Only if that is what you choose. Cry-it-out is one option, and it can work in a couple of nights; gentler, gradual methods take longer, and many families prefer them. Dr. Luczynski lays out the choices with their benefits, trade-offs, and timelines, and helps you pick the one that fits your family.

The Universal Pediatric Sleep Program

A child who falls asleep, and stays asleep.

A research-backed path from bedtime battles and too many wake-ups, built around what your family wants sleep to look like. I build the plan with you, then coach you through it until your sleep concerns are resolved.

A plan built for your child

Not a generic method. Your child's plan is shaped around one honest week of their nights and the specific pattern behind the wake-ups.

You are never doing it alone

You run the nights; Dr. L reads your updates, calls the moves, and meets you weekly until your sleep goals are met.

You choose the approach

There is more than one way to solve this. I lay out the options with their benefits, their trade-offs, and their timelines, and you choose the one that fits your family.

How the program works

Five steps to the sleep your family is hoping for.

Your child's readiness sets the pace. Most families move through it in four to eight weeks.

1
The interview and the diary week
Dr. L conducts a semi-structured interview with you about your child's nights, typically followed by about a week of collecting a sleep diary. Nothing changes at bedtime yet. We want to understand what is happening now, so the plan fits your family's hopes for your child's sleep.
2
The review meeting
We go through your week together, and I lay out the approaches that fit your child, from faster methods to the most gradual, with the benefits, the trade-offs, and how long each tends to take. You choose the one that fits your family, and we build the plan around it: the setup, who runs which nights, and the scripts for the hard moments.
3
Choosing the start night
Not the soonest night, the right one. We pick a night with energy in the tank, a clear runway, and both parents on the same page.
4
The teaching weeks
You run the nights and keep me posted as you go. We meet weekly, or more often when a step needs calibrating, and I coach you through the hard moments. Your child's calm nights, not a calendar, decide when the plan advances.
5
Reaching your family's goal, and a plan you keep
We get there: real progress toward the sleep you were hoping for, for your child and your family. You leave with a written plan and a clear playbook for handling the bumps that travel, illness, and change can bring later.

What is included

What you and your child get.

The core of the program, kept simple.

Your child's personalized sleep plan, step by step, with a tonight view you can print and a card for the middle of the night.
Weekly meetings with Dr. L, virtual or in your home, for the length of the program.
Support through the program, as you need it, so a hard night is answered in a few sentences, not left until the next meeting.

“A child who had not slept in their own bed in five and a half years. After six nights of working together, they were initiating sleep on their own, and re-initiating when they woke up overnight.”

From the practice · Sleep program · age 8

The commitment

A few focused weeks.

Most families reach the sleep they are hoping for in four to eight weeks. Your child's pace sets the timeline, not a calendar.

Every family starts with a free first call, so you can hear the approach and I can tell you honestly whether the program is what your child needs. From there it is weekly meetings, virtual or in your home, with support in between, until your sleep concerns are resolved.

Book the free first call

Why this works

Kevin Luczynski, PhD, BCBA-D

Children learn how to fall asleep. Whatever is present when sleep arrives becomes part of the conditions they look for, so when a piece of that is missing at 2 AM, they call for it.

The program changes those conditions and keeps them steady, tailored to the sleep your family wants. It is grounded in behavioral sleep science, and delivered by a doctoral-level board-certified behavior analyst who studies and teaches pediatric sleep. Dr. Luczynski recently co-authored the chapter "Pediatric Sleep: A Behavioral Account" in the APA Handbook of Behavior Analysis, with Dr. Nicole Rodriguez.

Who this is for

Honest about the fit.

The program serves children roughly 2 to 15 years old. Neurodivergent children are everyday work here, not an edge case: as many as 50 to 80 percent of autistic children experience sleep problems, and sleep struggles are common with ADHD as well. The plan is built around your child, including how they communicate and what helps them settle.

This program addresses behavioral issues associated with sleep, and most childhood sleep struggles are exactly that. If a medical concern could be affecting your child's sleep, such as loud snoring, breathing pauses, or pain, that belongs with your pediatrician first, and the free first call helps sort the order of operations.

It also asks something of you: a willingness to keep a short daily note so we can both see how the nights are going. Some way to verify progress is what makes the coaching work.

Before you reach out

The questions parents ask.

What does the program cost?

We talk cost on the free first call, once we both know the program is a fit for your child. It covers your child's plan, weekly meetings (virtual or in your home), and support throughout.

How long does it take?

Most families reach the sleep goals they set within four to eight weeks. Your child's readiness sets the pace, not a calendar.

What ages, and what about autism or ADHD?

Children roughly 2 to 15. Neurodivergent children are everyday work here, not an edge case: as many as 50 to 80 percent of autistic children experience sleep problems, and sleep struggles are common with ADHD as well. The plan is built around your child, including how they communicate and what helps them settle.

In person or virtual?

Both. The program runs in your home or by telehealth, and the coaching works wherever you are.

Is this cry-it-out?

Only if that is what you choose. Cry-it-out is one option, and it can work in a couple of nights; gentler, gradual methods take longer, and many families prefer them. My job is to lay out the choices with their benefits, their trade-offs, and how long each tends to take, then help you pick the one that fits your family.

When is this not the right fit?

When a medical concern could be affecting your child's sleep, such as loud snoring, breathing pauses, or pain. That belongs with your pediatrician first, and the free first call sorts it out before anyone commits.

The first step is a conversation

Tell me about your child's nights.

The first call is free. Tell me what bedtime and the small hours actually look like, and I will tell you honestly whether the program is what your family needs.

Book the free first call