Co-sleeping : I'm serioulsy thinking of doing it....

[Summerfruit]

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Yes to good idea, yes to from when baby is born and yes, I felt less tired. Especially breastfeeding, you can doze (if you can trust yourself) and feed. I am sure someone will do links on how to co-sleep safely, but I found it wonderful.

I didn't co-sleep for an extended period, but from birth I did with dd2 and I got a hell of a lot more sleep than I did with dd1 trying to get her to sleep in a moses basket. I only started feeling tired with dd2 when I decided she would go in her cot, which rather serves me right I know. I just didn't want co-sleeping to become a bigger habit for dd2 than I could easily stop.

I would definately recommend it from birth, especially if you can get the hang of lying down feeding, dd2 would just kind of latch on then roll off when done, if I woke I'd turn us both over and start again, I'd be asleep before her every time.

We co-sleep in a superking-size bed and Dh sleeps with us too. He doesn't wake up at night because I see to the baby before he cries, as he's stirring, IYSWIM.
He sleeps at the side of me because Dh was frightened of squashing him. My 3yo will sometimes come in as well early morning and sleeps snuggled up next to Dh. It's fab!
I don't think I would feel comfortable with either the baby or Dh in another bed now we do it this way

Forgot to add I have co-slept this time from his birth and get much more sleep. We dream feed and I'm often back to sleep before he's finished!

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I co slept with dc2 and am doing it now with dc3 - much more sleep and happier everyone - I don't burp the babies when lying down and it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Only thing i would say is make sure is that baby doesn't get under the duvet - mine sleeps on top of it in her grobag. My MW and HV both seemed completely unworried about it when I told them.

DD is now 2 yrs old and for a while now, haven;t noticed how long really because i would usually have dd between me and the bedguard till she was over a year, dh adopts the classic bf sleep posture when dd is next to him.

i have read sleep research that states that men who co-sleep also change the way they sleep and do this like the breastfeeding, cosleeping partner.

No I never burped her at all. She and I were both so relaxed she didn't seem to trouble with wind at night.

co-sleeping leaflet. a good website to browse.

I certainly feel less tired. I didn't co sleep in the begining and would have if I'd known better. I took it up about the 5 month mark and get much more sleep. DH sleeps the begining of the night with me then shifts when DD joins us although at weekends we all sleep together. If you can master the art of feeding laying down ( I couldn't until about 4 months) it is soooooooo much easier and you don't need to wind them.

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Go for it, it's wonderful. I have co-slept with all 4 of mine from birth.

Do it!
And read "3 in a Bed" by Deborah Jackson. Its great to reassure you/remind you why you should.

It's the most natural thing in the world.

3 in a Bed is excellent - wish I'd read it sooner than I did. We started co-sleeping at 6mo, so no experience of it with a newborn, but I would definitely recommend it.

we co-slept until ds was 8m then he slept better in cot and now (at 15m) we're back to doing a bit of both. I would do it again and i was definitely less tired. He sleeps much better when we co-sleep and he's the best hot water bottle on the market

I only proprerly co-slept with from about 4/5 months, although on & off from earlier - but it was/is fab - got SO much more sleep than I did with ds ... & I adore my middle-of-the-night cuddles!
DH has never had any problems at all sharing with us

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Just putting the other side here - it always scared me too much. All the warnings seem to say not to co-sleep if you are tired, which precluded me during the first 8 months of each of my babies' lives! Plus, it always seemed so complicated to get me warm without risking covering them with duvets/pillows etc.

Having said that, I feed next to DS3 in the early morning and it is lovely so I can quite see the attraction.

We used something called the 'bed-side-bed' which is a cot with only 3 sides { there is a 4th side to use once the baby is older } and fits securely up against your bed, so you are sleeping side by side, but the baby still has their own space. It was a brilliant solution for us. I think they are still available - we still actually have ours which I probably ought to get round to trying to sell now my ds is nearly 13 !