Ferber Method Sleep Training: How It Works

As you learn about baby sleep training, you may encounter new terms, methods, and concepts, including one called the Ferber Method.

So, what is the Ferber Method for sleep training, how does Ferber Method for babies work, and is the Ferber Method sleep training best for your baby? Here we’ll provide answers about the Ferber sleep training method, also referred to as Ferberizing, timed checks, and the timer method.

If you’re looking to get support with sleep training or considering using Ferber but really don’t know where to start, download the Smart Sleep Coach by Pampers app to get personalized recommendations for how to improve your baby’s sleep using the Ferber Method and support their journey to becoming strong independent sleepers.

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What is the Ferber Method?

Named after Dr. Richard Ferber, a pediatric sleep expert in Boston, the Ferber sleep training method uses increasing interval-based checks to gradually fade out the parental support your baby relies on to fall asleep independently.  

In a nutshell, the Ferber Method has you put your baby down for bed when they are calm and tired, but still awake, and leave the room for progressively longer intervals before entering to provide a brief reassurance, if they are protesting sleep, before leaving again – repeating this process until your baby falls asleep.  

There are differing variations of Ferber Method and how the intervals work and how long they last. For example, in some cases you stick with a given interval of two minutes for the first few nights and then extending to five minutes for the next few nights.  

In other variations, you increase the intervals by one or two minutes each time you enter the room until you hit an evening ‘max’ interval. The next night you can start at the max from night one for the next night waking on night 2.    

Regardless of the variation you choose or length of interval, by lengthening the amount of time between reassurances you give your baby the opportunity to fall asleep independently with ease – the primary goal of successful sleep training.  

For Ferber Method sleep training, when you enter the room to reassure your baby you should offer brief reassurances that last less than a minute and try to be as calm and quiet as possible – you don’t want to stimulate your baby further. The Ferber Method recommends not picking up your baby, rather providing an ‘arms length’ reassurance with a gentle pat and verbal reassurance using your voice to calm and soothe.  (There is another sleep training method where you pick up and put down your baby.)

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How Do I Do the Ferber Method of Sleep Training

Here is an example sleep training plan with Ferber Method. There are different variations and waiting intervals that you could use, so do what’s best for you and your baby.  

Example sleep training with Ferber Method

What You’ll Need: The Smart Sleep Coach app countdown timer (which is built specifically to help with sleep training with Ferber). A timer or stopwatch would work too.  

Nights 1-3: The first three nights of the Ferber Method are the same in terms of time interval:

• Perform your bedtime routine as usual and put your baby down sleepy but awake. That means they’re very tired but not yet asleep.  

• Leave the room.

• If your baby protests or cries, start your timer, and wait until it goes off before entering your baby’s room to reassure them. Some parents choose 3 minutes, some choose 5 – do what’s best for you and your baby.

• Reassure your baby for 1 minute max. You want to keep your visit as short as possible without lingering.  

• Leave the room and reset the timer. Repeat this process until your baby falls asleep. If they wake up again later in the night, repeat the same process as necessary using the same interval.

Nights 4 and Beyond:

• On the fourth night of sleep training with Ferber Method, add two minutes to the “fussy timer” and wait that length of time before entering the room to reassure your baby (still for less than 1-minute).

• For example, if you waited 3 minutes on the first 3 nights, you’ll wait 5 minutes on night 4.  

• Then, on night 5, you add another 2 minutes; on night 6, you add another 2 minutes, and so on…

• By lengthening the time between protest and reassurance, you give your baby an opportunity to calm themselves for sleep.

What kind of comfort can I offer when “Ferberizing”?

The Ferber Method includes comforting your baby by:

• Shushing

• Patting your baby’s back

• Stroking your baby’s head

Sleep training and what method you choose for sleep training is a personal choice – many parents choose not to sleep train all together. If you choose the Ferber Method, it’s recommended you don’t pick up your baby to comfort them when Ferberizing as this may further stimulate them and make it even harder to fall asleep, and for some babies, further upset them.

