As a first time Mum I really needed help & support with my baby girl Bo, especially with sleeping, or lack of …
At first I just went with the flow as Bo would wake every 2-3 hrs through the night. I would go to her and comfort her until she went back to sleep, but as the months went on it was not getting any easier, and I was exhausted and emotionally drained.
I reached out to my mother’s group, the early childhood centre and spoke to a few friends about ‘controlled comforting’ to teach Bo how to self settle. I tried really hard through the night, but I lacked confidence, and I was always concerned that something was wrong with her.
After 8 months of sleepless nights I contacted my mother’s group again in desperate need of some sleep. There were a number of girls who highly recommended I contact Jane.
To be able to get an experienced nurse to your home, to give you the confidence & skills to teach your baby how to self settle is amazing and we can’t thank Jane enough.
We are so proud of Bo, she responded so quickly to Jane’s warm and motherly approach that by the fourth night she slept through the night!
Most importantly Jane gave us practical and simple techniques to help Bo self settle. She taught us that it’s all about consistency and not changing the boundaries.
Bo is now 10 months old and we are one well rested family, with a happy energetic little girl, who blows us a kiss goodnight when we put her in her cot, and has a good 10 -11 hours sleep at night. Now that is amazing and all thanks to Jane
Kristie
Jane came to our home whilst it was in crisis.
Despite being our third baby, Eva, at 5 weeks would not settle in the evening. We would be up until about 11pm trying all our old tricks of feeding, rocking, patting, burping, swaddling, on the shoulder, on the tummy and then the slow careful placing of her into the cot … only to have her wake 10 minutes later and have to do it all over again. The other two children got nothing from us in those hours and it was all out of balance.
Once some chatting was over Jane just took Eva into her hands and left me to give the other children some attention and to take myself off to sleep.
It was easy to see how confident she was with babies and I just left her to it. She gave us just one technique/routine to follow, not the bag of assorted tricks we had been trying, and over the next few weeks Eva got easier and easier to settle. It was not a magic trick that I could not replicate, it was just calm consistency. However, the magic was that Jane looked at chaos, saw a way to resolve it, and just got on and implemented it.
Within a few days we had a path to follow and Jane kept in touch to see how it improved. We do not have enormous amounts of money to get someone else to do it all for us, but this was money well spent to get us back on track, get a bit of our life back and to have enough perspective to implement change. Since then Jane has helped again when we just needed a bit of short term assistance to tackle some sleep management issues. Once again I have found her supportive, generous and quick to act when she heard we needed some help.
Heather
I employed the services of Jane Surgenor in 2008, for birth education and doula support.
Given her experience and recommendation from many mothers, we thought she would be the perfect person to help us achieve our goals for a natural child birth and support in the post natal period and Jane exceeded our expectations and went above and beyond what we were expecting.
The outcome was a beautiful experience!
Jane guided us through breastfeeding, sleep programming and everything that was required to create a happy, healthy home for our new baby girl.
Jane empowered me as a woman and this enabled me to realise that I was capable of being a great mum and having a great life.
Words could never express the gratitude we have for Jane. Her level of experience, knowledge and skills were amazing.
We are planning another child in the future, with Jane by our side as support we know as a family unit it will be a blessing for another new addition.
Wendy
Having met several mothercraft nurses, Jane was the obvious choice for us – knowledgable, but not pushy, and with an evident passion for her work (as well as vast experience and glowing references). Jane worked for us as a mothercraft nurse for 2-3 nights a week for 6 weeks following the birth of our first child and was invaluable in developing routines and assisting in settling. She was able to give me personal advice as I recovered from the birth, not to mention the opportunity to sleep! Jane was supportive in my decision to bottle feed and was the first person I encountered who helped me in the process.
Jane reinforced techniques we had been taught in hospital, such as wrapping, bathing and encouraging tummy time and gave us the confidence we needed to look after our baby long after she had left. She also implemented strategies for settling without feeding and stretching our baby between feeds. By 6 weeks we had a baby who woke once in the night for a feed and was able to be put down to sleep in her cot with only a dummy to soothe her. By 10 weeks she was sleeping from 10.30 until 7 and now at 6 months she sleeps through regularly.
Knowing Jane was about to arrive when the ‘witching hour’ began made the early days of motherhood much easier to cope with and the time I spent with our baby more enjoyable. Each time the routine changed I have asked Jane for advice, which she has been willing to share, despite no longer nursing for us. The moment I find out I’m pregnant with the next baby I’ll be booking Jane in!
Amelia
When I first met Jane, I was depressed. My 6 month old girl, Charlie, was waking 3 or 4 times a night and I was settling her back down with breastfeeding. She was attached to the dummy and wrapped up like a mummy to sleep (but a Harry Houdini). My 2 year old, Ben, had me up a couple of times at night wanting me to sleep with him and my husband was working long hours including on call during the nights. I was so exhausted I couldn’t think straight, wasn’t eating properly and had zero self confidence. I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Then along came Jane, my saviour! She had an instant rapport with my kids (very rare to see with Ben) and importantly with my husband and I. She gently took charge and sent me to bed. I was filled with hope and comfort, knowing she was going to help us.
Over the following weeks, Jane came two nights a week to give me a break and to sort out Charlie’s sleeping patterns. I was able to stop feeding her in the middle of the night, then away went the dummy and the swaddling. Charlie wasn’t happy at first, but I was stunned to see how quickly she took to the new routine, waking more happy than ever. It was a joy to see Jane with her, giving her so much love and affection.
That was the job Jane was here to do, but on top of that she spent hours talking to me – listening to me unload, offering gentle advice, giving me lots of positive reinforcement and making sure I ate! She gave me back my confidence, self esteem and SLEEP!
