Isabella, 2 Years  -  From Severe Night Wakings to Restful, Connected Sleep
 
When Jess first reached out to ESSA, she was exhausted, overwhelmed, and unsure where to begin. Her two‑year‑old daughter, Isabella, had been waking 5–6 times a night, and on the hardest nights, up to 10–15 times. Jess shared that she had been putting off seeking help because she feared the process would be “complicated, structured, and intensive.” 

 

As a maternal and child health nurse and sleep consultant, I hear this often - parents feeling they need energy they simply don’t have in order to start. My goal is always to make the process feel achievable, supportive, and grounded in evidence‑based care. To assist this, a client introduction form is sent to families before the initial consultation, to help understand what sleep looks and feels like for your family right now. It offers insight into your child’s routines, temperament, feeding, sleep environment, and developmental stage, so our time together begins with clarity, compassion, and a personalised plan that genuinely supports your family.

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Jess later told me: “Sara was so friendly and caring from the start. She sent out a questionnaire to get some background on what was happening before our initial appointment, and when she arrived, she had already put thought into around six pages of information and strategies that she thought might suit our specific situation.” 

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During our consultation, I walked Jess through strategies that were practical, responsive, and easy to implement. Nothing overwhelming. Nothing rigid. Just simple, meaningful adjustments that aligned with their existing routines. Jess shared: "To my surprise, the ideas and habits Sara took me through for Issy were not complicated, time‑consuming, or over the top. They were so simple and easy to implement that I was able to try three or four things straight away that night, and it barely took me an extra five minutes out of my day - which was a huge relief.”

For me, this is the heart of effective sleep support - strategies that feel doable, not complicated or disruptive. Equally important is creating supportive, pressure-free space where families feel guided, not overwhelmed. ​​Sleep changes take time, and families need space to move at their own pace. “Sara was really understanding through the entire process. She set realistic expectations and really took the time to understand our current routines. She gave so many great suggestions on how we could use what we already do to our advantage.”

Over the weeks working with Jess and her family, we refined a couple of elements and celebrated the early improvements. Jess later reflected: “Sara let me know that this is all at mine and Issy’s pace. She said to try the solutions when we were ready and that she’d be available to help at any time to tweak or come up with other ideas if the first ones didn’t work. The follow‑up call a week later helped us refine a couple of things as well.”

Two weeks after our initial consultation, Jess reached out with the most wonderful update:
⭐ Isabella was sleeping through the night - four nights in a row
⭐ Her emotional regulation had improved
⭐ Jess finally felt like herself again

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And perhaps the most meaningful part, Jess' reflection that “It is so much more than just helping Issy to be able to sleep. It is giving her proper restful nights, which is helping her regulate emotions and letting her rest enough to grow and learn properly, and it has honestly given this sleep‑deprived, on‑the‑edge‑of‑a‑breakdown mum her sanity back, and I honestly cannot thank Sara enough for that.”
 
Jess’ journey with her daughter is just one example of how we at ESSA support you to restore calm, confidence, and connection within your family. With simple, evidence‑based strategies and a nurturing, pressure‑free approach, meaningful change becomes not only possible but sustainable. And for families feeling lost in the exhaustion of sleepless nights, there is hope... supportive, tailored guidance can make all the difference.