Hello!

My name is Raelee Ott and I am the Certified Sleep Consultant behind Little Sleepy Otter! I grew up in Flagstaff County, but currently live in Camrose, AB with my husband. I am a proud mama to one little boy. Most of my time is spent at home playing and enjoying my son, however I also work part-time as a nurse. I love being a nurse and helping others, however my family is my top priority, so I decided to expand my education of the human body and brain by taking a Infant sleep consulting course which allows me to work from home more often. 

My son was born six weeks prematurely and spent some time in the NICU. When we were discharged from the NICU, the nurse told my husband and I that baby would need 22 hours of sleep, but that he would also need to be fed every 2 hours. I know! How is that possible?! So in between feeds and cuddles, I would be constantly researching wake windows, sleep schedules, and premature baby sleep. Every time, I would get the same generic sleep schedule. I quickly learnt that those generic charts and information were not going to work for my son. So, we hired a sleep consultant ourselves and through expert help, we were able to figure out a schedule that was specific to our son. He started to thrive! Once he was getting adequate sleep, he started hitting milestones and growing like a weed.

This inspired me to want to help other parents by creating custom sleep plans specific to their children. I enrolled in the Infant Sleep Consulting Course through QC Wellness Career School in August of 2022 and finished the program in Feb 2023.

I am very excited to work with you and achieve better sleep for all!

FAQ

1.     What is a sleep consultant?

A sleep consultant is educated in the biology of sleep. I specialize in infant sleep. Infants cannot tell us why they can’t sleep, or problem solve themselves to achieve better sleep. This has led to a lot of research on strategies and methods to help infants learn how to achieve better sleep. As a sleep consultant, I  will educate you in these methods and strategies and work with you to implement these with your child. My role in this is to be your coach, educator, cheerleader, and support.

2.     How long will the process take?

Generally, the process from start to finish takes about 2 weeks. This may vary on how strict you are with implementing the custom sleep plan designed for your child. It is recommended that you follow the schedule very diligently for you to see the best results.

3.     If the Sleep plan isn’t working for my child, can it be changed?

Yes. As I have said before babies’ sleep isn’t generic. It may take multiple approaches or strategies before we figure out what is perfect for your baby. That is why it is important you communicate with me as much as possible using a sleep log I will provide. This will allow me to problem solve and suggest something new.

4.     Why should I hire a Sleep Consultant?

A sleep consultant will be able to educate and explain much better than a simple article from google. We are knowledgeable in proven methods that allow infants learn how to sleep. Babies are not born knowing what to do when you set them in a crib in a dark room. It is my job as a sleep consultant to assist you in helping your child learn this skill. The earlier they learn, the more foundations for good sleep they will have as they grow up.

5.     What if I don’t want my baby to “Cry it out”?

It is a common misunderstanding that sleep training means putting your child in their crib and letting them cry themselves to sleep. This is just one of many methods that we can use to help you child learn to sleep. I am very passionate about providing your child the space to try and learn as well as having the comfort and support of the parent(s) to console and help them through the transition and learning process.

6.     Why the name Little Sleepy Otter?

It is not only a play on my last name, but I found it fitting when I found out that baby otters sleep either holding hands or on top of their mothers so that they won’t float away. I found this representative of the thought of parents supporting and helping their child with sleep with care and compassion.