https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Fri, 01 May 2026 18:51:46 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1690648 Tue, 10 Jun 2014 10:27:31 +0000 Torchwood 1690648@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thanks for sharing this! My SIL has given DH a lot of crap about us planning to cosleep (thankfully she apparently doesn't feel comfortable enough with me to harass me about it), because she's known people whose kids were hurt doing it. The problem is that they clearly weren't doing it safely, but she won't listen to DH when he explains that. If she brings it up again we'll direct her to this. We're also getting a little nest thing to have her sleep in (between us) when she's very small, so it won't even be possible for her to get rolled on or roll herself somewhere unsafe (one of the people SIL knows, their LO wound up between the headboard and the mattress, this will block her access to that area completely). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1690630 Tue, 10 Jun 2014 10:20:52 +0000 MoonMoon 1690630@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: for me, it definitely took a while, but it went away. I had a ton of anxiety after my baby was born, I would have had it whether we were sharing a bed or not, but for me, bed sharing helped me get more sleep because even though the wake ups were there, it was so quick and easy to address them and then go back to sleep. My baby just turned 1 year old, and I can count on my hands how many times he's cried or been inconsolable during the night (due to teething, having a cold, etc) in the past 9-10 months. The newborn days were a different story, of course. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1690048 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 21:53:41 +0000 Mrs. Pen 1690048@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: I found that very true in my experience as well. Once J was 4-5 weeks old, we slept together until he was 4 months old. As much as I did like it and think it worked well for us, my sleep was so disturbed. I had so much anxiety about it- fear I would hurt him, roll on him, he'd sleep to close to me/a blanket/etc and not be able to breathe, etc. I was so paranoid about it. So while yes, he slept incredibly well as a result of sleeping together, I did not. Ultimately, that is why I chose to transition him to a crib at 4 months.<br /> I would love to be an advocate for cobedding, but man I was a nervous wreck, I think if maybe we had slept on a hard surface,no blankets, I would have been better about it? But I was also freezing all the time from having to keep the blanket at my waist.</p> <p>@Silva: I agree with you. My doctor, who is also my son's doctor, was so on board with us sleeping together and that support meant a lot. But even if she hadn't, I probably would have done it anyway... So why not just share how to do it safely. As a mom, I definitely did a ton of research prior about how to do so safely but there are many others who would benefit. I truly believe the greatest number of co-bedding related deaths result from unsafe sleep conditions (obesity, medication, blankets, fluffy bedding, partners...etc). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1690018 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 21:26:43 +0000 Moming About 1690018@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>McKenna has lots of positive information on cosleeping and bed sharing. Simply googling him will give you more info. I wrote three papers on the subject in college. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689774 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 19:03:31 +0000 Silva 1689774@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: I think it depends on the mama and the baby. We coslept for 8 months and never got to a point where we slept well (either of us). My daughter woke up a TON (like every 60-90 minutes most nights) and was chronically over tired, and I always woke up when she did. She nursed at every wake up. I loved it, but it didn't work for us. She (and I) immediately started sleeping better when we transferred her to the crib.</p> <p>Regarding the original post- I think that the best approach is for pediatricians/ OBs/ Midwifes/ Hospital staff to be trained in safe co-sleeping practices, so that if they have a family that is interested and can do so safely, they can support them. Our pediatrician was very supportive of our co-sleeping because we didn't have any risk factors.<br /> From a public health perspective, I think it still makes sense to advise against co-sleeping on a population-wide level. There are lots of people who really should not/ cannot safely co-sleep. I've worked with clients who had risk factors but chose to co-sleep anyway- there were some horrific outcomes, including loss and permanent injury, in several of these cases.<br /> I get that when there is a "rule" people who break that rule may feel some guilt or shame, but in my mind that isn't a good reason to get rid of the rule. I do think it would be great if more providers could provide support to people who choose to safely co-sleep. For example, I know that many people are afraid to co-sleep so they sleep with the baby on the couch, which is more dangerous. If they had been able to have a conversation with their provider before leaving the hospital about what the risk factors are, and how to safely co-sleep if you don't have any risk factors, that situation could be avoided. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689756 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 18:51:00 +0000 PixieStix 1689756@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: We've been cosleeping since the beginning, and in the first few weeks I was definitely waking up a ton to my son's movements. I now sleep solid until he wakes up crying/fussing (gas issues). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689745 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 18:38:57 +0000 Arden 1689745@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: In our case we bedshare and I sleep topless or in a strechy cami. So yes, when she starts rooting I wake slightly, guide her head to my boob, then fall back asleep. In the beginning I would wake up completely and stay awake for awhile, but after a few weeks it became natural and I sleep well. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689700 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 18:13:41 +0000 Zbug 1689700@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: well we started cosleeping when LO was in the midst of her craopy 4-6 mo regression, so she was waking all the time. Now I will wake if she whimpers and put her paci back in or nurse her, but I'm always able to go right back to sleep. I can't say how it might have been if we started cosleeping during a good stretch of sleep, but it's definitely possible I'm just used to it now. My LO also has never moved around much in her sleep, which helps! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689681 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 18:02:38 +0000 Foodnerd81 1689681@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@wonderstruck: that was my problem with having c in our room, much less bed- I woke up at every little sound or movement and couldn't fall back asleep. We would cobed occasionally on bad sleep nights, but I would never sleep well. I wondered if that would go away if we did it all the time. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689474 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 15:52:36 +0000 wonderstruck 1689474@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Question...just because I'm curious and the article doesn't address it. I know that all the science (as well as my personal experience) shows that when a mother is breastfeeding, even in her sleep she is very responsive to her baby. I found that to actually be a problem - anytime my son made a sound or moved in his sleep, I would wake up thinking he needed me and take ages to fall back to sleep. Does that go away over time? Or is it just one of those things that depends on the person? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1689396 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 15:23:42 +0000 MoonMoon 1689396@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thank you so much for posting this article! We definitely need a more nuanced conversation about it than IT'S ALWAYS BAD NO ONE SHOULD CO-SLEEP. I understand why black and white messages are easier to get across to the population at large (no co-sleeping, not 1 drop of alcohol while pregnant, etc) but that leaves people feeling isolated and anxious for doing something that can actually be beneficial. I credit co-sleeping (co-bedding) with helping my son thrive, helping my husband and me feel bonded with him and able to sleep, and helping to establish and maintain an amazing breastfeeding relationship. I'm going to share this article with friends! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/interesting-article-about-cosleeping#post-1688828 Mon, 09 Jun 2014 11:10:05 +0000 Zbug 1688828@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>A friend just sent me this article about the benefits of cosleeping. I definitely don't think there is anything wrong with not cosleeping (we cosleep but it was definitely not our original plan!). Some of my friends, however, think we are crazy for doing so, and this article made me feel better about our decision. Just thought I would share in case anyone is interested! </p> <p><a href="http://neuroanthropology.net/2008/12/21/cosleeping-and-biological-imperatives-why-human-babies-do-not-and-should-not-sleep-alone/" rel="nofollow">http://neuroanthropology.net/2008/12/21/cosleeping-and-biological-imperatives-why-human-babies-do-not-and-should-not-sleep-alone/</a> </p>