Baby NightOwl Loves co-sleeping..Who Wouldn't Right?!

he's doing all of this because you have not allowed him to learn to self-soothe. He relies on you to "pat his butt" & calm him....instead of learning to help himself.

& I want to be very clear: allowing a child to learn to self-soothe is NOT abusive, is not ignoring his needs. Self-soothing means the child feels secure.....& then simply is a happier, calmer baby.

The good thing is that it's not too late to teach this skill. By using a fav soft blankie, soft music, the pacifier (if used), & presenting yourself calmly....you can teach your child to find that calmness within himself. A full tummy also helps! Don't let him graze all night long....or that won't end until you end it.

I know this all sounds dorky, but kids truly can learn these skills! Peace.

I co-slept and bed shared with my #1 since birth. It was great. Barely had to wake to nurse overnight and we ALL got a lot of sleep. As a single Mom - I find it crazy that women complain about losing sleep - until I realize it's their own fault. Co-sleeping, especially if breastfeeding seems to be such a simple and easy fix/choice - yet Moms will fight their INFANTS about sleeping all alone in an isolated room, in the dark and expect their infants to be ok with it!.

Only reason why #1 is transitioning to her own bed (she's almost 6 y/o) is because baby #2 is about to be born and we have a queen bed... my husband is slim, but only 2 adults and one child fits.

I felt more safer knowing where my child was (in case of fire, break ins, disaster, etc), very comforted snuggled next to my child and sleep was better than if I had to listen for her in another room.

totally agree with sue. cosleeping is great for some people. i'm not one of them...lol.

seriously kids are amazing. it does not hurt him to learn to self soothe. as she suggested getting a favorite lovey, instead of going into him when he's fussing, and patting his bottom, take the lovey and brush it gently on his cheek...introduce it as the new comfort item. mine's favorite was flannel receiving blankets. lucky me :) easy and cheap! course, he was a spitter and we used them for burp rags so they had a close relationship from the start lol.

anyway...he will be fine, and this is just something else that we have a responsibility to teach them. you can do it now, and it might sting a little, or you can do it as he gets older...and it will just get harder and harder. just my opinion. a little self reliance never hurt anyone. and you will sleep better. which is very important. also just my opinion. hang in there!

Why don't you just move him into a crib in his room? My kids never really found pack-n-plays very comfortable. 6 months is old enough for a comfy crib :-)

P.S. I would never suggest letting a baby CIO. You can definitely have a baby sleep in his own room and still respond when he cries. At 6 months, he should be fine with nursing to sleep and being put down in his crib.

I honestly don't think u have to use cio I won't and my son is 9 1/2 months old and will sleep in his crib fine but also still sleeps with us from time to time.....In the beginning he slept with us all the time except naps he would sleep in his swing or little chair he has but around 6 months my boyfriend/sons father got irritated with him always sleeping with us so I used his pack n play to transition him and I dealt with it for two weeks finally he slept through the night a couple night and then i transferred him to his crib...I suggest trying the pack n play for at least 2 weeks and NEVER cave and bring him into the bed just go into knowing your not going to get much sleep for 2 weeks but I bet if u do it consistently for 2 weeks he will sleep in there for u and then u can just randomly take naps with him or whatever so u still get your co-sleep time u love so much (as do I) I wish u luck : )

Also now I only rock my son for 10 minutes and he is out and sleeps 2 hours at naps and 10 hours at night if it only takes 10 minutes for me to rock him then I will not let him scream for 2 hours just so I don't have to put him to sleep he will eventually learn to self soothe CIO is not always the answer I suggest going to Dr. Sears website. Very Helpful!!

This is actually a really tough time to try to move him out of your bed. Most babies experience separation anxiety at about his age. Wait until he's through that (most are before 8 months and you'll be able to tell when) and then try again.

There's also no reason that a mobile baby/child can't co-sleep. Just take some safety precautions and enjoy it if that's what works for you all!

And I strongly disagree that cio isn't dangerous or damaging. It's a personal choice, but if you research, you'll find the info fairly easily. Search attachment theory or just go to http://www.askdrsears.com/ and there are lots of links there. For me personally, 5 minutes of CIO is too long and I have a very happy, healthy and calm 4 year old who has never been told she has to cry it out. When she's cold, I help her get a coat rather than take it away. Why should crying be different? Why take away the comfort instead of being there to help a baby through it. A 20 year old... different. A baby, help them so they can get through it. There's a lot of research supporting that kids who are responded to actually end up more confident, secure and independent than kids who "learn" to "self-soothe"

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I'm not sure about the cosleeping, but I know that with CIO it really depends on the parent and the child. My sister-in-law would let her son cry for 45 minutes. We know our son, and if he is crying for more than 15 min. it means that he is not going to bed for the night, so we go in and get him. However it took us a while to build up to the 15 min. we started with 5 and slowly increased to 15. We have tried longer but that is when we learned that is was not productive for him. You have to be comfortable with the time that you let him cry and it also has to be productive. We have a video monitor and I turn the volume all the way down because I cant stand to listen to him cry, and on our regular monitor I turn the volume almost all the way down but not quite (since I cant see him). Keep trying . . . good luck!

If you enjoy co-sleeping, put your mattress on the floor and add extra long railings. Martha Stewart may not approve, but you'll get to snuggle up to a warm baby. That's how I've done it for both of my boys--and I swear that boys need more physical touch than girls. Just a personal theory. :)

CIO is a highly discredited method invented by doctors in the 30's practiced in the 40's and 50's. You are more that 70 years behind the times. CUDDLE your baby and leave him to sleep near you.
Yesterday a mother wrote in that we are the only mammals that put our babies to sleep away from us. He needs you. Get some books on how to love your baby. You are making a mess of things damaging his psyche.