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MY mission

LITTLE LIVEWIRES is dedicated to illuminating and validating the experience of having a child who is MORE alert, sensitive, intense, perceptive, persistent, and smarter than their years.

 

This is not an easy path, but parents rarely get information that takes temperament into account. As a result, they feel ashamed and frustrated that nothing is going the way it is for other parents.​​

 

LITTLE LIVEWIRES believes that:

Parents deserve information that acknowledges the range of normal temperament (e.g., a baby is not "good" because they sleep a lot.)

Challenging traits are the flip side of strengths that are not always obvious when children are small.

Sensitive children often have sensitive parents.​

Challenging traits almost always stem from heightened sensitivity (sensory, emotional, etc.)

Livewires grow up to become powerful, creative, divergent individuals who march to their own drummer.

My philosophy about sleep

Couple in handyman gear looking overwhelmed
There are options

You get to decide what's a problem

There's no "right" or "wrong" —only what works and doesn't work for you. You may be so tired, you just need things to be "better." I can work with that.

Woman with a pillow, pajamas, and eye mask looking frustrated
It's not "sink or swim"

No one's learning anything when they're hysterical.

The notion that learning is taking place when babies are hysterical just doesn't make sense. We want to nudge children into better patterns, not throw them into the deep end. Stepping in to help them manage big feelings is in our parent job description. It's no different with sleep.

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Temperament is everything

Livewires need a different approach.

The usual sleep training advice often just does not work for these little ones. Understanding how they tick can be key in getting them on board with sleep.

My Philosopy of Sleep

My Story

When my children were babies (a while ago), there were two choices for sleep training: cry-it-out or gut-it-out. I knew that if I let them cry, it would go on for hours and they would never give up ever, ever.

 

At the time, there were no other choices. We were doing the whole "attachment parenting" thing, and I just kept following their cues thinking that things would even out. I followed their cues right off a cliff. There were so many days that I was so tired and discouraged that I thought I would just crack in two.

 

I honestly can't recommend just suffering through it. The wear-and-tear was real. If you're getting your information (especially about sleep) from books, chances are that information is not written about the child you have and you feel like you're the only one on the planet with this degree of challenge.

 

You are not alone.

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I have spent the past twenty years researching temperament and sleep and I know that alert/sensitive/intense children need a different approach (and so do their parents).

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Headshot of Macall Gordon in a bright red shirt looking to the side and up.
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My background

My Research

My research topics:

• A critical review of the research that underpins sleep training advice

• A survey of parents' use and perceptions of sleep advice

• A survey about the "upsides" of a challenging temperament

• How elements of temperament affect sleep behavior and sleep training

You can learn more about these on my ResearchGate page

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Presented at the following conferences:

  • International Congress for Infant Studies (ICIS)

  • World Association for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH)

  • American Psychological Association (APA)

  • Society for Research in Child Development​ (SRCD)

  • Occasional Temperament Conference (OTC)

  • Postpartum Support International (PSI)

  • B.S. in Human Biology, Stanford University 

  • M. A. in Applied Psychology (focus on Infant Mental Health), Antioch University Seattle. Coursework in infant development, attachment, emotional regulation, sleep research, psychopathology, and family systems. 

  • Certificate in Infant Observation, Family Services/Univ. of Washington

  • Postpartum Action Institute Training (with Jane Honikman and Dr. Shoshana Bennett)

  • Senior Lecturer, Graduate Dept. of Counseling Psychology,
    Antioch University, Seattle (2008-2022)

Education

Certification and training

Certified January 2016

Gentle Sleep Coach logo

The Gentle Sleep Coach Program is the first and most extensive professional sleep coach training and certification program available.  The program involves over 80 hours of training with a faculty panel that includes two medical doctors, a psychologist, an attorney, lactation counselor, postpartum doulas and a family therapist. Each coach must pass an exam and participate in case supervision with Kim West, LCSW-C (a.k.a. “The Sleep Lady”) who has been helping tired parents for over 20 years. Clinical supervision and ongoing advanced training are required to maintain certification as a Gentle Sleep Coach.

Training topics included:

  • Basic counseling and child development

  • Sleep science and age-appropriate techniques to help parents of children age 6 months to 6 years old.

  • Secure attachment theory

  • Support for the breastfeeding mother


The training also consisted of lectures from top specialists, including:

  • Postpartum Depression— Dr. Shoshana Bennett, author and leading specialist on perinatal mood disorders

  • Restless Legs, Sleep Apnea, and Physical Sleep Disorders in children— Dr. Lewis Kass, pediatric pulmonologist and Director of Children’s Sleep Center, Yale New Haven Hospital

  • Reflux and Sleep —Dr. Anthony Loizides, pediatric gastroenterologist

  • Additional ongoing education on sensory processing, feeding issues/gut health, oral ties, etc.

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