Do you co-sleep with your baby?

[Rach27]

I have to admit I was a little concerned about this since the NHS don't endorse it, however, it felt (and feels) a really natural thing to do. I love being so close to Thomas. He sleeps contentedly next to me, breastfeeding in the night is super easy and everybosy is happy. It's not great for the sex life but hey!

Have you had any wierd comments from people about co-sleeping? It seems almost taboo to mention it in our circles!

I plan to do it until he basically takes over the bed (possibly when he's 6 months which is a couple of months away).

 

[miss.kayleigh]

I don't anymore now that he's older as he settles on his own now when we put him down but we did co - sleep up until he was about 8 months old when he got himself into his own sleeping routine.
Do whatever works for you xx

 

[Kota]

yep, we've co slept since P was about 5wks old, it was a life saver for bf'ing and i honestly get a great nights sleep, he sleeps from about 8pm through until 7.30am, if he wakes to nurse during the night I either don't wake at all and he helps himself, or i'm awake for about 30secs helping him to find the milky bit. Its sooo lovely to wake up to his smiles and cuddles and I wouldn't change it for anything right now.. I plan on having him in with us for at least the next 2-3 months before we even bother thinking about putting him in his own cot space.. and even then I'm looking for a cot that drop sides so it can be right next to the bed but he'll still have his own space...

You're right though, almost everyone I've mentioned it to either 'tuts' at me or shakes their head like I'm doing something terrible...

 

[madasa]

She goes to sleep in her moses basket, but I bring her into bed when she wakes for a feed and it's odds on whether she actually gets back in her own bed before breakfast.... does that count???

 

[JellyBeann]

I do...Have done since LO was 2 weeks, as I was so tired in the end from being up all night feeding, he'd feed constantly from 12am-4am...so it was either co-sleep, or fall asleep sitting up and be over-tired, I thought our health was more important than him sleeping on his own!

I have given up on teklling people I co-sleep, as all I get are lectures, so I've learned to keep my mouth shut!

 

[Rach28]

I'm not really a 'yes or no' answer, more of a 'sometimes'.

Noah will go off on his own in his cot ( which is 2 steps away from our bed) but sleep has never been his strong point, so when he's struggling we usually put him in bed with us to help him settle.

I must admit though, with DH being away this week, No has been in with me a lot more than usual and its been lovely - except when he wiggles himself to turn 90degrees and kicks me in the head

We arent moving house til Sept/Oct time so he will stay with his cot in our room until we move and DH and I have been debating as to whether he should then go into his own room (I say No!)

 

[ANiceCuppaTea]

I did with all three, yes. But then I breastfed so it was super convenient in that when one of them would wake in the night, and just start the little snuffing hungry noises, I'd wake, pull them in closer, flip a breast out, they'd latch on, and I'd go back to sleep. Then, when they wanted the other breast, all change, go back to sleep. They always got fed straight away and weren't spending time being distressed, I got a decent night's sleep and everyone was happy.

(That sounds incredibly lazy, now I've read it back, but it worked for us.)

 

[cinnamum]

i co-slept both of mine,
i am currently getting ronny into a routine of going upstairs at 12 and getting him to sleep in his moses basket and then from 4am-7am we co-sleep.
i don't want him getting comfortable with co-sleeping as he is alot clingier than my daughter was x x x
i put him in his swing inbetween feeds so i get a break, he refuses to go in his moses basket during the day.
must be because of the light??? dunno xxx

 

[Bumbled Bee]

We co-slept exculsively for the first 8 weeks. The baby would only sleep upright in my husbands arms. He slept soundly through the night, but we hardly slept at all, just not enough room in our bed for three! After a while, Baby was moved to his crib next to our bed, but still co-sleeps after his second nighttime feed. I love love love waking up next to my smiley baby. And breastfeeding in bed couldn't be easier.

