Our Approach to Sleep Support

Autism RestWise takes a gentle, non-invasive approach to improving sleep while maintaining a family’s quality of life. The method focuses on slow, incremental changes that feel natural and supportive, never overwhelming. Harsh techniques or strategies that might increase challenging behaviors are never used-every adjustment is intended to promote calm, comfort, and success. By tailoring sleep solutions to each child’s unique needs, this approach helps families establish appropriate bedtimes, better sleep routines, and more restful nights-without unnecessary stress. Grounded in evidence-based strategies, this process ensures that every step is effective, practical, and aligned with the child’s well-being, helping the entire family move toward healthier sleep with confidence. 

Skills to Support Healthy Sleep.

  • Once common sleep challenges are identified, the focus shifts to building essential skills that help children develop healthy sleep habits. These skills are practiced during the day to make bedtime smoother and sleep more restful.

  • Calming Bedtime Routine

    Establishing a predictable and relaxing routine before bed helps signal to the body that it’s time to sleep.

  • Adjusting Sleep Schedule

    Gradually shifting bedtime and wake-up times can help align sleep patterns with the child’s natural rhythms.

  • Waiting and Healthy Separation

    Teaching children to wait for longer intervals before seeking comfort helps them learn to self-soothe at night and encouraging children to feel secure sleeping independently reduces dependency of caregiver’s presence.

  • Transitions from Activities

    Helping children move smoothly from one activity to another during the day, especially activities that are highly preferred, will allow for smoother transitions during the bedtime routine.

Consultation

The consultation is designed to help families explore if Autism RestWise is the right fit for their unique needs. During this initial conversation, we’ll talk about the specific challenges and goals your family has around sleep.

Assessment

The assessment process aims to gather information about your child’s sleep routine, environment, and current sleep patterns. This helps identify key factors affecting sleep and allows for a comprehensive understanding of your child’s unique needs. The goal is to build a clear picture of their sleep habits.

Support

Using information from the assessment, a customized sleep plan is created. Throughout this process, we work closely with you, providing guidance and support to help achieve lasting, positive changes in your child’s sleep patterns.

Achieving Better Sleep, Together

Assessment & Sleep Plan Development

The assessment phase is an essential first step in creating a sleep solution that works for your family. It involves a thorough interview and questionnaires to gather information about your child’s sleep habits and the factors that may be influencing them. This helps identify the root causes of sleep challenges and provides us with the details needed to create a personalized sleep plan.

Sleep support may include various components to support caregivers such as, adjusting sleep schedules, helping to establish sleep routines or even working on independent sleep, to name a few. Whichever tools and strategies families choose, the level of support will be uniquely designed to meet your family’s specific needs, with clear and realistic expectations set from the outset. This ensures that we have a shared understanding of what success looks like and the steps necessary to achieve it. Transparency is key in this process, so you can feel confident that the plan is tailored to what will work best for your child’s progress and your family’s lifestyle.

Benefits for All

As your child begins to sleep better, you may notice more energy, patience, and overall well-being within your family. Parents often feel more rested, which leads to better interactions and more time for family activities. A better rested child can show greater focus and emotional regulation, which in turn reduces stress and challenges for the whole family.

Sleep improvements are not just about better nights for your child, they create a more balanced and energized family dynamic. When your child gets the sleep they need, the whole family benefits from the ripple effects that come with it.

Nurturing Rest, Building Success…

After the sleep plan is developed, families will receive continued support tailored to their unique needs. This ongoing guidance ensures that progress is monitored, adjustments are made as needed, and families feel confident in implementing effective strategies for lasting improvements

Virtual Caregiver Sleep Workshop.

Struggling with bedtime battles, frequent night wakings, or early morning wake-ups? This free, virtual workshop offers practical, gentle strategies to help your child (and your family) sleep better. Learn about common sleep challenges in neurodiverse children, how to create a calming bedtime routine, and tips to reduce night disruptions — all while supporting your child’s unique needs.

🌟 What to Expect:

• Overview of common sleep challenges

• Evidence-based tools that are family-centered and non-invasive

• Time for Q&A with a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA)

• Supportive environment with other caregivers

📍Hosted via Google Meet

🕒 Limited to 10 participants to allow for personalized attention

💬 Registration required to attend: https://calendar.app.google/z3GesYHfs982zWxN9