We recently connected with Saja Hayek and have shared our conversation below.

Saja, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the story behind how you got your first job in field that you currently practice in.

My first client was a neighbor of mine, Sara. Her son was 8.5 months old. He would need to be carried and rocked to sleep and then wake up every few hours at night requiring her to feed him to sleep again. The first nap of the day wasn’t so bad, but as the day progressed, Yeyha got cranky and would need more and more help to sleep. Sara felt “drained” and was unable to wean the nighttime feeds so she often “gave up” soon after trying. She was concerned about her son waking up cranky in the morning instead of happy and relaxed, and she was feeling frustrated at not having enough energy to give her 7 year-old child the attention and care she needed.

That is when she decided that something needed to change so she filled my daily habits questionnaire and followed my customized Sleep Program consistently for 2 weeks. The result was this:
– 11 hours of uninterrupted nighttime sleep
– 2 naps/day (each being 1-2 hours long)
– No carrying or rocking or feeding to sleep

In other words, Yeyha and Sara got the rest their minds and bodies needed. Yeyha learned to sleep independently – all that Sara had to do was put him in his crib and wish him good night at bedtime.

Working with Sara was very special because she was a friend and my first client. I was confident in my knowledge of baby sleep to take her on. I wanted to make a good impression and I did! Almost immediately she referred me to a friend of hers who I also worked with. This really gave me the last confidence boost I needed to say to myself “I can really do this!”

I’m a nurse to begin with, so helping people is a something I am truly passionate about. I only became passionate about helping sleep-deprived moms after I became one.

Saja, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I studied Nursing at the American University of Beirut and I’m a Certified Sleep Sense™ Consultant. I am committed to empowering you to find a sleep solution that takes into consideration your child’s personality, your family’s sleep needs, and your daily routines.

My son is the reason I became so passionate about sleep; here’s our story:
Karl was born in October of 2019 and he was such a pleasant baby! When he turned 6 months old, we were in lockdown, he was teething, I started introducing solids, he started to learn how to crawl…all this excitement meant that he started waking up at night. I have to say here that I was blessed by the fact that around the age of 3 months Karl would sleep for 6-8 hour stretches at night. Little did I know that these wakeups are a normal part of dealing with developmental milestones. Instead of enhancing his independent sleep skills, I made him rely on me to put him back to sleep.

The scenario 2 months later was this: wakeups every 2-3 hours, early morning wakeups (as early as 4:30 AM!), and A LOT of crying before naps. He even started to refuse meals, expressed milk, and get tired faster when I was breastfeeding him. He stopped gaining weight! We were both exhausted and sleep deprived. I would fall asleep everywhere; I was in a bad mood most of the time – I was a nervous wreck.

I quickly realized that Karl’s attachment to me is a product of consistent, reliable parenting, loving reassurance, and confidence that I will keep him safe, secure, and protected. Opportunities to assure, comfort, and encourage him will present themselves several times every day, and when I’m well-rested, I’m more patient, more engaged, and better able to provide the love and support that are the true foundation of a secure attachment.

That’s when I decided to implement the Sleep Sense™ method; a decision that transformed our lives.
I couldn’t keep this knowledge to myself, so I got certified and started DODO Sleep Consulting. I have always believed that knowledge is power, and that is why I am committed to sharing with you all the knowledge and techniques that I have learned to help you and your family get the sleep you need.

I believe that we are all doing what we can to give our children the best. We all have different parenting styles and I can promise you that I will do my best to accommodate yours, because you’re the only one who knows what is best for your child.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

I always reach out to potential clients first – when they start following me on IG or comment on a post/story, I always send them a DM.

It takes time and effort, but these are genuine relationships that I built with people who later became clients.

I always made an effort to answer at least one question that they had via DM before directing them to book a complimentary call or sign up to my newsletter.

I always have a kind, supportive, and respectful response to their parenting journey and the struggles that come with it. It’s genuine, I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t really care about their experiences!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I have a full-time corporate job, a toddler, my husband lives in another city and our families are in another country. That didn’t stop me from pursuing my passion and starting my business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.dodosleepconsulting.com/en/home/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dodosleepconsulting/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dodosleepconsulting
• Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/dodosleepconsulting