Testimonial: “We tested the Chrono-dodo method”

Mélanie and Maxime are the happy parents of a little Noah (2 years old). Confronted with sleep problems, they tested a method unearthed on the Internet to “teach babies to fall asleep on their own”. And calm returned in a week. Story.

“A little over two years ago, after an almost perfect pregnancy, I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. He was born 2 days before the term, no worries at birth, total happiness. Then at 3 weeks, he had a lot of regurgitation, it was impossible for him to fall asleep anywhere other than in my arms and in a sitting position. The pediatrician did not believe our analysis of the situation: for us, it was reflux caused by an allergy to cow’s milk proteins. But she refused to give Noah any treatment, as allergy testing was not recommended at her age. Until Noah had another symptom (blood in the stool) and then treatment could begin.

It improved slowly with the medicine and suitable milk. At around 5 months, he no longer suffered from gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). But until then, we have lived through difficult weeks: hours of rocking in our arms every night and evenings that turned into nightmare. My husband, for example, went back and forth on the stairs of our building with the little one in a baby carrier, we let the tap water run because it soothed him… When the GERD really disappeared, Noah got used to it to be rocked and sleep in our arms rather than in bed. It was the result of our behavior with him, dictated by his pathology.

We felt like we were playing Mad Doctor! The rest of the night, Noah slept very hard. We tested the co-sleeping in our bed. Maxime was afraid of crushing Noah and ended up on the sofa… Bad idea for the couple! Then, we put Noah in a special bed next to ours on a 30 ° inclined plane. Maxime took over from me when he got home from work, I went to shower and tried to recover a bit. His boss even sometimes allowed him to go home to rest, so bad was he arriving in the morning.

We were starting to get caught up in our time, as Noah was due to be taken in by a childminder two months later. And with four children to look after, she didn’t have time to rock thus a baby. I had no choice. I looked for a method.

The Chrono-dodo: how to help baby sleep better?

The principle seemed logical to me: Noah knew no other way to fall asleep than in our arms, so we had to teach him another! I’m totally against the method of letting babies cry, and I know the stress and the dangers it brings, but this was about doing things very gradually, giving her the keys. I inquired a lot and not having returned to work yet, I had time to really teach him again to fall asleep alone. 

When to start the Chrono-dodo method?

Two months before our childminder took Noah, we very gradually adopted the Chrono-Dodo method. I rocked him for 3 minutes, the time for a song (always the same “Sweet Night”, the importance of the ritual is described in the method) and I put him in his bed, explaining to him that it was bedtime, that mom was right next door to watch over him, that he was not alone. At the beginning, he was whining a lot, so I went there after 3 minutes, without taking him in my arms, I stroked him and I repeated that everything was fine, that he could sleep peacefully because I was watching over him. Then I would go after 5 minutes, then 7… The first few days, it didn’t work, I picked him up in my arms very quickly because I didn’t want to create anxiety in him. After 3-4 days it started to work, he was much more calm and serene. After a week he would fall asleep in his bed all alone. Of course, there were relapses, but it was settled! Today it is a little boy who asks himself to go to bed. I hug him, put him in his bed (with his pacifier) ​​and he sleeps peacefully. It still happens to him to remind us for water, a hug… like all children! ” 

The Chrono-dodo theorized by Aude Becquart: what is it?

Aude Becquart, author of the guide “The method chrono-dodo“ emphasizes the importance of rrespect the fundamentals before testing his method. In short: start by searching the causes of the sleep problem : a health concern, a feeding problem, a stress in the family, a traumatic experience at birth? Once the causes have been identified and the obstacles taken care of, Aude Becquart advises making sure that bedtime responds to a clear ritual for the baby: regular schedule, room reserved for sleep, hug to reassure.

Then the specialist recommends using common sense: if the child has been given the habit of falling asleep in the arms (classic in the first months), the baby will not appreciate being placed in his bed. ! He may even believe that it represents a danger! He must therefore be taught to fall asleep on his own, by explaining to him what we are doing (without adding more because too many explanations can distress him), by adapting his reaction to our child, cuddle, leave, come back if he cries (proof that he can count on us), let him express his dissatisfaction if we feels that it is not serious (to be differentiated from panic crying), to explain again, to give a kiss again, to stay a little, to give a blanket … Always with a view to empowering the child without entering into a relationship with him strength, but with confidence and benevolence. She ensures that repeating these situations is the key to this learning.