For Basma Reyes, a difficult journey with her daughter’s sleep sparked a passion for helping other families find a gentler way forward. Now a certified Infant and Child Sleep Consultant, through Building Better Sleep, she offers personalised, responsive support to help parents understand their children’s sleep without compromising connection. Her approach looks beyond sleep routines to consider each child’s individual needs and the many factors that influence their sleep. At the heart of her work is a desire to help parents feel heard, supported and empowered. A mum of two, Basma shares how motherhood and faith shaped her business, the challenges of finding balance, and her hopes and dreams for the future.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
My children are the heart of everything I do. They inspired the journey that led me here; my business and my passion were both born through my experience as their mum.
My daughter, my firstborn, struggled with sleep from an early age. I spent months desperately searching for answers and trying anything I could to help her, but nothing I found online seemed to make a difference. I was often told that she would “grow out of it” and that the challenges we were experiencing were “normal”.
As a first-time mum, it was incredibly disheartening to feel like my concerns – and the needs of both my baby and myself – weren’t being taken seriously. I knew that something wasn’t right.
When I found out I was pregnant with my second child, my daughter was 13 months old and only sleeping for 1-2 hours in total each night.
Something had to change, but I didn’t want that change to come at the expense of our connection or my values as a parent. I wasn’t comfortable with leaving her to cry it out; I was determined to find a gentler way forward.
Thankfully, I found a sleep consultant whose approach felt right for our family. Through that experience, I discovered that there was so much more to understand about infant and child sleep than I had ever realised. I became fascinated by the many factors that can influence sleep, and what began as a desperate search for help grew into a genuine passion.
That passion led me to complete my own certification as an Infant and Child Sleep Consultant and, ultimately, to create a business centred around gentle, responsive and personalised sleep support that dives into the many deeper layers of sleep.
My children are the reason behind everything I do, and the passion they awoke in me is the force that drives my mission to make sure other parents feel heard, supported and empowered. My experience with improving my daughter’s sleep completely changed the course of my life. Now, I want to be the person I needed when I was desperate for answers – someone to listen, understand and show parents that better sleep is possible.
The launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
The truth is, I started with a passion, a trust in God’s guidance and timing and a relentless drive to help other families. I knew it would be a process and that building something meaningful would take time. I didn’t initially have a clear business plan or know exactly where it would take me. I simply knew I had found something I deeply cared about and was determined to pursue.
There were many steps to take before I was ready to launch, and it took around two years to bring the business to life. I invested heavily in building my knowledge, completing my certification as a Sleep Consultant and gaining a number of additional qualifications and accreditations to strengthen my skills and knowledge as both a consultant and business owner.
I was doing all of this while being right in the thick of motherhood. I completed my initial certification while pregnant and chasing after a wondrous toddler, then continued my further study while caring for a newborn. Today, I run my business while raising two young children, so motherhood will always be the core of this journey.
It has been a gradual process of learning, figuring things out as I go, refining, adapting and continually improving as I bring my vision to life. I certainly didn’t have everything mapped out in the beginning, but my trust in God’s plan gave me the drive to keep moving forward. I’m a big believer that knowledge is power, so I made it a priority to keep learning, growing and improving.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
I think my biggest breakthrough was the understanding that infant and child sleep is so much more than just sleep.
When I first started my own sleep journey with my daughter, I was searching for an answer – a solution. But the more I learned, the more I discovered that sleep isn’t an issue to “fix” or a behaviour to change. There are so many layers and contributing factors that influence a child’s ability to sleep, and I believe it is important to approach sleep holistically by looking at the whole child.
That understanding completely changed the way I approach sleep. Rather than conforming to a one-size-fits-all formula, I strive to understand each individual child and family I work with – what is happening beneath the surface, what might be influencing their sleep and what they truly need.
This shift became the foundation of my philosophy and ultimately shaped the way I built my business. I realised that the real value I could offer parents wasn’t simply a generic sleep plan (that they could probably find online); it was the knowledge, understanding and personalised support to uncover what was really going on, address the contributing factors and find a way forward that felt right for their family.
That was my breakthrough: moving from simply getting children to sleep to helping families understand sleep.
Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
I’m incredibly fortunate to have built a business that gives me flexibility and allows me to work around my family. However, that doesn’t mean finding balance is always easy. When raising two young children while growing a business, there are certainly days when the balance feels more like juggling.
I am great at adapting but often find myself taking on more than I should. I quickly learnt that boundaries are really important. For me, it is about remaining flexible and recognising that sometimes one will need me more than the other. It’s not necessarily about giving both equal amounts of time each day, but rather being intentional about where my energy is needed.
Protecting family time is really important to me. When I’m with my children, I ensure I am present and give them my full attention, and when I’m working, I offer that same focus to my clients and business. But I always try to remind myself that this is my life and I am not a machine. There are times when my family needs more of me and times when I can pour more into my business. I’ve learnt to embrace that I am just human, and that’s okay.
Ultimately, my family is the reason I started this business, so I never want my work to come at their expense. I want to build something I’m passionate about while also being present for the time with them I will never get back, so I remind myself that I’m building this business for my family, not instead of my family. My children are always at the heart of what I do – this helps me maintain sight of what really matters.
The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
One of the biggest challenges I’ve had to overcome is the mental restriction of doubting I can be more than one thing. I’ve had to navigate working through mum guilt. There are times I have felt overwhelmingly guilty for working when I could be with my children. Equally, there are moments when I’ve felt guilty for stepping away from my business to prioritise my family. At times, it can feel like no matter where my attention is, I should be doing more, doing better.
I’ve had to learn that working doesn’t invalidate my efforts to be a devoted mum. My children are the reason I started this business, and unfortunately, running a business means there will be times I have to be away from them. It still pains me, but learning to let go of the idea that I have to simultaneously give 100% to everything, all of the time, has been a huge part of my journey.
I’ve also had to overcome the uncertainty that comes with building something from scratch. I had the passion, but I didn’t have all the answers or a clear roadmap. I had to educate myself and build my confidence along the way. Truthfully, there have been plenty of moments when I’ve questioned whether I could really do it all. But I’ve learnt to trust the process, trust God’s guidance and remind myself why I started in the first place.
I don’t think I can say I’ve completely overcome the challenges of balancing motherhood and business – I’m still living them. But I’ve learnt to navigate them with more grace and self-compassion.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
Funnily enough, I believe the biggest pro to running your own business is also the biggest con – it is completely yours.
On one hand, this means there are the pros of flexibility and freedom. It allows me to be present and stay home with my babies, which is something I am incredibly grateful for. I love waking up and spending the day with them, even if it means all of my time when they are asleep is spent working; it’s worth it. I have the ability to work around my children, choose my hours, make my own decisions and shape the business around my values.
However, it is also a con because with that freedom and flexibility comes responsibility. When it is your own business, you are the one responsible for making sure it keeps running. There is always something you could be doing, another email to answer, an idea to reform, a skill to improve. It’s often difficult to switch off, and running a business comes with a significant mental load.
Ultimately, the pros and the ability to be home with my children far outweigh the challenges for me. Having the opportunity to support my family by doing something that I love and that aligns with my values is incredibly rewarding, even if it is not always easy.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
My hope is to continue growing the business into something meaningful while staying true to why I started it – to help families feel heard, supported and empowered. I want parents to know that sleep doesn’t have to cost them connection. I want them to recognise my name and know that I am here for them. If I can make a genuine difference in the lives of families while being present for my own children, that would be success to me.
Visit the Building Better Sleep website to find out more, and connect with Basma on Instagram.
