Why are people so negative about co-sleeping?!

[Ju_bubbs]

Try and get you hands on a copy of Deborah Jackson's Three in a Bed: The Benefits of Sleeping with Your Baby. It's a really well researched book that will arm you with all the positives of co-sleeping.
I wish people would stop thinking that at 10 years old they will still be sleeping in your bed. Mind you if they were and everyone enjoyed then there's nothing wrong surely?! I think co-sleeping creates a secure and confident baby.

My parents never co-slept with me as a baby, but as soon as I was old enough to climb out of my bed, I would jump inbetween by parents in the middle of the night and I did this until I was 10... and I only stopped then because my mum got pregnant and said to me "your dad is fat, and now im going to be fat too, so theres really no room for you in our bed!"

 

[trumpetbum]

It's harder now too because as per usual instead of assuming most people have enough common sense to follow guidelines it has been deemed safer to just say ' No co-sleeping'. I suppose it's assumed that if someone is going to actually do the background reading then they'll make an informed choice, and if they're not capable of that then the best thing is probably just to have a blanket guideline that will stop them co-sleeping unsafely, albeit by stopping them co-sleeping at all.
A HV I was working with actually said to me, 'Oh, you know there's absolutely NO sleeping with baby now!!!
I had to have a co-sleeper with my LO as dh was a smoker and this worried me, so when he was in the bed we used it. It was great if that's an option for you. If all else fails, get bitchy and make it clear you know the guidelines and you'll follow your instincts and your own research, not the advice of all and sundry. Hope it gets better.

OASN, when my first was born dh didn't like the idea of co-sleeping either. We bought an amby natures nest this time to go in our room and tonight when discussing where it would go, he piped up with, 'yeah, but you'll still have him in with you a lot, won't you?' and it was said with a smile It's amazing how things can change when they actually see how it works.

 

[Eala]

Ooh you'll love the Amby nest, Trumpetbum My LO was so comfy and happy in hers

 

[becstar]

I do sometimes wonder if I'd have co-slept more if we'd had a cot or basket for her, instead of her Amby's nest. As it was, she was so comfy and happy in her hammock, that putting her in there didn't seem to upset her.

I'm pondering now

Yeah, ditto... we only really started co-sleeping when we took her out of the hammock and into a cot bed.

 

[Jetters]

Hi Ally- firstly, yay that Leni is home already! How fab is that

My son is only 5.5 weeks old and alllll i've heard is opinions left right and centre about what i'm doing wrong! Just smile and nod and do it anyway is my advice

Are you sleeping with Leni on you, or just next to you? If it's next to you, maybe you could consider getting a co-sleeping cot.. We've got an Arms Reach and it's fabby- it means OH doesn't worry anymore, but I still sleep with my arm over K and he often holds on to my hand too

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

Hi Ally there is nothing wrong with co-sleeping hun. Ignore them
xx

 

[Blah11]

Cosleeping is natural. The western world is pretty much the only countries that dont sleep with LO with them and who dont BF for 'extended' periods of time. It gets bad press from people cosleeping unsafely

 

[lynnikins]

we have been co-sleeping with our 2 yr old unintentionally for a couple of weeks now he gets out of his bed ( we all share a room ) and climbs into ours, and snuggles up between my DH and the wall , EJ and I did co-sleep when he was younger for naps often and occasionally overnight but now we have moved and have a smaller bed that slightly sags in the middle then i dont feel safe with EJ in the bed unless DH isnt in the bed lol so EJ is back in his crib where hes safe caus my DH is a very very very heavy sleeper and id hate an accident to happen i know i would wake up but im not certain that DH would with EJ being so small compared to him. if at our next home we have a decent size bed which doesnt sag when the next baby is born i'll probably co-sleep for a bit at first but my boys can self settle in their own beds and im thankful for that

 

[Celesse]

I'm pretty sure baby humans where designed to sleep with their mummies, the same as other baby mammals sleep with their mummies.

 

[littlepne]

I chose not to co-sleep at first as our mattress is crap and my OH is a deep sleeper and very fidgety, however if a need had risen for LO to sleep with me we'd have worked something out.

But she's always slept really well next to our bed. She was a bit jaundiced at first and slept a lot so I don't know if that had anything to do with it but after the first few days she slept better at night than in the day. We sometimes co-nap though.

My point is that different things work better for different people and it's whatever works best for you all as a family

 

[aimee_1691]

i do co-sleep for a couple of hours at a time if we have a nap in the daytime but i couldnt do ti through the night as id be too scared that me and oh would roll onto her, i really wouldnt be able to rest, id be too scared as i know what OH's like in his sleep lol im much more at rest when i know she is safely wrapped up in her crib