Remember: The Ferber Method is all about gently soothing your baby and letting them fall asleep independently. Talking too loudly or picking them up may stimulate them even more, leading to a more wakeful state.

How Long Does Ferber Method Take?

Every baby is different, but with consistent delivery parents often start to see some sleep improvement using Ferber by around nights 5-7, but it usually takes at least two weeks for your baby to become comfortable falling asleep independently.  

Compared to other gentle methods of sleep training, Ferber Method can be considered a quickest method of sleep training. The more parental involvement, the slower sleep training may take.

There are multiple types of sleep training methods that range from low parental involvement to high parental involvement – many consider Ferber Method to be a moderate parental involvement method.

That said, it’s important to note that successful Ferber sleep training is also very much dependent on your baby’s personality, as well as what you’re comfortable with.    

How to Handle Ferber Method Night Wakings

No matter which sleep training method you use including Ferber Method sleep training, there will likely be night wakings. What is important is that you handle those night wakings in exactly the same way as you handled bedtime. In the case of Ferber Method, that means not entering the room after the night waking until your designated interval is up and then continuing to repeat the interval assurances until your baby falls back to sleep.

If your baby wakes up at night during Ferber Method sleep training, follow the same rules or steps as you do when putting them down for the night: set your timer, wait the appropriate time, and softly reassure for one minute before leaving and starting your timer again.  

What If my baby wakes near morning using Ferber Method?

If your baby experiences a night wake during Ferber Method and it’s near their wake-up time, consider letting them rest in their crib until it’s time to get up for the day. This is for two primary reasons:

1. Baby sleep science: Melatonin production decreases after 5am, which means your baby is not likely to fall back to sleep, even with brief reassurances

2. Going in may solidify early wakeups: By going in, you cue your baby it’s time to get up. By letting them stay in their crib, you’re reinforcing the fact that proper wake up is later in the morning. This can help inspire your baby to sleep a little more in the morning or have quiet time while they wait for you to get up.

Check out this article for more advice on how to handle early wakeups.  

Ferber Method for Naps

Many experts and parents say Ferber Method may not be the best nap sleep training method. This could be for a few reasons:

1. Naps are short and you have a much slimmer window of opportunity to perform a bedtime routine or a more gradual method.
2. Melatonin production is lower during naps – that means your baby has more energy to protest Ferber Method sleep training and can fight you the entire nap.  
3. Your presence before a nap may stimulate them and you miss the sleepy window.

For these reasons, many parents who want to sleep training during naps try the Cry-it-Out method. However, other parents simply follow wake windows and an age-appropriate sleep schedule and ensure their baby’s sleep environment is conducive to sleep, and find their baby naturally falls asleep during nap time.  

Tips for the Ferber Method of Sleep Coaching  

Here are some tips from sleep experts about how to successfully implement the Ferber Method?

• If your baby calms down while you’re in the room, leave: you want your baby to fall asleep while you’re out of the room. The goal of sleep training is for your baby to be able to fall asleep independently. If you’re there by their crib when they fall asleep, they may come to depend on your presence to fall asleep.

• If when you enter the room your baby's cry escalates, that’s ok – as long as it doesn’t continue every time you enter for more than a few nights. If it becomes the standard reaction, then you might want to consider transitioning to another method of sleep training.  

• If you think the Ferber Method isn’t right for your by, use the Smart Sleep Coach app to select a different sleep training method that is best for your baby through its sleep assessment and science-backed step-by-step program. Final Thoughts

Regardless if Ferber Method sleep training is right for you, or if any sleep training is right for you, healthy sleep habits start with the fundamentals – bedtime routine, sleep environment, and sleep schedule aligned to circadian rhythm.  

Final Thoughts

Every baby and family are unique, and when it comes to sleep training one size does not fit all.

While the Ferber Method has helped millions of babies with sleeping through the night and developing healthy sleep habits, millions of other babies do better with a different sleep training method – or no sleep training at all.  

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