co sleeping???

[sarah2807]

Hi girls-i just wanted some advice re getting my Lo to sleep at night.

She is only 8 days old and in the day sleeps beautifully-in her pram, basket (wherever!) At night time she wil not settle at all in her moses basket. At first i thought she was hungry-I'm still sort of learning as far as the brest feeding is going and I was panicking at the thought of her being starving, but if you hold her she sleeps immediately. I also tried expressing milk ast night so I could see how much she was getting. She drank 4 floz and was clearly tired but would not sleep in her basket.
I tried leaving her for a few minutes, but it seems like all she wanted was to be close to us and screamed every time I placed her down. In the end we placed her inbetween us and she slept from 12-6.

What do you all think about co-sleeping??
ideally I don't want to do it-I'm scared of her suffocating on a pillow or being squashed, but don't want to leave her in the basket when she obvioulsy wants a cuddle.

Does anyone have experience of this and any good ideas to help my LO feel more secure sleeping on her own at night.

Thnaks xxxx

 

[Emma58]

Midna advised me to roll up two blankets and put them either side and it worked a treat

Sam would not sleep in his basket without them,he was the same wanting to be cuddled.

We have just moved him into his cot and i was worried he'd still want them there but he is quite happy without them now.

I'd def give that a try first.

Good luck

 

[fothers]

I did the 2 rolled up blankets down each side too and that helped a lot, also wait til she is in a quite deep sleep before you place her in.

You could also try a hot water bottle on the mattress for a few minutes before she goes in to take the chill off it and putting one of your worn t-shirts around the blanket sausages so it smells like you.

 

[purple13]

double post, sorry

 

[purple13]

I still co sleep and love it .... just wish it would make a difference to how much she slept

i co-sleep and love it too. OH shares the bed with us and connor is in the middle or on my side depending on which boob he's hanging from connor still feeds at least 4 times during the night so i'd go insane if i couldn't sleep at the same time.

we've had him in bed with us from day 1 cos he hated being alone - just wanted constant cuddles. swaddling just made him angry... he will sleep in his own bed now but often there just doesn't seem any point cos the next feed is never far away. also he doesn't cry when he's next to me - just kicks me instead

trust your instincts hon

 

[Sherlock]

Sounds normal. LO wants to be close to you. Not long out of your tummy so being held close is comforting to her. I tried co sleeping on 3 occasions and its not for me. OH is a very deep sleeper and also Galen and I don't get on with BF'ing in bed lying down.

The first two weeks getting him to settle away from me holding him at night were a struggle. We tried lots of things, often meaning I held him for ages till he was deep asleep before transferring him to his basket.

Things we did that helped him settle in there (in no particular order)

a) Warmed it up first with a hot water bottle or a blast with the hairdryer. Nothing worse than a cold bed for a warm baby.

b) When putting him in we kept skin on skin contact while he settled. Just placed our hand on his head and gently rested it there. Stroked his head gently also.

c) Made sure he had a muslin under his top end that smelt of me. I slept with one for a night or two.

d) Played some calm classical music in the background. Stuck the CD player under his basket so he could hear it.

e) Kept bedroom very dark during changes and feeds. Made no real eye contact with him and didn't really talk either.

2 weeks after starting all this Galen was happy to settle in his basket no problem. We saw improvments within days of starting it. So much so he will go in wide awake and falls asleep himself easily. Same now he has moved to the cot. Goes off like a dream and we had no problems moving him over. He seems to love all the space to kick and wriggle

 

[muppetmummy]

Logan has slept in bed with me since day 1. Two midwives and the HV have told me it's fine. For hundreds of years babies slept with their parents, putting babies in cots is something the victorians encouraged, along with formula feeding. I believe nature intended for us to sleep beside our babies

 

[NIE]

Sorry double post x

 

[NIE]

I still co sleep. I complain about it but deep down I love it. We are planning to stop next month. It's going to be tough but it needs to stop as there is no more space in the bed. I'm not sure who will find it harder me or my wee star. x

 

[soverign]

I co sleep. Caelan hates his moses basket for some reason. When we put him in it he starts stressing and waving his arms about and hitting them on the sides and that causes him to cry even more. I just really needed my sleep and decided to try him in with us one night. I have never looked back! If it means I get at least 2 hours sleep then I don't mind!

 

[sarah2807]

Thanks girls.
I will try some of your suggestions tonight but if it doesn't work I'll just keep her with us for a while longer. i know she's only tiny and needs the security of a cuddle I was just worried that I was doing the wrong thing.

 

[Lola's Mummy]

We co-sleep but didn't really start doing it full time until she out grew her moses basket.
She would sometimes just want to be rocked in the basket but others nothing but a mummy cuddle would do

 

[kelsey]

up until my eldest was 5 (i think) he used to go to sleep in his own room, then come and sleep in with me when he awoke - which was usualy 2 or 3