six weeks as they start to experience things like colic or breastfeeding problems.

Gurgle: How does it work do you do phone consultations or personal visits?

Susie: It depends on the problem. I never charge for the initial phone call, and try to give advice over the phone if I can – the first phone call is really me trying to understand what the problem seems to be. If the person lives far away from me and has major problems which can’t be resolved over the phone I will make the trip to see them, but most of the time I can give advice to parents over the phone and until we seem to have the problem under control, I’m there to offer reassurance, advice and to help the parents build up their confidence.

Gurgle: We get a lot of parents talking about routines on the gurgle chat forums and also the age-old problem of getting babies to sleep through the night – any advice?

Susie: My personal opinion is that mums read a lot of books about the best ways to get their children to sleep through the night and then they try to enforce rules on to babies pretty much as soon as they bring them home. I would say, forget about the rules and spend at least the first 2-3 weeks bonding with your baby and getting breastfeeding established. Yes you’ll have sleepless nights, but you are a new parent and it doesn’t last forever. It’s more important to build up that bond with your baby first as it will help you to understand your baby’s needs and this in turn will help with sleeping patterns. I get asked to deal with all kinds of sleep issues; getting newborns to sleep; older babies who suddenly won’t sleep; how to deal with a toddler and a newborn in terms of their different sleep requirements. One thing I always tell parents (and this is only my opinion) is that no routine should ever be rigid apart from the evening routine, which should always stay the same. Keeping routines flexible allows you a bit more freedom and means that you are not rushing home in time for your baby’s naps. It also means if your baby seems sleepy half an hour before his nap you can let him sleep!

Gurgle: Gosh – any other pearls of wisdom to pass on to gurgle members…

Susie: There are so many theories on how to treat a baby with colic that many parents come to me completely confused. From my experience lots of colicky babies are babies who are rarely put down, are constantly feeding and always have a full stomach, so don’t have time to digest their food properly. I also don’t think maternity units teach mums the best way to wind their babies. In my opinion babies should be winded in an almost upright position. Put one hand underneath your baby’s chin and the other on your baby’s lower back. Move your hand around in a circular motion. You can also out your hand gently on your baby’s stomach and massage it gently. Now repeat this rubbing back then massaging the tummy sequence until your baby burps.

The other thing I always tell mums is not to let your baby fall asleep when he is feeding. If you do he won’t have a long sleep and will wake up hungry and snack. It’s so warm and cosy on the breast or cuddled up to mum having a bottle that lots of babies fall asleep. I advise mum’s to keep a damp muslin close at hand that you can dab your baby’s face to wake him up if he is sleepy. You can also change his nappy or take off his baby grow to rouse him in order to carry on with the feed. If your baby begins to be able to take his whole feed without falling asleep you’ll find he sleeps for longer stretches at a time.

Gurgle: You also run workshops don’t you?

Susie: I have worked with so many mums who said to me that antenatal classes etc prepare you for the birth of your child, but they don’t prepare you for when you bring your baby home and you’re faced with all sorts of issues from breastfeeding to colic and bedtime routines. The feedback has been amazing and hopefully I’m helping mum’s prepare for the bit where the midwife isn’t around to help; bringing your baby home!

Susie Whytock is a maternity consultant who specialises in the following:
Feeding problems, sleeping problems, colic and reflux, breastfeeding, expressing, weaning from breast to bottle, interpreting your baby’s crying and behaviour, bedtime routines, bathing and hygiene, solids and ,multiples – routines and coping in the first year. To discuss your concerns call Susie on 0845 500 65 07 (local rate) or mobile: 07812 11 49 78

Or email info@simplynights.com