co sleeping

[bumptobe29]

how do u ladies do it? my laptop wont let me see the guide to safe co sleeping that is on the sticky thread, so wondering about advice from u ladies that do it??

sometimes i find it is the only way to get my lo to settle, but he is only 2.5 weeks old and im so scared my or oh will roll and squash him or something or he will go under duvet. at the moment i just lay lo next to me with my arm around him (like im holding him) in between me and hubby. we have had no problems so far but it just petrifies me.

so how do u ladies co sleep, especially with a newborn?? x

 

[starangel27]

thats exactly how we do it not sure if its right tho, my little boy is only a week old and im terrified we will squash him too. i lay him so he is just under my pillow but find it so hard to relax i dont sleep properly anyway.
x

 

[Jchihuahua]

I was too scared when she was a newborn and only started co-sleeping more when she was about 6 months old.

 

[Cookie_Clare]

I used to sleep with my LO on our sofa bed. Our own bed isn't big enough for me and OH, let alone with a baby as well, I was always worried she'd fall out the side or have the duvet pulled over her head. The sofabed was really good though because the arms of the chair meant that LO couldn't fall out and there was plenty of room for us both, so I didn't have to worry about squishing her in the night!

I think a lot of ladies on here have the cots that go right against the bed, which seem to be quite good as LO has their own space, which again, reduces the risk of being squished!

Having said that though, I used to toss and turn loads in my sleep, and I don't do it at all if LO is in the bed.

 

[mandylou]

Having said that though, I used to toss and turn loads in my sleep, and I don't do it at all if LO is in the bed.

i noticed that too on the odd occasion i brought max into our bed. its weird your brain just knows that they are there and stays concious to the fact that you need to keep them safe

 

[lcside]

My midwife advised me to co-sleep at the beginning as it is supposed to encourage breastfeeding. However she said not to have them between you and oh, baby should be on the edge of the bed with you next to them and oh next to you. I slept like that when Patrick was a newborn but now if we bring him into our bed we put him inbetween us. xx

 

[pink.crazy]

I used to do it all the time with my first, he'd wake up 5/6ish and have a feed then sleep with me for an hour or 2. But with my new little one, I'm too scared as he's only just 6lbs and soooo tiny :/

 

[Cookie_Clare]

Having said that though, I used to toss and turn loads in my sleep, and I don't do it at all if LO is in the bed.

i noticed that too on the odd occasion i brought max into our bed. its weird your brain just knows that they are there and stays concious to the fact that you need to keep them safe

I know, I was so glad of it when I once fell asleep with LO in my arms while BFing. I was mortified when when I woke up - but I hadn't moved and thank God, LO was still happily snoozing away.

(That's also partly why we started co-sleeping, cos in the early days I really struggled to stay awake while feeding... )

 

[mackenzie]

We didn't plan on co sleeping as such, but we started after a few weeks because I was falling asleep mid feed sitting up- that scared me. I feel totally safe co sleeping with her, I sleep on my side facing her , we swap sides according to which boob's turn it is! Our instincts to protect our babies are amazing, apparently cosleeping mothers and babies have been observed and mothers periodically in half sleep check their babies covers, theirtemperature, position etc. My husband says that when he gets into bed -often after we are asleep- I move as if to shield her in my sleep.

 

[bumptobe29]

wow this is really interesting thankyou ladies for sharing your stories i felt so guilty falling asleep with him in bed with me!! i also accidently started co-sleeping as i was falling asleep while feeding which really did scare me as i was sat up.

icside, how did u feel sleeping with baby on edge of the bed?? i know that mothers are supposed to be MUCH more aware of baby in bed than dads are, but i feel more comfortable sleeping with him inbetween us than him on the edge of the bed, just incase he falls out?? x

 

[lcside]

wow this is really interesting thankyou ladies for sharing your stories i felt so guilty falling asleep with him in bed with me!! i also accidently started co-sleeping as i was falling asleep while feeding which really did scare me as i was sat up.

icside, how did u feel sleeping with baby on edge of the bed?? i know that mothers are supposed to be MUCH more aware of baby in bed than dads are, but i feel more comfortable sleeping with him inbetween us than him on the edge of the bed, just incase he falls out?? x

It did worry me to start with but after a few nights I got used to it. He always slept on his back and didn't move so never rolled out of bed. He always started off in his moses basket but usually after the 3.00am feed I used to bring him into bed as he would never settle in his basket again. Within minutes he would go back to sleep when laid next to me. xx

 

[Tacey]

Bumptobe29 - you can also use a bed guard if you are concerned about him falling out. It's also not recommended to cover babies with a duvet. I've had a fleece blanket to cover myself and Alice while DH hogs the duvet. You need to make sure pillows are well away from him too. I honestly feel Alice has been safer in with us than in a cot or moses basket. Plus the first thing you see in the morning is their gorgeous little faces!

 

[Cat lady]

This is really interesting. I didnt think it was reccommended and I felt so guilty as I have fallen asleep twice whilst breastfeeding. Also have dozed with my little man on the sofa, he is on my front and I have just nodded off.
But in general, Thomas sleeps in a moses basket which is right next to my bed.
xxx

 

[Kota]

we sleep with a bed guard on the side of the bed then P, them me, and OH on the other side of me. I sleep on my side facing P with his nose at nipple level, he has his own baby blanket over him and i tuck my blanket in under my side and only bring it up as far as under my boobs so he can nurse during the night without me waking. depending on how much he drinks during the night i may have to roll him into the middle for the morning feed so he can nurse on the other side which puts him in between us but he's much bigger now so i'm not worried about OH, besides, he's also very aware that he's there.
when he was younger if he was in the middle then he'd sleep in the crook of my arm using my upper arm or boob as a pillow making it impossible for my OH to roll as my arm was in the way.

 

[Kota]

This is really interesting. I didnt think it was reccommended and I felt so guilty as I have fallen asleep twice whilst breastfeeding. Also have dozed with my little man on the sofa, he is on my front and I have just nodded off.
But in general, Thomas sleeps in a moses basket which is right next to my bed.
xxx

thats when it becomes dangerous, safe co sleeping is great for both mum and baby.

 

[Dragonfly]

I keep William up higher so he woudlnt go under duvet plus he hates blankets and kicks them off him., But in early days it was nerve wreaking but we where aware of him there all the time, and I would pull him down a but to BF and then put him up. Hold his hand and all, still will hold hand. He now takes himself to bed, our bed but we love him there still.

 

[SamGames23]

I was a bad kid with co-sleeping the first month. I had a c-section and because I my bed is so low I couldn't get in and out of the bed it was just WAY to hard. So I slept on our couch which has recliners on each side. And it was also to hard to lean over and get LO out of her bassinet so well, she slept on me. Like up on my shoulder, as if I was going to burp her.

Then at a month, she changed her mind she didn't wanna sleep like that anymore, and I was healed enough to sleep in bed so I set a blanket down folded up as say a pillow, then another on top as if it was a bed on top of the pillow blanket. lol and put it between OH and I's pillows and thats where she sleeps. And she has her own little blanket.

We have a large bed so theirs room, and with her between our pillows I'm not worried at all about rolling over on her or anything.

But I do enjoy our cuddle time too.

But I think whatever way you feel comfortable with go for it.

 

[wishing4bub#3]

we co slept with both kiddies, they slept in the middle and we kept our heads at their head height. as the blanket never went above our head. you can also buy bed that go between the two of you in your bed.