About Susan Hawkins
Hi, I’m Susan; the person behind Baby Sleep Optimizer.
This site didn’t start as a business. It started at 3:14 a.m., staring at a baby who would not sleep, with a shelf of contradictory sleep books and a group chat full of well-meaning advice that didn’t work. I did what I always do when I’m overwhelmed: I started reading the actual research.
Over the following years, that turned into a genuine specialty. I’ve spent countless hours in the peer-reviewed literature on infant sleep: how sleep cycles mature, why the 4-month regression happens, how wake windows change month by month, and what the evidence really says about sleep training methods from gentle to cry-it-out. I don’t have a lab, but I approach this the way a researcher would: source-first, skeptical of viral claims, and honest about what we don’t yet know.
What I believe:
- Every baby is different; templates should be starting points, not rules.
- Parents deserve the “why,” not just the “what.”
- Guidance should be gentle on the baby and on the parent.
- I will never pretend to be your doctor. Anything on this site is educational and evidence-based, and your pediatrician always comes first, especially on safe-sleep questions.
How I work: I write every guide myself, cite reputable sources (like the AAP and published sleep research), review products I actually research for safety certifications, and update articles as new evidence emerges.
If my writing helps you get even one more hour of sleep tonight, it did its job.
Have a question or a correction? Email me at susan@babysleepoptimizer.com; I read everything.