Should I have my baby in my room for first 6 months?

Question

I've read that the government advice (UK) is that a baby should be in the parent's room for the first 6 months.
Why is this advised? Is it to do with preventing cot death?
And how essential is it follow this advice? My husband and I have a very small room with not much room for a crib in there, whereas we have a proper nursery for the baby. Should I have my baby in my room for the first 6 months?

Answer 1

I have read quite alot on this subject in nursing/medical journals & parenting pamphlets etc. Apparently if the baby is sleeping in the same room as you it can decrease the risk of cot death because
1. your baby subconsciously follows your breathing patterns when they are near you & are therefore at less risk of forgetting to breathe.

2. You can wake if they are in distress or experiencing any breathing problems. Also if you can easily see your baby when you wake during the night you are more likely to see any potential harmful things such as blankets over heads etc.
However
A good BABY MONITOR can do much of this job for you. I have my baby in my room with me because i am quite anxious & wake regularly to check on him so it suits me. Do what best suits your situation.

Answer 2

I found that a moses basket fitted better in our room, and it was handy to be able to roll over, scoop out baby and feed! However, once night time became a little more settled, and dad went back to work, we moved our daughter into her own cot in her own room. At about 9 weeks, I think. Although I still have to get up occasionally, I find I sleep better because I don't wake up everytime she stirs.

I do use a baby moniter, I'm paranoid I won't hear her otherwise!

You need to do what suits you as a family, and what you are comfortable. My plan was straight into the nursery, but it somehow didn't work out like that!

I'm not sure why they advise this, maybe it is because they feel mean advising against co-sleeping? We had the space problem you have and the moses basket seemed a good compromise. I also think it would be a pain to move rooms once sleep habits are established.

The end decision is yours, but I hope it works out for you whatever you decide.

Answer 3

We had a day crib beside our bed for the first 6 months and it was a nice feeling to be able to hear our little guy close by. It also helped my wife from getting too tired with breast feeding in the middle of the night as we did not have to get out of bed to attend to baby (unless diapers needed changing).

The day bed was actually really nice. We could have our son nearby any area we and the other kids were in the house. In a way I think this was also very comforting for our son too - he was a great baby that seemed very content and on average, only woke up once in the night (from 12 to 5 am) in the first 6 months. I have a feeling this was in part due to the fact that he could hear us just as much as we liked the security of being able to hear him.

Small room? At the time, our bedroom was 8ft x 9ft and one wall was slightly sloped - and a queen size bed in this room - Small 2 story log home.

Would you not want your baby nearby? Another thing to think about is getting up in the night - if you have your baby in another room, that could mean getting up anywhere from once or twice a night to several times depending on your baby.

Personally, I think if our son had been in another room, I would have had trouble sleeping.

Added Note:

Not sure about others, but since when do we need (or trust) the government to advise us on parenting. The government is the last place I would go to seek or follow advice.

Answer 4

If you can have your baby in the room, that would be better. Besides that it is advised to prevent SIDS (cot death?) you will also find it much more convenient at first since you will literally be up every hour at night to feed and change. If you don't have room for a crib, try a bassinet which is much smaller. At least if you can have the baby in the room for the first month or two, that would be better. Good luck, and congratulations!

Answer 5

My daughter is 2 and is still in the same room as us. We are moving her into her room and new big girls bed next week. I think I found it easier to have her in our room and as you send the government now recommends that an infant should be in the same room as the parents for at least six months. This is down to new information involving reducing cot death (SIDS). I think you need to do what feels right for you. There are some good monitoring systems out there if you do want your child in a seperate room. Such as monitors with cot mats that detect if the baby stops breathing. But, my vote is definately keep the baby in your room. Even if space is tight it's not forever!

Answer 6

If your room is too small then put the baby in a different room. If you are worried that something might happen to the baby get a monitor so you can hear him/her. I really don't think it matters one way or another if you put the baby in your room or not. But if you do decide to put the baby in your room make sure that you don't have the baby in your bed with you because when the child gets older he/she will want to sleep with you all of the time and it's very hard to get them to sleep in their own beds.

Answer 7

yes - it is important for bonding with each other. Our baby is nine months old and has her cot in our room. She still wakes up at night for a feed (bottle) and then we put her in bed with us as it is easier and everyone gets to have some sleep. Put her in the nursery during her daytime naps and play in the nursery so she can get familiar with the environment and then when you think she is ready move her to her own room. As someone else said earlier - do what your instincts tell you and what you feel comfortable with.

Answer 8

Im definately going to have my baby in my room till he's 6 months, because i cant bear the thought of being apart from him, waking up every 5 seconds to check and see if he's alright. I supose it helps with the bonding process too, he or she knowing that you are nearby will probably help them sleep better. Im going to have the cot with the side down right up against my side of the bed so that i can get to him easily. I just think its safer than for him to be in a room all on their own at such a young age

Answer 9

i had my daughter in the room with us for 3 months before she was to aware of her surroundings then put her in her own room she never even noticed i know some people that had baby in there own room from day one. the 6 month thing is about cot death but how can it help if your asleep! we just check on her regally when were still up she's fine she'll be one in a few months.

Answer 10

We had ours in our bed for the first three months. It gives the baby security, and is safe so long as you don't drink or aren't obese. It is also blissful when they latch on for a feed without you even having to fully wake up. After three months they went in moses baskets next to the bed. You don't sleep heavily when they're young anyway, and it's better to have them with you rather than wondering if they're OK in another room. If they get hot they ease themselves up, so sometimes you wake up in the morning with a baby draped across the pillow like a cat!

A book I found incredibly useful was 'Three in a Bed' by Deborah Jackson. She borrows heavily from a book by Jean Liedloff called The Continuum Concept. Liedloff lived in the Amazonian rainforest, and compares the 'instinctive' mothering there to that of America. She said the baby was always strapped to the mother by day, and at night wedged into a hammock with her, until by the time no. 2 came along it would be walking. It's similar to how our cave-woman ancestors would have looked after their children. She said the babies never cried. If ever I needed guidance with my babies (which was often!) I would try to think what my ancestors would've done. Would they have shoved their babies, alone, into another cave?

Basically, though, you have to decide what suits you. There's so much conflicting advice out there.