Infant Co-Sleeping

There is a huge debate on whether co-sleeping with an infant is good or bad. The views that most people have on it are so far from the truth it almost pains me to even listen to most of the non-sense that comes out of people's mouths. I co-slept with our first daughter, Kylee, until she was almost 2 years old. Kendall, our newest addition, is 7 months old and has been co-sleeping with us since the day we brought her home. Are their dangers to co-sleeping? Yes. I am not going to sit here and tell you that co-sleeping doesn't pose possible risks to the baby, but with proper safety measures, it can be an amazing bonding experience that also carries many benefits for you wee one. I recently came across a website on Dr James McKenna, a college professor (and Dr.) at Notre Dame who fully supports co-sleeping and has done many studies on both the short and long term  benefits for a baby. I was so happy to read about all of the positive things co-sleeping can do for a young children and it reinforced my reasons on why I have co-slept with both of my children.

The short term benefits co-sleeping has for a mother and baby are important to look at when deciding if it is a good option for you and your family. First of all, co-sleeping promotes breastfeeding and makes the bond between a mother and baby very strong. Speaking from personal experience, it is so much easier waking up for midnight feedings when your baby is right next to you. Kendall usually wakes up 2-3 times a night to nurse and because she is right next to me, I can feed her instantly instead of having her fully wake up. This helps both of us get a much better night's rest. There have also been studies done that have shown babies who co-sleep with their mothers (or in close proximity) to their mothers, actually have a much lower risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. As a mother, SIDS is my number one fear-although it cannot be prevented, I feel good knowing that co-sleeping lowers that risk and not raises it as so many people think. A mother can also arise more easily if something were to happen to the baby during sleep periods (choking, blanket suffocation, etc). This is actually the reason I started co-sleeping with Kylee. I had her in her bassinet one night when she was only a few weeks old and I woke up to her choking on milk she had spit up. I shutter to even think about what would have happened if I hadn't heard her. I wake up now with the smallest sound when either of the girls are in bed with me. I feel confident that if anything were to happen, I would awake immediately.

The long term benefits a baby has that co-sleeps with his/her mother are amazing. I heard from sevreal of my friends that I was making it impossible for Kylee (and now Kendall) to transition to their own bed/room. I am happy to say that it only took a week of me sleeping on Kylee's floor before she transitioned to her toddler bed in her own room. She sleeps wonderfully in there now and we have had no issues whatsoever. Another myth I heard quite frequently when co-sleeping, was that it would cause problems later in life with her being too attached to me. First of all, I am a mommy. There is no way you will ever convince me that my child is too attached to me-I love all of the cuddles and hugs. Secondly, that couldn't be further from the truth. Kylee is a very outgoing, friendly, and independent little three year old. She loves spending time with her mommy and daddy, but also is very active in gymnastics and plays very ell with other children. More importantly, studies have shown that children who co-slept with their parents when they were younger tend to be happier, have higher self-esteem,scored higher on evaluations, and had a general feeling of satisfaction on life. You can read more about these in the link I provided below.

It is important to read about safety when it comes to co-sleeping with your baby, but as stated above, there are many advantages and scientifically proven benefits to both a mother and baby. I urge every mother (and father) to research co-sleeping after having a child. Co-sleeping is definitely not for everyone; however, the benefits, in my opinion, outweigh the negatives and should be looked at as a positive way for parents to bond with their children.

Here is the link to Dr McKenna's website. He really has some amazing information on it!  http://www.nd.edu/~jmckenn1/lab/index.html