March 20, 2018

Co-sleeping with your baby, yes or no?

Colecho con el bebé ¿sí o no? Petite Marmotte

Co-sleeping involves parents and children sharing a bed. The truth is that lately there seems to be a lot of debate about whether it's good or bad; obviously, it's a very personal decision, and different things work for different families. I'm going to try to summarize what I consider to be the advantages of co-sleeping. - Convenience for the mother: Newborn babies wake up several times during the night to feed. If they are next to us, it's much faster and more convenient to attend to them. This way, we avoid having to get out of bed and become less disturbed. - Babies sleep more peacefully: Babies like to feel close to their parents; they feel safe and happy there. Even the baby's heart rate becomes more stable, and breathing synchronizes with that of their parents, thus preventing apneas. - Improves the baby's emotional bonds with parents: It's true that familiarity breeds affection. - Babies who sleep with their mother eat more: Co-sleeping promotes breastfeeding; babies who have their mother close eat more and for longer, which favors their growth. As you can see, co-sleeping seems very beneficial a priori, right? Yes, but with caution, because it also has drawbacks: - risk of suffocation, crushing, or even sudden infant death syndrome. When we sleep, we don't control all our movements, and we can accidentally crush the baby or a cushion/sheet could fall on them. - can fall out of bed: Although it's normal for the baby to sleep between the father and mother, there's also a risk if, by oversight, the baby is left on one side. - state of alert: While some parents sleep much more peacefully with their babies next to them, others spend the whole night awake, checking if the baby is okay. So what can we do to reduce or eliminate these risks? To practice safe co-sleeping, nests are the solution! They can be placed in the middle of the parents' bed, allowing us to have the baby very close while respecting their space, thus preventing them from getting trapped under the sheets, rolling towards us, etc. colecho con el bebé

Sleeping with the baby is a safe practice if done correctly. Avoid any habits that are negative for the baby: tobacco, alcohol, medication that causes drowsiness... The important thing is to be able to choose freely and for the couple to agree. And you? What has been your experience or what is your opinion on this topic?