Is Tresillian Worth It? What To Do If It Doesn’t Work

Tresillian is an Australian not-for-profit early parenting organisation. Established back in 1918, Tresillian is designed to support families with newborns or children in the early years. 

As parents, we know how essential sleep is for our babies (and our own) overall well-being. If your child isn’t getting enough sleep or you’re unable to nail down a sleeping schedule with a newborn, it’s only natural to turn to experts. Hundreds of thousands of Australian parents turn to Tresillian for this support each year, but with families coming out the other end with mixed results, it begs the question: Is Tresillian worth it?

If your baby or child is struggling with sleep and you’re looking into Tresillian, understanding how Tresillian works and how it compares to alternative solutions is important to make an informed decision on where to get the right support.

What is Tresillian? 

Tresillian is Australia’s largest early parenting organisation, supporting families with newborn babies up to three-year-old children. Parents whose babies struggle with crying, sleeping, and feeding can access Tresillian through Medicare. 

Supported by the NSW Ministry for Health, Tresillian offers five-day programs in which families receive education about a child’s developmental needs and learn new skills, such as self-settling techniques, to support their child’s sleep. 

At its core, Tresillian is a program designed to help new parents adjust to taking care of a newborn. The program delivery can differ from family to family, as the services are designed to offer intensive support for bedtime routines and sleep cycle guidance. 

In terms of methodology, generally, Tresillian programs emphasise self-settling. Self-settling is when babies learn to settle and fall asleep by themselves. 

Is Tresillian worth it? 

For many families, Tresillian has helped parents to implement strategies and techniques to promote a better routine, schedule, and overall sleeping experience with newborn or baby. However, Tresillian does not work for all parents. It can be very structured, difficult to mirror at home, and not necessarily tailored to the needs of the parents and child. 

The program is delivered either through a day or residential 4 day, 5 night service. And while there is some tailoring involved, it really does depend on the parents and their individual experience. For some, the Tresillian experience may not be customised enough and feel too much like a one-size-fits-all method. No two children are the same, so sleeping patterns, behaviours, and routines should be treated differently. 

That being said, Tresillian has hugely benefited thousands of Australian families. After the five-day program, families should leave Tresillian with a set of skills to encourage healthy sleeping habits and routines. This is enough for some families to handle the sleeping schedules at home, but for other families, they may require more assistance.

What should I do if Tresillian doesn’t work?

Tresillian reported just under a 10% dissatisfaction rate from July 2021 to June 2022 and an incident rate of 21.6% from 2021 to 2022. Tresillian does not work for some families for a variety of reasons, including a lack of customisation, limited alternative methods to settle the child, and undertaking programs in group settings. 

Tresillian’s in-person program can place families in the same room over five days, and other children crying or simply the environment itself can impact a baby’s sleep, the ability to implement the routine, and overall progression. Tresillian nurses oversee a large group of families at a time, and every single need may not be met at all times. 

That being said, Tresillian may not work on the first try. Some families report having gone to Tresillian twice or more and have seen improvements in their baby’s sleep habits and routine. 

If you have found that Tresillian did not work for you, the environment was not conducive to the support you need, or you’ve been multiple times – sleep consulting may be more appropriate for you and your family. 

The difference between Tresillian and sleep consulting

Similar to Tresillian, the goal of sleep consulting is to provide support to parents, teaching skills and strategies so that the family can fall into a healthy routine together. However, the difference between Tresillian and sleep consulting is that the latter offers unlimited, customised support for families based on their specific situations and needs.

Unlike Tresillian, sleep consulting is completely customised to the parents, their baby, and the lifestyle of the family. As a sleep consultant, I take the time to understand your baby’s cues, so you, as the parent, can pick up on these needs without focussing on a strict routine or wake windows.

Benefits of sleep consulting 

Working with a gentle sleep coach can benefit any family. As a sleep consultant, my goal is to provide personalised and effective sleep solutions – I’ll take the time to understand your family, your child’s temperament, and the day-to-day activities that contribute to the current sleep routine concerns. 

My primary goal is to help parents to build the skills and use the necessary tools to promote better sleep for the whole family! I help families by creating age-appropriate sleep plans, solving sleep issues like sleep regression, nap transitions, and feeding adjustments, and establishing flexible routines that work for both parents. 

Combining extensive expertise as a midwife and a lactation consultant and a holistic approach to sleep training, I help uncover the root cause of the problem and provide clarity, intuition, and the skills you need to tackle sleep issues in the comfort of your own home. 

I provide ongoing support and adjustments as needed to ensure you continue to move forward in achieving better sleep for you and your baby. If you’re interested in learning more about how my sleep training can help – get in touch today!