Co-Sleeping

I can only guess how many people have read the title of this post and are already shaking your heads. Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but it's true and, honestly, I'm perfectly happy with this arrangement. For the first five weeks of Estelle's life we tried to get her to sleep in her bassinet. However, spending 3 or more hours each night trying to get her to sleep only to have her awaken crying only one or two hours after we put her down is not my idea of healthy parenting. All of us were loosing sleep and were reaching the ends of our ropes. I thought she had colic with all the crying she was doing each night. And it was more than frustraiting that I often had to be the one to put her down because nursing was often the only thing that could calm her down. So, one night, grumpy and tired, instead of sitting up in bed to feed her like I usually did, I just laid down next to me and let her nurse while I drifted back to sleep. To my amazement she and I both slept for three full hours before she wanted to nurse again. Her next sleep stretch was just as long.

So, the next night, instead of battling her for hours as we had been, I simply took her directly to my bed and let her nurse until we both fell asleep. She didn't fuss and instead went right to sleep for three full hours. And that sealed the deal. Since then I've been getting restful nights of sleep and feel great. I think that with more sleep, I'm able to function better as a parent, which, in the end, works out better for all of us.

And for those of you who believe co-sleeping is terrible, here are a few co-sleeping facts you probably didn't know.

*Co-sleeping is century's old and was always considered to be the only natural thing to do. Only recently has it become taboo. Like breastfeeding... it's making a comback.
*Co-sleeping actually reduces risk of SIDS because the baby usually rolls onto it's back after nursing and the back is the safest way to sleep. And because baby's breathing is more regular when she sleeps next to mom. (SIDS is often caused by baby failing to breathe when in deep sleep)
*Co-sleeping allows both mother and baby to get more restful sleep... especially if the mother is breastfeeding.
*Co-sleeping babies have fewer stress hormones and cry considerably less.

And finally, food for thought:
If you were a newborn baby brought into this strange new world. Would you rather learn to fall asleep in a big, lonely, dark crib or comfortably cuddled next to your favorite person in the world?