My Journey to Become a Sleep Consultant

Read the HOW and WHY I launched The Dream Queen!
Spoiler alert: My baby wouldn't sleep and a sleep consultant changed my life!

Today is the day. Today is the day I FINALLY start my blog. I’ve been literally dreaming up blog posts for weeks in my mind, only to find there’s no time to just sit and write. But currently my 3-month-old is being held for a contact nap by my grandmother while my almost-22-month-old is on a walk with my grandfather (how lucky am I?!) so I have a minute to get this started!

Anyways, I’m Bethany. Nice to meet you! I recently launched my sleep consultant business, The Dream Queen, and I’m so excited to help families struggling with their children’s sleep. My journey to become a sleep consultant is pretty similar to most… I myself hired a sleep consultant when my 8-month-old was waking up five times/night and I was at my wit’s end. I couldn’t afford to pay nearly $300 for a phone call and text support, so my parents graciously gifted it to me as a birthday present. Well, BEST PRESENT EVER because within a week he was sleeping through the night! And even better, he has continued to sleep well every. single. night. since! To say it was life-changing would be an understatement. I went from thinking I had postpartum depression to realizing I was just sleep-deprived! Lack of sleep can affect the body physically, mentally and emotionally and after eight months of poor sleep I was a mess. That’s when I realized how truly important sleep was, and how I would love to help other parents END the cycle of sleepless nights. 

As a middle/high school science teacher, I was motivated to learn the science behind sleep so I could provide evidence-based guidance to families. I read as many articles I could find on baby sleep and took a few classes by Nurture by NAPS, a Boston-based postpartum company. I then found myself helping friends with their own babies’ sleep issues. When my tips and tricks helped turn their babies into great sleepers too, I decided I should get officially certified.

I was accepted into the My Sweet Sleeper consultant training program and after a long 10 months of classes, mentorship, and volunteer hours, I graduated with my certification. Now I’m joining the cohort of other moms trying to start their own businesses in today’s wild world. But I’m incredibly motivated to get this business off the ground because of how AMAZING it feels to help other families solve their children’s sleep struggles. There is such a high that results from getting those “He slept through the night!!” texts and messages, knowing I helped make that happen. 

So here we are, three weeks into opening my business and only days before the Christmas holiday. What a crazy time of year to start a business… but there’s no rest for the weary! (Which is exactly why I’m entering this field - because there are countless tired parents who need sleep!) My goal for 2022 is to grow my business to the point that I’m solving sleep struggles of at least five families/week. I'm putting that goal out there into the universe in hopes of manifesting it into reality!
If one of your goals for the new year is to get your little one’s sleep back on track, for their health and your sanity, let’s join forces. That way we can make both our *dreams* come true!
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Interested in sleep help for your little one? Check out my sleep coaching packages for 1:1 support!
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Wishing you all my best 
​(& lots of rest!),

Bethany Barba