Logistics of co sleeping

[passingthrough1]

I guess like a lot of (most?) co-sleepers I never intended to co-sleep I just don't know how you breastfeed half the night without doing it.
We used to have a next to me crib which I found a bit useless and the baby was almost always in with me anyway. He's too big for that now (6m) and we have a proper cot bed near our bed.
I don't want to take the side off the cot bed because it doesn't line up with our mattress very well and also because I do put him to bed in the cot and he sleeps while we have dinner / watch TV etc, so he can be alone for a few hours.
Once he stirs the first time I generally bring him into the bed. Some nights I find awful because he'll feed every 1-2 hours but also get windy so I'm up rocking and burpring half the night. On a "good" night I can just comfort feed for a few seconds every hour or two and he'll sleep next to me, and we both get some sleep.
The thing is I am struggling to understand where I should be putting the baby?
Inbetween me and DP I like the most although I know you're not supposed to. I don't like sleeping with him on the side of the bed.. I cramp up if I try and sleep on my side too much and he spreads out his arms wide when he sleeps anyway and doesn't seem to want anyone crowding him so he gets half the bed ..
I tried last night having him on the side but gave him so much space between him and the side that my partner actually fell out of the other side of the king size bed. So is a guard rail the answer? Again I'm hearing conflicting messages, on the one hand some people say they need them but others saying not for use with a baby who could get trapped ..?
I also don't want to put mattress on the floor / can't.

Please tell me how you all fit in the bed!

[boobsaclock]

I use a bed rail, you could have the side off the cot next to you but put the whole cot up on thick wood to make sure they're the same level (or the whole bed) as long as it's all secure. You could then have a rolled up towel under the sheet to stop him migrating into your bed

[user1480105008]

I have similar issues. Although mine is just 3 months old. She sleeps in her nest till 1 then she ends up next to me. I lie on my sides for so long my hips are killing me. A lot of the times she is on my boob all night. I always chose sleep but I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and start putting her back in after every feed. The problem is that she gets very windy as the night goes, so more she wakes the more she wants the boob. But I'm taking one step at the time. I managed to train her to drink one bottle as the last meal at night, and fall asleep on her on in the nest. Next step will be the 1 am feed. I'll stay up and put her back in as soon as she finishes. Maybe you could make a plan with baby steps, and slowly train your baby to sleep on his own? How about using a dummy? (mine hates the dummy)