The Ferber method, or Ferberization, is a technique invented by Dr. Richard Ferber to solve infant sleep problems. It involves "baby-training" children to self-soothe by allowing the child to cry for a predetermined amount of time before receiving external comfort.
"Cry it out"
The "Cry It Out" approach can be traced back to the book "The Care and Feeding of Children" written by Dr. Emmett Holt in 1894. CIO is any sleep-training method which allows a baby to cry for a specified period before the parent will offer comfort. "Ferberization" is one such approach. Ferber does not advocate simply leaving a baby to cry. More extreme methods, such as Dr. Marc Weissbluth's extinction method, are often mistakenly referred to as "Ferberization", though they fall outside of the guidelines Ferber recommended. Some pediatricians, however, feel that any form of CIO is unnecessary and damaging to a baby.
Ferberization summarized
Dr. Richard Ferber discusses and outlines a wide range of practices to teach an infant to sleep. The term Ferberization is now popularly used to refer to the following techniques:
Take steps to prepare the baby to sleep. This includes night-time rituals and day-time activities.
At bedtime, leave the child in bed and leave the room.
Return at progressively increasing intervals to comfort the baby. For example, on the first night, some scenarios call for returning first after three minutes, then after five minutes, and thereafter each ten minutes, until the baby is asleep.
Each subsequent night, return at intervals longer than the night before. For example, the second night may call for returning first after five minutes, then after ten minutes, and thereafter each twelve minutes, until the baby is asleep.
The technique is targeted at infants as young as four monthsof age. A few babies are capable of sleepingthrough the night at three months, and most are capable of sleeping through the night at six months. Before six months of age, the baby may still need to feed during the night and it is probable that the baby will require a night feeding before three months. Ferber made some modifications in the 2006 edition of his book Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems. He is now more open to co-sleeping and feels different approaches work for different families, children & situations.
Criticism
Crying is associated with physiological stress in the baby in the short term, and some pediatricians do not recommend techniques like "controlled crying" and "camping out" as a result, based on possible long-term psychological and physical problems. A study that looked at long-term consequences in children older than seven months concluded that there were no beneficial nor negative effects. However, there are no data on children younger than seven months. Co-sleeping is a common alternative that comes with its own risks and benefits.
Robert De Niro's character in the movie Meet the Fockers tries to use the Ferber Method in teaching his grandson.
In the Modern Family episode "Up All Night", Cameron and Mitchell are seen trying to ferberize their daughter Lily. In "Catch of the Day" it is mentioned that Haley was also Ferberized.
In the Raising Hope episode Sleep Training, Hope's grandparents try to sleep-train her.
In the Mad About You episode The Conversation, Jamie convinces Paul to go one night with the Ferber method. Through the process they confront the moral and psychologic ramifications. The whole episode was done in a single take.
In the White Collar episode Taking Stock, Mozzie accuses Diana Berrigan's nanny Karen of being a Ferberizer.
