Have you ever let you baby sleep at night in your bed?

Question

Because of my constant fear of sids since my baby was born,she slept in a bassinette from birth till recently and then I let her sleep in our bed from 5 months till now that shes 6 months old.I know I will get a lot of heat for this,doctors strongly advise against it. but Im NOT recomending this to anybody but have to say in my case its been a positive experience,she sleeps straight through the night from 9 pm to 7 am non stop and so do I.Down side is were trying to wean her in her crib and she wont sleep in it. My husband is annoyed because he has a friend who did the same and their boy is now 2 years old and still sleeping in the same bad with the parent and fears our daughter will end up doing the same.Anybody going through this?

Answer 1

I never let my child sleep in my bed for fear of SIDS. I also was warned a lot about that and personally know people who suffocated their babies while sleeping with them. I actually askeda similar question to this last night.

From my experience...my son slept in a cradle next to our bed his first 2 weeks (I was breastfeeding) although b/c I am such a light sleeper and my son LOVED to grunt all night long in his sleep, we put him in his crib at 2 weeks and he has been there ever since. He'll be a year old on the 25th. He LOVES his crib...I think b/c we started putting him in it at such a young age. He started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks and now sleeps at least 12 hours every night. When he wakes up in the morning he usually just sits in his crib and plays for 30minutes to an hour before fussing so we'll come get him. I love this routine bc it makes it very easy on me and my husband.
My aunt on the other hand, has 3 kids whom she allowed to sleep in her bed all the time, and go to bed whenever they want...now her husband has to sleep on the couch every night bc 2 of her kids (4 and 6) are STILL sleeping with her. If I were you, I wouldn't continue allowing your son to sleep with you much longer or you may have a hard time getting him to sleep in his crib.

Answer 2

My daughter did from birth on.

I liked it. She slept better. I slept better knowing I could check on her at night without stumbling through the dark house. You have to be careful, but she is old enough now that it shouldn't be a problem. We never once had problem where she fell off the bed, or was being smothered.

I hear lots of women say, I can't sleep when my husband is out of town. The baby has only slept one place before birth and that was certainly not alone. What a shock to be on your own in a crib after the womb. What a rejection that must subconsciously instill.

There are lots of proponents to having the baby in bed with you, too.

If you like it, who cares what someone else thinks?

Answer 3

With my son I thought that I might have the same problem. When we bought the crib for my son I let him play in it during the day at first. I few weeks after we started doing that he didn't want to sleep in his bouncy seat or in the my bed anymore. If just started sleeping in his crib own his own. I'm really glad about that, because we spend a lot of money on his crib. Anyway, he still sleeps in my room, because we only have a one bedroom apartment, but I really think that he would be fine in his own room.

About the SIDS: please go to www.babysake.com and make your own decision if your child should still sleep in your bed or not.

Answer 4

The whole thing that sleeping with your child causes SIDS is a myth. In fact, true SIDS deaths are more rare when children sleep with their parents.

The problem is that some parents sleep so deeply they are in danger of smothering the child without waking up. That is why doctors recommend against it.

That said, our daughter slept in the bed with us until she was over three years old. We tried many ties to get her to sleep i her own room but usually it only lasted an hour or two before she came back to our bed. We recently gave her a new, more comfortable bed and its now been two weeks and she hasn't come back to our bed since. We're hoping it lasts.

Answer 5

We let both of our kids sleep with us in the beginning. We only had 2 in the bed on a very rare occasion though. They were about 2 before they slept in their own bed, and we didn't have much of a problem weening them off, but from time to time we would wake up and our son would have gotten out of his bed and climbed in with us. My daughter on the other hand would cry, she never got out of her bed. They are both grown adults, and very well adjusted, so it worked out well for us, but I have heard that the weening process can be hard for the kids and parents. You do need to know that it is best for them to sleep in their bed. I had heard that SIDS was less likely if they slept with you, but that was more than 18 years ago and things like that change.

Answer 6

I personally have never had either of my two sons sleep with me. But that is because I did not want to start anything I couldn't stop. My sister in law has let her children sleep with her & her husband & now that child is 9 years old & still sleeps with them. She has her own bed, but refuses to move to it. The 15 year old some times sleeps with them too & makes the dad go get on couch. My boys love their bed & sleep best there. Good luck with what you do. To each their own.

Answer 7

My baby is 10 months old and has slept with me every night since she was born. I LOVE it and it works really well for our family. Contrary to what you may hear from other moms and various articles, co-sleeping (as long as it's done safely) REDUCES the risk of SIDS. Check out the research of Dr. James McKenna (link below) and read "Our Babies, Ourselves" by anthropologist Meredith Small for perspective. The U.S. has a much higher rate of SIDS than Japan, where all babies sleep with their mothers until the age of 2 (at least).

Sleep arrangements need to work for your baby and your family--there is not one answer to this parenting issue, so go with your instinct on this one. I can guarantee that you won't be sleeping in her dorm room when she goes to college!

Answer 8

We let our baby sleep with us for the first 3 mths or so, it was just so much nicer for all of us. There are many pediatricians who actually RECOMMEND co-sleeping for those naysayers... Our girl is almost 1 and I will not let her sleep next to me anymore because the girl is a wild one when she is 'searching' for sleep. She'll toss and turn, and throw around her doll that she sleeps with, it's terrible! Last night I thought I would let her sleep with us as she was feeling a bit cranky (she's teething) but after I got smacked in the face a few times with her doll at 1am I put her back in her own bed!

Answer 9

Everyone has their own opinion on sleep issues. The most important thing to do is what's right for you. 2 of my kids have slept with me and 2 haven't. I've done what's been right for them and me.

The following website shows results of a large study done in 2000 in the United States. Some facts may help you make your decision.
Cosleeping & SIDS Fact Sheet
http://www.babyreference.com/Cosleeping&SIDSFactSheet.htm

This website is a link to Author and Mother of 4 Elizabeth Pantley. We had sleep issues with our first til 3yrs when I discovered this book and the suggestions she has to getting your child to sleep all night in their own bed. She has suggestions from birth to 4mths and from 4mths and over. I highly recommend this book!
http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth/newsletters/sleepbookann.htm

Answer 10

I never let my kids sleep with me. But it may interest you to know that my oldest daughter did. She was afraid of the same thing and even though her doctor told her not to, she let her son sleep with her. He is now 6 1/2 years old, he is in first grade and he still sleeps with his mom and dad. Their daughter, who is 2 1/2 has never slept with them because they can't get their son out of their bed.