Co- sleeping

[EllieG]

I just wondered how many mummies are co sleeping? We seem to have got into a really bad habit of doing it every night and now T won't sleep in his crib have tried Ewan and he doesn't work, I really need some help . Also tried swaddling and a dummy but neither is working he is ebf.

 

[Alexandra84]

It's not really a bad habit. Babies are meant to sleep close to their mother so you're not doing anything wrong. Just make sure that you keep pillows and duvets away from your LO as they're suffocation hazards (a light blanket would be best), check that there are no gaps between your mattress and the bed frame, and don't drink alcohol or take drugs or anything like that (which you're probably not doing anyway).

There are excellent safe co-sleeping recommendations from the NCT:

• Make sure your baby can’t fall out of bed.
• Keep your baby cool by using sheets and blankets rather than a duvet.
• Always put your baby to sleep on her back rather than her front or side.
• Don’t use a pillow – babies don’t need a pillow until they are one year old.
• Never risk falling asleep with your baby on a sofa or armchair.

Women who breastfeed and co-sleep generally have a 'c' shape around their baby so she is protected from the pillow or blanket covering her face. Many parents do routinely sleep with their baby in bed and the most important thing is do so in the safest possible way.


There is also a very good overview of co-sleeping and why babies have trouble sleeping alone or away from mum here:
http://www.naturalchild.org/james_mckenna/biological.html

You are not alone. The majority of parents co-sleep with their baby at some point, whether they do it occasionally, for part of the night or full-time. It's up to you to decide what you want to do. As our HV said, only you and your partner know what is best for your family. We co-slept with our little girl from birth and she is now two years old. It was the only way she would sleep in the early months and also made breastfeeding at night much easier and we both got much more sleep. So we decided to carry on as that was what was best for us.
x

 

[talulahgosh]

Co sleeping is actually being in the same room, bed sharing is what you mean.

And, personally, I don't think there is anything bad about either. But I am raising my baby in a third culture in a region of the world where they all think cots and cribs are inhumane!

Do you want to know how to bed share safely? (Excellent post above) Or to move Toby back into his crib? Does the side come off his crib? You could side car it onto yout bed and start there? Then he can be in the crib, but close and then over time you can add the side back on, move the crib away etc.

But bed sharing isn't bad or wrong, despite what western society might choose to tell you. It is only wrong if it isn't working for baby or you.

 

[EllieG]

I bed shared with my other children, just worried about squashing Toby whilst I'm asleep! Thank you both for your advice, I suppose I was looking for tips on how to get him to settle in his crib, the side doesn't come off.
I wear him a lot in the wrap and have a big family so he is not used to being put down but it's important for my other children that I can spend time alone with them too

 

[cosmicgirl]

I have bed shared (and still am mostly) with my one year old. We started this when he grew out of his Moses basket and as he is ebf it was easier as I could feed him frequently throughout the night without having to get up. I only meant to do this on and off but little man loves being in my bed and now (age one) he won't go into his cot and only spends a couple of hours each night in his cot. I wish I hadn't brought him into our bed, I've never been comfortable with bed sharing, I cannot relax and I haven't had a decent nights sleep in months. I am exhausted every day in work.
I'm hoping when he is no longer ebf (another thing I would like to give up but little man refuses!) that he will settle in his cot and spend the night there. My partner has slept downstairs for months because of this.
Family keep telling me I've made a rod for my own back, I brush it off as if I'm not worried but I worry that he has been in my bed too long now!
I'll be watching this thread with interest, good luck to you

 

[PyscoFalcon]

I bed shared until Katie was 12 weeks old then slowly started trying in her cot again with side off,next to bed but my arm still around her and my head near hers. Then I slowly moved further and further away from her over the weeks.
At 7 months she was happy to go into her own room with the cot side up as long as we left both doors open so she could hear us

 

[russellmuscle]

This post is 2 years old.

I imagine the OP and the rest of the subscribers have their answer by now....


xxxx

 

[violet13]

Baby is still in our room it makes me feel better and more comfortable, however we do share our bed occasionally the last few nights he's been happy in his next to me and slept Well it isn't a bad habit it's baby wanting to be close its natural xxx

 

[JD.Deedee]

Friggin heck, just noticed cause of another post and checked out the commenter's comments to see why.. Seems like motherhow website spam