NER: Tell me about cosleeping

PDX · October 2008

Before DS was born, DH and I briefly discussed cosleeping and decided it wasn't for us. We were worried about squishing DS and about the increased SIDS risk. We also figured it just wasn't worth the risk to us.

Now that DS is here, we're finding that we're bringing DS to bed a few times a day because we love the bonding time and it calms DS almost immediately. We've also dosed a few times w/ DS in bed w/ us because it is so hard to stay awake, so we at least want to learn a little bit more about cosleeping so that we can keep DS as safe as possible if we let him nap occasionally w/ us.

I know there are different cosleeper gadgets you can buy, but I have no idea if any of them are safe or worth the $, etc. So I'd love any thoughts you have on the topic. Horrible idea? Good idea? Do we need something that attaches to the side of the bed? Any good resources you can point me towards?

fordgirl9662 · October 2008

I have no info on co-sleeping.....

I've been MIA for a bit and just wanted to congratulate you on the arrival of your DS! He is so adorable!! I had been checking here and our local board for any updates off and on.

roshybride · October 2008

I was like you. Before DS was born DH and I had decided not to co-sleep, but after he was born, he did not want to sleep by himself. He coslept with us until he was 6 months old. We had a bassinet by the side of our bed, but no special co-sleping stuff. He just slept next to me in my arms. I was conscious of him being next to me and didn't worry about squishing him or suffocating him.We both slept well.

photo_nut · October 2008

Before DD was born, I was adament about her sleeping in the crib. Well the first 4 months she slept in the room with us in the pack and play and then a portable crib. As she got older, we moved her to her own crib, but she ended up being in bed with us because I would fall asleep while nursing her. I let her sleep in the crook of my arm while I slept on my back.

For more info, I would check out https://askdrsears.com/html/7/T071000.asp. (I still can't make a freaking link in Firefox)

Dorr_Evil_Twin · October 2008

I know there's Dr Sears bassinets that allow for cosleeping that attach next to the bed.I think we plan to do this in the beginning as well.

MrsGo4Hockeychick · October 2008

Co-sleeping LOWERS the risk of SIDS, not increases.

We have a snuggle nest, but haven't used it yet. She sleeps in the crook of my arm. I was the biggest toss and turner there is at night. I wake up in the same position I laid down in now.

I also know people love the arms reach cosleeper, but I haven't used it.

FWIW, almost all of the cases of smothered co-sleeping babies involved drug or alcohol use by mom and/or dad.

PDX · October 2008

Thanks so far! Glad to hear I'm not the only one who has changed things around.

I've read both that cosleeping can increase and decrease SIDS risk and both explanations make sense to me. So I guess I shouldn't say it increases the risk, maybe just that it changes the risk.

tommigirle · October 2008

we cosleep. but i do think that it is important for baby to be comfortable sleeping in a crib/bassinet on their own too. lucy naps in her crib (or carseat) and starts off the night in her crib. when she wakes to nurse (around 12-1), she comes into bed with us and stays there till 6 when she's up for the day.

i love it. sleeping can be harder (i think i wake her up and she wakes me up sometimes) but the closeness is great. she sleeps b/t me & dh so we don't have anything special on the side of our bed. i just make sure to only use a light blanket, with a heavy blanket on my lower half if it's cold, and i wear a tight-ftting long sleeved shirt for warmth. she uses her own (lightweight) blanket.

i honestly think it has it's pros and cons (at some point, baby has to transition out of the family bed) but overall the closeness is totally worth it and i wouldn't do things differently. ditto the pp on the lowered risk of sids--countries that cosleep as a norm show much lower rates of infant death. obvously be sure not to cosleep if you are drinking or tired to the point that you don't think that you would wake up if baby were crying. hope that helps. and congrats on your gorgeous new baby!

CheriCO · October 2008

We coslept until about 5 months when I stopped EBFing. At first we used a snugglenest (it sits on top of your bed), but it's pretty tiny so DS grew out of it quickly. Also, that thing was just a pain. It was so much easier to just have DS next to me so that when he was hungry I could just roll over & feed him. We got a bed rail so he could sleep on either side of me - that made it much nicer b/c my hips were starting to bother me sleeping most of the night on my right side. I know all the cosleeping guidelines say to not use blankets, etc, but DH and I just used separate blankets and DS shared mine. I was always very aware of DS and where the blankets were on him. (Honestly, I was more worried about DH rolling on him.) Maybe that was part of the reason I felt like I didn't really sleep well for those first 5 months... Once we started giving DS a bottle of formula at night, he slept in his crib in his own room for 5hr stretches at least and I have been sleeping much better. Transitioning him was really not a big deal at all for us. I think it was just time for the change. My midwife has told me multiple times that cosleeping = survival for new breastfeeding moms. I think more people do it than actually talk about it.

helovesducatis · October 2008

We end up doing the same thing as tommigirl a few times a week. ?I just make sure to wake DH up (I have to have him sit up to ensure he's actually awake) and tell him "she's going to be in our bed for the rest of the night". ?He's never rolled onto her or anything, but we both like to make sure we let the other person know when she's in our bed if she wasn't previously.

Want a personalized experience?

NER: Tell me about cosleeping

Re: NER: Tell me about cosleeping

Choose Another Board

Search Boards