 

[4boys4years]

We cosleep with DS3 and DS4. We have a kingsize with a toddler bed next to it where Ethan spends quite a bit of the night now but he still gets in with us sometimes. Noah doesn't have a seperate bed at all. We coslept with DS1 till he was 15 months and him and Aaron were waking each other constantly. Aaron never coslept as he seemed happier in his own space and slept through from 10-5 from an early age. Noah's teething atm so i often wake up with a start when i've sleepily started feeding him and he's bitten LOL

 

[mommyof3co]

I didn't with Landon because it just didn't fit well with his personality, he liked his space and wanted to be alone in a really dark room to sleep. With Casen he was exactly the opposite. We coslept with him full time until 7mo, then at 7mo would put him in his crib in our room but when he woke a few hours later we'd bring him to our bed. At 11mo he went into his crib in the room with Landon and slept fine. Hayden coslept full time until 12mo then went into a toddler bed in our room for the first part of the night. Now he sleeps most nights through in his toddler bed but does still sometimes come to our room

 

[AFC84]

She goes to sleep in her moses basket, but I bring her into bed when she wakes for a feed and it's odds on whether she actually gets back in her own bed before breakfast.... does that count???

Hehe...same here! It is really easy when you're BF and I love waking up to see his little face right there with me

 

[becstar]

We kind of do... La's cot is right next to our bed and until she started crawling the side was off (I cried when it went back on, I still miss her even though she's right where she was just with the bars up!)

When she wakes for a feed though she comes in with me for the rest of the night, unless I'm awake when she dr5ops off again, in which case I put her back as she likes to sleep sideways a lot and there's no room in the bed for 3 of us when she does that!

 

[tinkerbellita]

She goes to sleep in her moses basket, but I bring her into bed when she wakes for a feed and it's odds on whether she actually gets back in her own bed before breakfast.... does that count???

This is what I do!

 

[BabyHaines]

DH and I co-sleep with George and absolutely love it.
Although the NHS aren't actively promoting it (yet) they certainly don't disagree with it. In fact, when it comes to establishing breastfeeding, anyone that's Unicef baby-friendly trained will often encourage safe co-sleeping.

It is a wonderful, natural thing to do and if done correctly, is statistically safer than having baby elsewhere.
All the scary figuires related to co-sleeping & incidents, are from a study that was done on a very deprived area where there was extremely high levels of alcohol & drug abuse & it included falling asleep on the sofa (very dangerous) within the study, which was completely unfair.

I recommend Deborah Jacksons book 'Three in a Bed'. It's a very empowering read

Oh, and your sex life certainly doesn't have to suffer.....you just learn to pick your moment and to think outside the box (or should I say bed - lol) a little more
xxxx

 

[mrsraggle]

I coslept with Ellie until this week. Loved it! But want her to have her own space and our own space now and proper bedtime

 

[cleckner04]

I have co-slept with Emma since she was about 2 weeks old! We love it. She sleeps good, we sleep good. I have gotten plenty of weird looks and comments about it though. My family isn't very 'natural' and they all think I'm a hippy. My MIL asked how we have sex. It was out of nowhere and I couldn't believe it came out of her mouth. My response 'who has sex in beds these days?!'. That is the main question people come out with though. As if it's anyone's business how DH and I have sex.

 

[BabyHaines]

^^lol!!^^
not the sort of thing you want to discuss with the MIL....!!

Maybe she wants more grandchildren?? Hehe xx

 

[CocoaOne]

I have co-slept since M was born as it's much easier and she fidgits much less cuddled next to me! We've got a king size bed but OH is a deep sleeper and shifts around a lot, so I sleep more in the middle of the bed and M sleeps on the outside of the bed. Because of the lack of space, I have to sleep on my side with my arm up under the pillow. Does anyone else get seriously achey hips from co-sleeping? I'm in agony from halfway through the night It really spoils the co-sleeping experience.
M's crib is next to the bed but we haven't got the space for a drop sided cot. I've started putting M to bed in her crib at 8 and then she comes in with me at 2am for her first feed.
I seriously love seeing her face all cosy and content when I wake up

 

[Dragonfly]

Yes we co sleep and love it. Funny the nhs dont endorse (probably because it costs nothing to co sleep) yet the HV gave me a leaflet on co sleeping and recommended it as I am breastfeeding. So many advantages to co sleeping. https://www.naturalchild.org/guest/tami_breazeale.html

I have got comments that where not nice, Everyone always asking was he in a cot and me having to explain co sleeping over and over again. Apparently I will never get him out of it but thats not true co sleeping babies will get out and want a bed of their own according to the above article. We enjoy it anyway even if no one else agrees with us like fam and friends.