I started this blog in March of 2012 with the goal of sharing some of the things that I’ve learned in my life as a physician and a father. I’ve really enjoyed the process of writing and sharing these posts, and the interactions that have followed, both here and on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, and elsewhere.
Here are the top posts of the year, in order:
- At Long Last: Sleep Training Tools for The Exhausted Parent: By far my most popular and commented post. I essentially tried to cram all of the sleep training tools I routinely use into a single post. The comment thread continues to be a fun forum for me to interact with other parents.
- Sleep Training Mistakes and Pitfalls: Lots of comments here as well. Many parents I meet in Sleep Clinic have tried to sleep train unsuccessfully, in spite of good intentions and reasonable techniques. I try to pinpoint the reasons here.
- Growing Pains, Restless Legs: An Under-diagnosed Cause of Insomnia in Children: This is one of my favorite posts. The excellent children’s pictures from the Restless Leg Foundation really made the piece.
- Get That Television Out of Your Kid’s Room. Now.: In which I learn that a strongly worded title gets people’s attention. If there is one kid you can do to help your child with sleep and obesity, it is making sure they never have a TV in their room.
- Daylight Savings Time And Your Child: Falling Back: People also seem to like seasonal posts. This one led to my busiest day ever.
I’m looking forward to continuing this project in the new year. I hope to entice some of our trainees, and others, to write some guest posts. Here are some topics I am planning on addressing.
- Co-sleeping, bed sharing, and room sharing
- Over the counter sleep aids including melatonin and diphenhydramine (Benadryl)
- Behavioral and growth effects of asthma medications
- Mechanisms of sleep: why do you fall asleep when you do
- Insomnia in teens
I also hope to include more video content, redesign the site, and offer phone consultation.
Thanks so much for your attention this year. This has been a great experience so far. Let me put the question to you, dear readers: what topics would you like me to address in 2013? What has worked for you in the past year? What would be helpful going forward?