Where should your baby sleep at night? Will it be beside you on your bed or alone in the crib? Co-sleeping is preferred by many parents, however, it is frowned upon by others because of the danger it brings. To help you decide on where your baby should sleep, know and weigh the benefits that they confer.
The benefits of co-sleeping
Parents want their child near them at nighttime mainly because they feel more at peace. Having the baby sleep alone leads to ceaseless worries in parents. Questions like “Is my child comfortable with her sleep?”, “Is her baby clothing got wet from dripping bottles or full diaper?”, and the peak of it all is, “Is my baby still breathing?” The last question seems a bit harsh and overstated but it is a major concern of many parents when their child is let to sleep alone. Co-sleeping, thus, makes possible for mothers to monitor and provide what the child essentially needs as soon as possible.
The benefits of crib-sleeping
Parents who do not want to let their baby co-sleep with them regard safety in a different way. They frown upon co-sleeping because it is unsafe for the child. When the baby sleeps and shares the bed with you, the odds that she gets suffocated is greater, not to mention the odds that she might fall. Pillows, linens, quilt, blankets, and the parent’s body can hinder the normal airflow in baby, which may lead to preventable strangulation and suffocation. In contrast, when the child is allowed to sleep in her own baby bedding, she is much safer as the risks for suffocation and sudden infant death syndrome (or SIDS) are diminished.
With crib-sleeping, the child is given a sense of independence. The baby who grew to sleep beside her parent could become overly attached. For instance, whenever the mother leaves the bed her child wakes up and cries eventually. The child’s sleep is disrupted needlessly.
Whether you choose to have your baby share the bed with you or to provide her with her own baby bedding to spend the night, make sure that child’s safety is maintained. You can do this by laying her on special baby mattress on top of the bed if she has to co-sleep with you. That way you are giving your baby a sense of her own space. If she has to sleep alone, see to it that the baby bedding is free from unnecessary accessories. Make sure as well that she is wearing proper baby clothing so that there is no need for too many blankets or quilts at nighttime.
