Co-Sleeping: Is Sleeping With Your Child In Your Bed Healthy?

When my son was a newborn, sometimes I would dream that he was in the bed with wifey and I and I’d wake up in a panic, searching frantically for him under the blankets before I’d realize he was safely in his bassonette. Sometimes, the lil’ man still wakes up in the middle night and ol’ Dad gets him and brings him into the bed with wifey and me. Wifey doesn’t like it sometimes; she says he needs to learn to sleep alone. I think it builds closeness. Here are two opposing views:

“The proximity of the parent may help the infant’s immature nervous system learn to self-regulate during sleep. It may also help prevent SIDS by preventing the infant from entering into sleep states that are too deep. In addition, the parents’ own breathing may help the infant to “remember” to breathe.

“Parents and infants sleep better. Because of the proximity of the mother, babies do not have to fully wake and cry to get a response. As a result, mothers can tend to the infant before either of them are fully awake. As a result, mothers were more likely to have positive evaluations of their nighttime experiences because they tended to sleep better and wake less fully.

On the other hand:

“I love my children. But I also love my husband and value our relationship. In my experience, both personally and professionally, I find that happy parents have an easier time raising happy children. The only time that my husband and I have together to relax, talk, discuss our lives and express our love to each other is at night after our children go to sleep. The time we spend alone in our bedroom is essential for us as a couple. Also, this time is important for me, as an individual. I need to know that after a certain time at night, my evening belongs to me.
Of course, as a parent there are always nights where this is not possible. All children have bad nights where they need extra attention. But this does not have to be every night. I strongly believe that parents, who have time to themselves as well as time with their children, make better parents in the long run.