This is a topic of much debate. Some people are really against co-sleeping, some people think it's fine. I think it's fine, and opted for it right off the bat because it was easier. Especially with having a c-section, getting in and out of bed initially was really difficult and uncomfortable. The fact that I was breastfeeding on top of that just made it much easier to have Sofia sleep in our bed with us. As she is getting older, it's been fine, but I'm really missing my sleep. We're still up 1-2 times a night with her because she fusses, needs a diaper change, and/or needs a bottle. Sometimes though, it's just fussing, and putting her nook in her mouth calms her down and she goes to sleep. She had her 4-month appointment recently and I asked the doctor, when will she start sleeping through the night?
Every baby is different. He told me the story of a couple who would put their baby in its room and shut the door. Keep in mind that there were several rooms separating the baby's room from the parents, and they'd close all the doors in between and turn on the stereo so they wouldn't hear him cry. Then they would talk about how their baby was sleeping through the night at 8 weeks old. Seriously?
Then there is him (the doctor) who had a kid who couldn't sleep by himself until he was almost 4 years old because he (the doctor) was too much of a softy - and if the kid wasn't sleeping in bed with his parents, he (the doctor) would have a pull out mattress on the floor of the kid's room, because of the kid woke up and saw nobody was there, he would start crying.
He said at 4 months old, Sofia doesn't need to be waking up to eat so much. But at the same time, all babies are different. Once she starts eating solid foods on a regular basis, her appetite will change. I think my mom said I was around 6 months old before I was really sleeping through the night.
Regardless, the time has come to at least start by getting her to sleep in her own bed. Because if we can do that, maybe I won't wake up every time she fusses and squirms. Also, she needs to start being able to learn how to self-soothe, and put herself back to sleep if she wakes up. I'm being told to lay her down when she is "drowsy, but awake" so she can put herself to bed. She's used to me rocking her to sleep or falling asleep next to me cradled in my elbow.
Last night, she had her nighttime bottle and I put her to bed around 9pm. She woke up at 10:30pm. We could hear her crying. I told Husband to turn down the monitor. She did not stop crying. Rather, it just kept getting worse, she became more and more upset, and started coughing because she was crying so hard. Back and forth we went trying to calm her down, and each time we'd calm her down, 5 minutes after we left the room she'd start up again. By 11:15ish, I had given up. I said that tomorrow was Monday, and for the sake of getting some sleep, let's just let her sleep in our room. So we did. I don't know if maybe I gave up too quickly. I probably did. But I have to work full time, and starting off a workweek on little to no sleep is not going to do much good.
As soon as I brought her back to bed, she slept like a rock. She fussed a few times throughout the night, but I managed to get her to go back to sleep without eating. So that's a step in the right direction. This morning she woke up at 5, I fed her and changed her, and she went back to sleep. I even managed to get her dressed without waking her up.
Here she is, a vision in polka dots.
And night #1 of getting her to sleep in her room was a complete and utter failure.
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