Parents who co-sleep please help?

Question

So my little one is 4 1/2 months old and she wakes every night at least 10 times because she rolls onto her tummy and wakes herself up. I keep having to get up to flip her back over (sometimes she rolls straight back over and it can take several attempts) So last night, after several hours of broken sleep I brought her into bed with me and we both slept ... well.. like a baby. (I'll never understand that expression)

So my dear husband slept on the sofa because he didn't feel comfortable in the bed with the baby. So how do you do it? Any tips or suggestions.

Answer 1

Sleeping with your baby is usually okay as long as you are aware that he/she is there.  You can roll up some baby blankets and put them on either side to keep the baby from rolling over so he/she doesn't wake up so often if you are worried about sleeping with them. Sometimes if you start the pattern of having the child sleep with you it will continue well into school age.  Make sure you get the baby back to their crib when they are sleeping more soundly.

Answer 2

Well, what I'd do in your shoes is put the baby down on her tummy in her crib.  Once a baby is old enough to roll herself over onto her tummy, you don't have to flip them back.  So, if a baby that's reached that milestone would sleep better on their tummy, I see no reason not to start them there.  It's quite possible that if she started on her tummy she'd just stay there.  My children as babies usually slept better on their tummy once they were old enough to roll themselves over.

I did co-sleep at night some with my 2nd and 3rd children, but prefer not to.  They slept through the night MUCH later than my 1st and 4th child who I nursed and put right back in their playpens.  The co-sleepers ended up nursing off and on much of the night.  I'm someone that needs a good chunk of sleep as a lingering effect of an illness years ago.  To function, I must regularly get 9 hours of sleep a night, with a nap in the day when pregnant or just postpartum.  So, babies sleeping through the night at 7 or 11 months instead of 3 months are definitely not a plus for me.

Answer 3

I've been developing a bad habit of bringing my DD in my bed. I've never had any worries about it, my bed is big. She has her own space, as long as I can still touch. Never had any worries of rolling on her.

I sleep better with her there, when she's not I toss and turn all over.

Answer 4

I sleep on a futon in the nursery and once my son wakes up, I take him from the crib and co-sleep for the rest of the night. Once he sleeps through the night, I plan on letting him sleep on his own and use the monitor, that way the adults can sleep together again.

I used to sleep in the middle of the bed with my husband on one side of me and the baby on the other, like a barrier so the baby was safe from the toss & turning of my husband. It got crowded, so I moved to the nursery.

My pediatrician has told me that if the baby rolls over in his sleep onto his stomach, that there is not much you can do to keep him on his back.  

Answer 5

thats exactly how we do it, baby and I get the bed, hubby sleeps on the sofa. lol. she starts out in her crib but when she wakes up (12-1) she comes to bed with me and daddy goes on the couch

Answer 6

my son slept with us until he was 8 months old and it worked out pretty well. we put the bed up against the wall and made it so he couldn't fall between the bed and the wall. then we would put him on the inside of the bed with me and my hubby slept on the outside. it worked pretty well until he got bigger and then he slept in the middle. i don't think that we ever had a problem with him sleeping with us. it worked out much better then having to get up at all hours!

Answer 7

We are big fans of the family bed. If your dh is uncomfortable with being in bed with the baby, you can purchase a co sleeper, and pull your baby up to your side of the bed.

No drinking, no "fluffy" pillows and comforters, no prescription drugs that can cause drowsiness.

Adults have an incredible body sense (which is why they do not fall out of bed every night) when they are not "compromised".

Dr. Sears has a lot of good information, and I wish you much luck. Education is empowerment.  

Answer 8

It is incredibly unsafe to sleep with an infant in the same bed. You can roll onto the baby and smother them, or there are a bunch of other harmful things that could happen. Keep your baby in their crib where they belong.

Answer 9

If my husband wants to get up extra early in the morning - he'll bunk somewhere else like the couch!  My kids were trained to sleep in their own beds, but due to renovations they sleep with us and I never squished them or rolled on them - furthermore they sleep so horrible their toes are sometimes on my nose!!!!!

But chic take it from me whatever position makes you and your baby sleep like "babies" (once its safe) is alright!  Unless your husband wants to wake up and turn the baby over (I am guessing no)

Answer 10

The Dr. Sears Website is fab for safe co-sleeping guidelines and more information on the topic! Here are some links - Happy reading! :)



(P.S:  We are happy co-sleeping and are currently TTC for our second child, so will be getting a bigger bed! hehe)

Safe co-sleeping:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/t10220...

Benefits of co-sleeping:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T071000...

Co-sleeping research:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T071000...

Answer 11

Don't sleep with the baby in your bed. It starts bad habit for her and she'll be dependnt on you for sleep....not something you'll want to get in to.  

Answer 12

My son will be seven months old next week, and until about a month ago or so he slept in bed with us. I would sleep in the bed some nights, but most nights I just slept on the couch. It was my ideal situation, but it was the only way we could get him to sleep consistently, which meant my wife got sleep so that's what we did. If that's how she sleeps, as long as you and your husband agree go for it. Just realize the older they get the harder it is to get them to sleep alone. We just moved him to his crib when we felt like he should be sleeping in it. The first few nights were restless, but after a couple weeks he sleeps straight through in his crib no problem. Good luck, and I hope this helps!