tonight, babies who just won't sleep and parents on the verge of breaking down. spending thousands to end the nightmare, but is this the answer? it's not just tv, it's "game of thrones" days away from the new season. we'll learn the language of an entertainment revolution. and one of nature's most iconic species. polar bears may get a passport to sanction. a year to life for one bear.

from new york city, this is "nightline" with cynthia mcfadden. >> good evening. at the end of a hard, long day,

resting your head against a cool pillow case and curling up it may seem like the ultimate escape. but for parents with babies, it can be a constant ordeal with wake-ups and screaming fits that can last for hours. and some bleary eyed moms and dads will try and spend anything for a little peace and quiet. [ baby crying ] 2-year-old mia minutes before was playing and reading down stairs. she just doesn't want to go to sleep. her parents do this terrible tango every fight. >> let's go night-night. >> we're up anywhere from, like, three to six times a night. >> reporter: and mia isn't the only problem. they also have a 9-month-old baby emily who also doesn't sleep. between the two children, danielle and marchello are up

all night. >> i get maybe three or four minutes a night. and it's not consecutive sleep. >> you know there are geneva conventions against what you're doing. a typical night for the family goes something like this -- they put mia down at 7:30, which can quickly become 8:30. >> we have to sit there and hold her hand then. it's a whole procesprocess. >> once mia finally does fall asleep, she doesn't stay that way long. >> between midnight and 2:00 a.m., 1:00 or 2:00 a.m., she's screaming so loud that a, i'm afraid she's going to wake emmy up. and b, i'm afraid she's going to hurt herself. so at that point, the only thing we've done in the past was give her a bottle and bring her into bed with us.

>> reporter: meanwhile, emmy isn't sleeping well either. both parents work full time and they're both at their breaking point. how much would you pay to get your life back is the question? >> i was just telling -- >> a whole lot. >> i would give up my life savings at this point. >> reporter: so they're giving in and paying up. by turning to an increasing trend among exhausted parents. a paid sleep consultant. enter dream team baby. connor herman and her colleague kyra ryan come into a family's home and take back the night. >> so glad to meet you. . >> reporter: sleep training small children is a booming business. the dream team charges close to $2,000 for an overnight stay like this and follow-up consultations. though they did not charge marchello and danielle for agreeing to let "nightline" tell your story. the method is controversial -- let your child cry, no matter

how painful it is to hear. step number one, blackout the windows so the room is completely dark. step number two, turn on a sound machine to drouwn out any noise. and number three, put the baby to bed and walk away. >> we really believe after 4 months, children are ready to be successful swle fuful sleeping night. >> reporter: mia has been reading a story on the ipad about a baby that goes to. bed all on her own. but the book probably didn't prepare her for this. one kiss from mommy. >> just like little bear, mommy thinks you're ready to go to bed all by yourself. >> love you. >> reporter: what happens next is not for the faint of heart.

[ baby crying ] mommy! >> reporter: after about 20 minutes which feels like an eternity, mia finally fam lly f asleep. >> tell me what you were experiencing? >> so anxious. i wanted to be with emmy and mia was crying. >> reporter: but during the fourth of the night, she wakes up four more times. >> mommy's bed, mommy's bed. i mean, how could you not bring her in when she's asking for mommy's bed. >> reporter: but sticking with the dream team's plan, they do not go to her. >> mom! mom! >> reporter: until 7:30 a.m. >> see there, i knew you could do it. you can teach emmy how to do it because you're the big sister.

>> reporter: soon after, she's happily playing. a recent five-year study showed letting a baby cry caused no long-lasting physical or psychological harm. some parents and doctors think it can potentially leave babies feeling abandoned and helpless. as a mother who let the baby cry it out what's wrong with letting them do that? if it teaches them how to self-soothe and going to sleep. >> i would think of crying it out as a similar way to spanking. spanking can work. a lot of people tell you that's the best thing, that's what worked to their kids. but if it fundamentally doesn't feel right and it teaches them the wrong message. >> reporter: dr. harvey karp is the author of "the happiest baby on the block" books and dvds. >> when a child cries, maybe they're yanking your change or in the habit. but maybe they're in distress.

>> reporter: the dream team says it's the best way to achieve long-term sleep success. >> a good night sleep is a great, yummy, wonderful thing and that's what you're going tor giving to your child. then it's something to celebrate. >> reporter: two weeks after the intervention, the team's methods seem to have paid off. miraculously, mia is sleeping 12 hours a night and going to bed without a peep. >> night-night. >> good job. >> night-night. >> reporter: emmy, however, is a work in progress. [ baby crying ] >> that's the hard part. >> reporter: but 10 minutes later, she, too, goes to sleep all on her own. >> it's 7:37 and it would appear as though everybody is sleeping right now. >> reporter: giving danielle and marchello the first quiet time they've had in a month.

>> reporter: we checked with them six months after their experiment and both emmy and mia are still sleeping througho ini night. the couple say sleep training has been life changing. >> and we actually have lives. i can make plans after 7:30 at this point. >> reporter: for now, it's sweet dreams for everyone. >> the girls are healthier, they're happier. i can't even imagine a time when we didn't have it like this. >> reporter: for "nightline" i'm j juju chang. >> how "game of thrones" is creating a culture and language all its own.

