How and when did you move your child(ren) into their own room? Is this too soon?

[user242526]

Hi,

DD is 10 months old and I am slowly starting to consider moving her into her own room.

She has started sleeping through the night (does have a few bad nights here and there due to teething and being unwell). However, we seem to kind of 'disturb' each other. When I get into bed she gets disturbed, if I get up to go to the toilet she gets disturbed etc. Likewise, if she coughs etc I wake up and struggle to go back into a deeper sleep as I'm always on 'edge' as I feel as though I constantly need to keep an eye on her to make sure she's okay.

I'd like to find out about other people's experiences of this? How did it go? What do you do if your child is sick? When is too soon or on the other hand when is it too late? Any tips?

Thanks

Me too. Well-rested baby = happy baby.

We co-sleep still at three - ideally we’ll go till five at least because it’s better for brain development (children sleep better when with a safe carer - it’s a biological function from when we were still in threat situations - and this deeper sleep allows for all the early development learning to settle better. I think even as adults we’re the same ! ) also I love the cuddles and we live in a listed ice box so the shared body warmth is needed/i don’t want to leave my snuggly nest if she needs me in the night

Due a baby in march and I’m not sure how it’ll all work- I have a HUGE amount of guilt about the thought of my moving her into her own room knowing it’s not what what’s best for her just because a new baby is coming….

At last, some sense! Not only does the baby sleep better but also the parents. Guidance is just that, guidance, it's not infallible, the guidance used to be for babies to sleep on their front and look how well that turned out.

And well rested mum too .

@SunsetSkylane actually I was put in my own room late. I'd sleep with my sister or my parents (had separation anxiety after moving house) and I really struggled ... I remember it so well

Decades ago but my first went in her own room after 1 night in mine( so 6 days old). I couldn't stand the crinkling of her nappy and the snuffling, her room was next door and we left the door open a bit to hear her. My second stayed in my room for about a week. They were both breastfed and slept through from 8 and 10 weeks.
There was no guidance about babies sleeping in parents' room then, everyone I knew put their babies in their own room from birth. Guidance was to not sleep in the same bed as your baby and to swaddle and put the baby to sleep on its side.

It was 20 and 16 years ago but I'd do the same again - mine were in their own rooms (with a baby monitor) from day one. Of course I was there as soon as they needed anything, and have been a light sleeper since becoming a parent anyway. In the same room we'd have all been awake every time one of us turned over, so this was our choice and was fine. Both girls always came into our bed for cuddles in the morning but overnight were always in their own room. Dd1 went through a phase of sleeping really poorly for a couple of years and during that period I tried everything, incl sleeping in the same room next to her in case she felt abandoned. In fact that made her worse, so I gave up in the end and stuck to plan A.

3 months. It was 25 years ago, though. I’d probably do 6 now.

It was around the 12 month mark for ours, slightly older for our first I think. She still comes into bed with us some nights at 5 years old but we don’t discourage her from it. Youngest has always been a better sleeper and sleeps well in his own room.

We had a few false starts, did about 10 months first, then regressed and did about 15 months, then regressed again at nearly 5 years old.
He was waking a few days in a row every couple of weeks, minimum, and since moving his bed in with us he wakes about 1 day in a fortnight and goes back to sleep easily.
You've got to parent your child not the person who wrote the books child.

No she won't feel abandoned. Make her room nice and continue whatever comforting bedtime routine you already have or add a new step if you want to.

Go to her if she wakes in the night.

You'll probably all sleep loads better and wonder why you didn't do it sooner!

My first went into her room at 6 months exactly.
My second went into her room at around 9 months.

Both were absolutely fine!

Both were around 2.5 years.

Both great sleepers.

I just went with what worked for us at the time, no pressure.

Dd was in her own room at 10 weeks - I do feel bad about that now but our room (rented flat at the time) had really bad damp in it and I’d been having to camp out in her room every night. Wasn’t ideal but I really wanted to get back into my own bed with my then DH.

DS went into his own room at 6 months. He was always a good sleeper from the point when he had his tongue tie snipped but it was just at a point when we had time to move everything around.

6 months is the recommendation. I followed this and it’s worked out really well for my 4 year old. Currently just started with my 6 month old, going well so far. I have a baby Camera set up so that helps

Mine were all young - 8 weeks, 6 weeks & 6 weeks. Pretty much when they started sleeping through.

10 months is absolutely fine! I bet you will all sleep much better.

About 3 weeks. But my eldest is 31 and youngest is 17. Probably very old fashioned now. My granddaugher is still in with parents at 12 months.

My first was about a month old, he slept all night and seemed silly not to move him into his own space. He had always been chilled and content ... many years later he still is, so obviously didn't feel abandoned.

My other, well, devil child who was clingy, so moved much later - they are lovely now though.

Good luck and don't feel guilty.

Unfortunately my DD doesn't have the option to have her own room. We live in a small flat and she has co slept with me from about 5 weeks until now 7 months. We were getting 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep, but she is currently having a growth spurt so are waking twice in the night for feeds. She has her own cot to toddler bed next to mine but we haven't really used it, mostly because our current arrangement is working really well. I thought I'd be like @AgainandagainandagainSS, but no. I've tried to keep a good routine though. We do story time on the floor and she knows when we get into the grown up bed it's time to sleep. She goes from crawling around on the floor to fast asleep on a couple of minutes after lights out.

Spend some time playing in her room and making comfortable, do naps in the cot in there for a few days and then move her at night and see how you get on?

I moved both of mine around this age, when we began disturbing each other. Risk of SIDS is reduced in tiny babies when room sharing so never considered it before then

The day they came home from the hospital. Whatever complaints they might have about their childhood they obviously haven't mentioned feeling abandonned.

The OPs child is 10 months old.

In that case get it done while she's still little!

6 months is the minimum so you're fine. I cosleep with my 14 month old so she's in with me but I think I'm in the minority among my friends.

My DD is almost 3 and still sleeps in same room/bed as us
We have a cot bed in the room and once she's asleep we move her into that. She'll wake randomly in middle of night and join us in the big bed

I have zero rush to move her into her own bed and will do it when it feels right

Thankfully we all get decent sleep. I imagine if none of us were sleeping well it would be different