Linda Hall: If whispers work, why not?

There is nothing wrong with hiring a baby sleep consultant if it helps, says Linda Hall.

After a few restless nights this past week I recalled the recent discussion about a baby whisperer.

I bet there are many people out there who have got out of bed in the morning feeling like they haven't slept a wink.

Trying to get through the day after a sleepless night is not fun. Gone are the days when I went to bed and didn't wake until my mother called me for school.

These days I wake at least three or four times a night but usually I can get back to sleep without much trouble, except when there's something on my mind.

Then it's tossing and turning and getting mad with myself for not being able to sleep.

If there was a sleep whisperer out there for me, I'd be on the phone in a flash.

I can't understand why people criticise mothers who choose to use a baby whisperer.

So what?

All parents will surely remember those weeks of sleep deprivation. It's horrible. Sleep is just as important as food and water. I bet most new parents would choose sleep rather than feast.

If the only way they can get their child to sleep is by calling in a baby whisperer, then good for them.

Many new mums these days don't have the luxury of staying home with their children.

They don't have the chance to have a nap during the day while baby finally sleeps.

Instead, they have to front up to work and try to get through the day on just a few hours' sleep.

I clearly remember an incident when my second daughter was just a few weeks old. My mother had come to stay with me for a few days. She was in bed. I was up with the baby.

We had dogs. They were barking their heads off. I walked the floor, fed the baby - still her eyes were wide open and she cried.

The dogs were barking, the baby was crying. I opened the window and yelled, "Will you shut up?"

My mother came running down the hallway, saying "Don't talk to the baby like that."

She knew I was stressed but I wasn't that stressed - if there was a baby whisperer available, I would have paid him/her everything in my bank account (which in those days was not a lot) to get my baby to sleep so I could sleep.

I would have given up food and water for an hour's uninterrupted sleep.

It really isn't anyone else's business what you do to make your life as new parents bearable.

If you need to call for help, do it.

Luckily in New Zealand we have plenty of help a phone call away.

Just about every new mother I know belongs to a coffee group: a great place to ask for help, throw around new ideas and just talk about how you are feeling.

The most important thing to remember is that there are plenty of people out there willing to help, so don't be afraid to ask.

Now for something a little different.

I'd like to give a big shout-out to all the nominees and winners at the 2015 Hospitality Awards.

I went to the awards night last Monday. The hospo people were in fine form and ready to party.

I loved the enthusiasm - the shouting and clapping every time a business name was called out.

Well done to Food Hawke's Bay for organising this fabulous annual event and to all the sponsors who made it possible.

-Linda Hall is assistant editor at Hawke's Bay Today.