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Sleep

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Original poster

Co-sleepers! Your thoughts please!!

17 replies

purplemonkeydishwasher · 09/02/2006 10:25

I've had my 20wk ds (bf) in my bed since he was 3 weeks (finally got some sleep!!)
But I am wondering how other moms do it.
Your thoughts please on:
Bedtime - do you put your baby down before you go to bed?
Waking in the night - is there a co-sleeping baby out there that sleeps through? (without non waking feeds)
Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

geekgrrl · 09/02/2006 10:30

IME co-sleeping babies don't sleep through until they're well over 1 - sorry! This was one of the reasons why baby no.3 did not co-sleep with us.

Regarding bedtimes, I used to lie down with them when it was their bedtime, then sneak off and go to bed at my bedtime. I think it's really important to get a bit of a break and some quality baby-free time with your dh.

Pinotmum · 09/02/2006 10:57

I would say the same as geekgirl.

lazycow · 09/02/2006 11:04

Not only is a break important, I think a lot of babies who co-sleep go to bed quite late and for some babies that is fine but for some babies they need the extra sleep.

Newborns don't need a set bedtime at all but at about 4-6 months old a lot of babies seem to settle into more of a routine and they need to go to bed earlier than most adults do (anytime between 6pm and 8pm - depending on the baby). This is probably particularly true if they don't sleep much during the day

Unless you can make the bed safe for them to sleep in their own, you might want to consider putting your ds in a cot for the early evening and then bringing him into bed when he wakes for the first time. I did this with ds - though we actually stopped doing even that quite early on as I found he slept much better in his cot - depite me liking him in with me..

tracyk · 09/02/2006 11:17

I was the same - put ds into his own cot from 12 weeks and just brought him into bed in the wee hours when he woke. cos some nights he didn't wake and he stayed in his own bed.
You could also get a cot with a drop down side that you could hug right up to the side of your bed and give yourself more room.

FrannyandZooey · 09/02/2006 11:24

We have always put him to bed in the evening and then gone up ourselves later. We have a futon on the floor so it's quite safe.

Is there a co-sleeping baby out there that sleeps through? I don't think so. Nor a co-sleeping toddler, not one I have met anyway. Touche Eclat is very good, you know

Original poster

purplemonkeydishwasher · 09/02/2006 11:26

We've got a three sided cot up against our bed. He starts out there, but usually wakes after about 3 hours.
I've been trying to put him to bed earlier because he's tired and miserable, but he wakes after a half hour power nap and is rarin' to go! Then he won't go to sleep til after 10.

OP posts:

tracyk · 09/02/2006 12:24

Whats his daytime nap routine and time going to bed?

Original poster

purplemonkeydishwasher · 09/02/2006 15:32

He usually has a morning nap 2-3 hours then sporatic little power naps once or twice in the afternoon. Half hour at the most - unless i'm holding him or he's in the pram. then its longer.
Then lately he's been falling asleep at 7:30ish and waking up half hour later then will sleep again around 10:30 (if i;m lucky - 1130 if i'm not)
but in the morning he either sleeps in until 10ish or else wakes up at 630 and then sleeps from 8-11.

TBH I'm not that bothered with his routine, I was just wondering what other kids are like.

OP posts:

Original poster

purplemonkeydishwasher · 09/02/2006 19:21

Bumping this to see if anyone has any co-sleeping experiences to add...

OP posts:

mszebra · 09/02/2006 19:26

Mine didn't really sleep thru until 2 yrs (DS1) 4yrs (DD, but she was turfed out of our bed 18m earlier) and still not yet (DS2, 20m).

mszebra · 09/02/2006 19:28

sorry, forgot to say, when cosleeping I used to put baby down first, then when they were heavy asleep go do my jobs, then back to bed. Tried hard to get them to sleep in own cot, at least to start the night, with babies 2 & 3.

I stopped feeding mine at night but they still woke up & cried for me, begged to come in with us, a lot for a long time after.

maisiemog · 09/02/2006 19:56

Our ds is our first and, until yesterday, he went to bed around 7 and either slept until I went to big bed at 1ish or woke in between for a bf. Some nights he continued to sleep after I was in big bed then woke me around 3 to get in bed with us and have a feed. He then tends to sleep until 7:30 or 8am.
I read somewhere that it when experts say 'sleep through' for a toddler they mean 6 or 7 hours of unbroken sleep, not 12 hours.
If ds has had a rough night with teeth or something he goes back to bed for a nap around 11am if not he might not nap until 2pm. He generally naps for 1-2 hours.
We were finding the bed a bit small so just bought a superking size bed and since, yesterday he has been going straight into big bed, at his normal nap/sleep times. The cot has been taken down, as we don't have room for it now.
He is very excited about this new development, so I don't expect normal sleep to be resumed until it becomes a bit more normal.
It's a lot better for dp and me with the extra space. Aaaaaaaaaaah! Lovely!
And it's a tempur mattress.
Body shop do a cheaper version of Touche Eclat, it is very useful.
Has anyone physically aged 10 years since having a child?
I feel as if my diet, exercise, sleep, skincare have all just fallen by the wayside.
I am thinking about getting one of those lighteners for under my eyes as I have permanant dark circles, which are partially hereditary. Has anyone tried?

maisiemog · 09/02/2006 19:59

Oh we do have a kind of routine of bath, story bf, baby classics playing then putting him in bed and leaving him. If he makes a stink we go in and rub his back or give him another feed. If he continues to make a stink go in one of us goes in and lies down next to him, if that doesn't work we just get him up and check teeth, bum and let him run about for a bit, maybe teetha and ashton and parsnips.

Angeliz · 09/02/2006 20:06

Well i kind of fell into co-sleeping with dd2 who is now 11 months.
She goes to bed around 7.30 , the same time as her siter who is 5. I give her a bottle and read dd1 a story and they both go off. I then put dd2 in her cot and slip downstairs.
For the past week she's been sleeping terribly, up in the night, up at 8.15................8.45..........you get the drift.
It drives me crazy not getting a little free time but i do say to dp, how does she know if it's time to come into Mammy's bed. I am a bit confused too about how to get the free hours!
I am wondering wether to move her to dd1's room soon. I'm expecting number 3 in September and i'm just sort of giggling whenever i think of hopw we'll all sleep!! (In a hysterical lost the plot type way )
I offered her water btw a few night ago when she wouldn't settle and she went back off in disgust!!+

maisiemog · 09/02/2006 20:50

Haha I'm joining in with the hysterical laughter. and bursting into tears as well.

KVG · 10/02/2006 22:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

maisiemog · 10/02/2006 23:27

I forgot to say my ds is now 15months and he didn't really sleep decent amounts until about 6 or 7 months, when he started crawling. I think as he has become more active he is a lot more tired and sleeps for more prolonged periods.

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