When to stop co-Sleeping with my DS?

Re: When to stop co-Sleeping with my DS?

• KateLouise member

  January 2012

  We never bed-shared full time.

  LO would go to sleep in her cot/and later her own bed and at some point in the night would end up in our bed.

  I really enjoyed the bedsharing we did, but with our second being due in 3 weeks we decided  a few months back that we didn't want to bedshare with two LOs.

  LO had a spell in hospital which really unsettled her sleeping and she was nursing through the night. Then morning sickness hit me in full force.

  So we worked on getting her sleeping more settled and night weaning before worrying about getting her to stay in her bed, so that I wasn't getting up to her through the night and wanting to vomit.

  When we went for it, we just walked her back to her bed and re-settled her. The first night DH got into her bed with her. After 3 or 4 nights she slept through in her own bed.

  She still gets up some nights but for a reason like a nappy change.

  She gets up around 6am and comes and snuggles in our bed.

   

  
  Elizabeth 5yrs old Jane 3yrs old

  
  

  
  
  

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• C-Charm

  January 2012

  The only suggestion I have is that when you're ready to transition that it might help to have him on board and excited about the idea.  He could pick out new bedding, maybe start sleeping with a stuffed animal that he chooses, get a child alarm clock....
  

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• timmyhsgirl member

  January 2012

  We co-slept for 16mths with DS. He just moved so much he was starting to wake DH & I more being in our bed then we thought he would being in is own bed. It will be a month on the 14th that he has been on his own. I think it was a good timing for all of us. sometimes I would wake DS by climbing out of bed past the bedrail to go pee in the middle of the night. ( i really didnt want to have to keep crawling as the bed rail once very PG either)

   

   The first couple times in his own full size bed he would run into the wall and wake himself up but he has settled great into his own bed.We did do a bit of ferber with it. He never really sat and screamed red faced or anything horrible. I thought it was literally going to be 3 hours of screaming the first night and many more tears on my part too. But it was 20 minutes and it was mostly just whining and confusion. I got a video monitor cause I wanted to be able to see if he was winding down with the fussing and getting ready to sleep or if he was going to wind him self up by crying. I didnt want to keep sticking my head in the door and disrupting him and upsetting him more. it was the best thing we ever did some nights he is out as soon as he hits the mattress other nights he play with his gloworm for 5-10minutes then lays down and falls asleep. Once and and while he will call out, but as long as we dont go running in there he ususally goes back and lays down and is out.

   HTH

  

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• kcisthebombdotcom member

  January 2012

  C-Charm:

  The only suggestion I have is that when you're ready to transition that it might help to have him on board and excited about the idea.  He could pick out new bedding, maybe start sleeping with a stuffed animal that he chooses, get a child alarm clock....
  

  This is what we did to transition my son to his own bed and it worked like a charm.

  To answer the original question Im not sure when we will stop bedsharing. We did for about 4 months, but then DS seemed to hit some nighttime separation anxiety so we started again from time to time. He still sleeps in his own bed most nights, just sometimes I stay with him (he has a full sized bed).

  I imagine my kids will always be welcomed in my bed from illness or bad dreams. I would hope by school aged they would prefer their room most of the time though.

  

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• erinwhitney1979 member

  January 2012

  I'm due anyday now with baby #2. Our son is 4.5 (will be 5 in April) and still sleeps with us. He actually doesn't even have a bedroom (one bedroom apartment but we are moving into a 4 bedroom house soon) and we are comfortable with letting him sleep with us as long as he needs. Growing up, my family had a family bed (and later a mattress on the floor for my sister and I) and I remember all 5 of us being in the bed until I was about 6 (other sisters were 3 and newborn.) I say cosleep as long as you feel comfortable. I remember one night I just decided it was too crowded in the bed and I asked for a bedroom. 

  Good luck with your decision and know that it will be the correct decision for you and your family.  

  

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• Dereksmommy1027 member

  January 2012

  C-Charm:

  The only suggestion I have is that when you're ready to transition that it might help to have him on board and excited about the idea.  He could pick out new bedding, maybe start sleeping with a stuffed animal that he chooses, get a child alarm clock....
  

   

  I like this. Sometimes they are more ready than you are! 

  

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