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>> if you're not watching "game of thrones" you're missing out on a cultural phenomenon. at least that's what die hard fans would have you think. and make no mistake, there are a lot of them. as the show's third season begins, abc's david wright learns, the game and the language that's breaking all tv's rules. >> as "game of thrones" starts season three, there be dragons headed their way. fire-breathing dragons, promising to heat up the action. >> i might be your prisoner, but i'm a free woman. >> reporter: the idea heads will roll is not just a metaphor. where all the women seem to get naked sooner or later. >> i have always wanted to see a dragon. and where a dwarf is a sex symbol. "game of thrones" is kind of like "lord of the rings" with an

nc-17 rating. >> we'll show you no mercy. >> reporter: only on hbo. >> the sex, the intrigue, the fighting. there's a character for everyone. now you can fall in love or affiliate through whoever you want. >> reporter: the show is wildly popular among men for obvious reasons. and the hbo pantheon, more popular week to week than "the sopranos" or "the wire" were. but this is not just for dungeon and dragons fans. >> for the ladies who think it's just swords and battles, they should seriously take a look. there's some serious kick a s s st -- ass roles. >> and some girl on girl too. the "saturday night live" skit

was right on. for the first time, hbo is giving the show star treatment, including a traveling exhibition of props and costumes that just opened in new york city. >> this is about as lavish as it comes. it's not a cheap show to make. >> reporter: what's dothraki? who better to explain, someone in the heart of the show's audience? >> it's a native tong of the horse war lords of ethos as seen in "the game of thrones." >> i'm going to go through the numbers from 1 to 10. >> reporter: on youtube you'll find practically an entire syllabus, pronunciation guides,

and chat rooms. >> right now dethraki is about at 3,700 words. i would love to get it to 10,000 words. >> reporter: this is the father of modern dothraki. whole scenes done with subtitles. an entire language created by an amateurli amateurli amateurli amateurli amateurlinguist. >> i interpreted how george r. martin would want these thing pronounced. my sentence would be si

sik mashir aki. >> what's it like to have a language that's real? >> the bar is raised. the audience expects this level of authenticity. >> reporter: he's been hired to create a second "game of thrones" language that will be debuted next year. >> there's more deaths. there's tender moments, too. it's my favorite season so far. >> it's kind of a game changer because people switch on a head. >> reporter: and as a dothraki might say -- >> i'm david wright in hollywood. next up, everyone lues a polar bear. find out why these creatures are fighting for their lives. ♪

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>> whether it's cola or holiday commercials or beneath the arm of a doting child, polar bears

are universally loved, powerful hunters who because of their cuddly look have won a special spot in our hearts. but as the global climate changes, we follow one bear's quest for survival. rooert po >> reporter: polar bears are among the most magnificent creatures. >> there are only a handful of truly iconic species on this planet and polar bears are one of them. they're absolutely extraordinary at what they do. >> reporter: hunt and kill. but times are tough for these ferocious rulers of the ice. meet ice bear. at 3 years old, he's a teenager in polar bear years. setting out on his first summer alone. but along with the thrill of independence comes the challenge of survival as the ground beneath him melts away.

>> last year, the extent of sea ice lost during the summer was the greatest ever recorded. his mother couldn't have prepared him for such a drastic change in his environment. >> reporter: ice bear needs to eat at least 40 seals through the long summer months, when polar bears go into a state of semihibernation. a few generations ago, he would have had another month to hunt. >> their main food is the ring seal. the ice goes away, their basic forage base goes away. >> reporter: nearly 2,000 bears live in canada's hudson bay. each year when the ice melts, some head south, swimming 300 miles to find a summer home. along the way, the scent of walrus is too enticing to resist. but taking on a tusked creature more adept at the water means

coming away with only a bloody nose. ice bear continues swimming, reaching land after 10 straight days without sleeping or eating. unfortunately it's a sweltering 82 degrees. pure misery. in august, ice bear finally catches a break. a herd of walrus. exhausted from binging on clams. he moves in and picks off a baby. it will last him for days. he followed this herd for the rest of the summer. as the temperatures finally begin to drop, ice bear encounters a pack of dogs. and something amazing happens. instead of attacking his known enemies, he seems to seek their company. >> he's been on his own for a very long time. he's been struggling for survival. it looks like he really gets a measure of comfort in the

company of these sled dogs. >> reporter: he's survived a long, hot summer on land, one of the longest ever. >> as polar bear populations become stressed, it's kind of an indication that the system itself is stressed. >> reporter: scientists project within 30 years, 2/3 of all polar bears could be gone. >> that's the wonderful thing about life, that gives you hope under these dire circumstances that polar bears, too, can find a way. the problem is that forcing them to do it in a generation or two. >> reporter: here's hoping that like ice bear, his grand cubs will find their way.

thank you for joining us. as always, we're online at abc.com. have a great easter weekend. good night, america.