Jane would also speak to my husband, offering her words of wisdom. Oh, how I needed someone other than me to do that!
So THANKS Jane. I really couldn’t have done it without her. We love her!
Kath
Jane came into our lives with the arrival of our second baby, Susannah who was born only 14 months after her (little!) big brother Hugh. Before Susannah was born we realised that life with a teething toddler and a newborn was going to be quite a challenge and had lined up Jane to help us with some Post Natal care.
We really benefited from Jane’s help over the course of a few weeks as she assisted us with the day to day realities of getting everyone fed, bathed, settled and sleeping. It might not sound like alot but the demands of an active toddler and a newborn were often incompatible and Jane’s down-to-earth advice, willingness to roll up her sleeves and her capacity for taking initiative were welcome and much needed at our house.
Jane’s arrival at our door each visit was always a breath of fresh air! With her loving, calm and relaxed nature we all felt at ease in her company and she received the dubious honour of being treated like part of the family in no time! We are particularly grateful to Jane for helping us navigate nap and sleep routines which were natural and fluid and suited our lifestyle more than strict unwavering ‘regimes’. Being a parent herself, Jane has a natural ease with kids and babies and I had no reservations about handing over one or both of my littlies to her during visits, she always managed beautifully and they absolutely loved her attentions.
I’d recommend Jane to anyone who finds aspects of parenting a newborn baby challenging, even for second or third time parents: there is certainly no shame in getting some help when you need it! Jane helped keep us functional and relatively sane through an important but demanding time in our lives and we will always be grateful for that.
Amelia C
We used the services of Jane Adams as a mothercraft night nurse following the birth of our 3rd baby almost 2 years ago. She was always so lovely to deal with and we couldn’t recommend her services highly enough. Having this type of support enables you to enjoy the special time in one’s life without having extra pressure and sleep deprivation. Jane was there for us all the way and we will always be indebted to her for the special memories over this period. Jane is such a warm and caring person and our two other children really took to her too!
Jacki
I would have no hesitation in recommending the services of Jane.
Jane’s assistance in implementing a day management plan was invaluable. Her approach was consultative, whilst genuine in her care for providing a solution that fit the circumstances of our child’s sleeping difficulties.
She addressed each of our concerns individually and simplicity and did her best to tailor a plan specific to our needs.
Our daughter Charlotte is now sleeping beautifully both day and night and we are enjoying the benefits of a happier healthier child.
Helen
I had just had my 3rd child (Allegra) and with two older brothers bringing home germs she got sick and ended up in hospital for a few days. I was at my wits end, extremely sleep deprived, a husband with pneumonia, VERY emotional and trying to keep things together. On top of that Allegra wasn’t sleeping , not feeding and not gaining weight.
Courtney
A friend recommended Jane who was nothing short of amazing. She came in with a calming confidence that settled me immediately. Through her years of experience she scooped up my little one and told me to go to bed. I slept soundly that night knowing Allegra was in good hands.
Jane is a baby whisperer who undoubtedly understands all the needs of your little ones and can help you through ANY situation. However, more importantly for me, was that she is a beautiful and nurturing woman who genuinely cares for the mothers well being as well as her bubs. She took the time to listen and understand my situation and used that to tailor her care to our needs. An attribute I know she does with all her clients. With Jane’s advice, support and suggestions Allegra is thriving. I cannot recommend her highly enough… don’t struggle- it’s not worth it.
Jane has been an incredible support to our family and extended family for over 5 years & has helped us with both of our children. What sets Jane apart is her ongoing dedication and commitment not only to the children but to the entire family. Her genuine care for the family is invaluable. Jane had our son sleeping through at 9 weeks and our daughter who had acute reflux and milk protein intolerance at 15 weeks. Her knowledge extends far beyond sleep consultancy. The post natal care she gave with both children, especially our daughter with her issues helped us immensely, Jane has and always be our go-to on all things baby. Nothing is too much, no hurdle can’t be problem solved. Jane is an integral part of our lives and has become part of our family.
Laura
With no hesitation or exaggeration, Jane saved our lives!
Alexandra
When Jane came into our home I was immediately relieved … she was so competent and reassuring. She gave us the tools that we needed to care for our daughter and more importantly the confidence to know that We were doing a good job. With her guidance our darling daughter was sleeping perfectly through the night and on an achievable daytime routine within 3 days.
I literally thought I could have taken over the world. My husband and I appreciated her nurturing, humour and limitless care.
When our second daughter arrived we thought we had this sleeping thing in the (sleeping) bag only to call Jane in tears asking her to save us again with our spirited second daughter.
Once again the moment she stepped into the house the relief flooded us and we knew that all would be ok.
We will forever be grateful for Jane and she has remained a much loved member of our family.
After a tough first year, we were introduced to Jane by a family member who sang her praises. What we didn’t know before Jane arrived was that our lives would be changed for the better! Jane is incredibly warm and personable with all members of the family. She came in to help with our bubs sleep but left helping us all in many different ways!
Bianca
I can’t speak more highly of Jane or the service she offers and how amazing she is at her job and as a person.
Jane is just amazing! She came into my life with my first born and just made everything easier.
She was warm and friendly and helped me get into a routine so I could start planning my life again.
I saw her twice in the first year. It saved me!I then saw Jane again with my second child. Which I found was surprising harder than my first. Juggling the two. Again she saved me mentally.
Within days he was sleeping through and on set time bottles. Both boys are in such a clockwork routine now. Thanks to Jane. My husband and I couldn’t be happier. All thanks to Jane.
She is truly a beautiful person.
Karen