More on the benefits of co-sleeping

Infants sleeping for long periods in social isolation from parents constitutes an extremely recent cultural experiment, the biological and psychological consequences of which have never been evaluated. Most Americans assume that solitary sleep is "normal," the healthiest and safest form of infant sleep. Psychologists as well as parents assume that this practice promotes infantile physiological and social autonomy. Recent studies challenge the validity of these assumptions and provide many reasons for postulating potential benefits to infants sleeping in close proximity to their parents - benefits which would not seem likely with solitary sleeping. Current clinical models of the development of "normal" infant sleep are based exclusively on studies of solitary sleeping infants. Since infant-parent co-sleeping represents a species-wide pattern, and is practiced by the vast majority of contemporary peoples, the accepted clinical model of the "ontogeny" of infant sleep is probably not accurate, but rather reflects only how infants sleep under solitary conditions. I wonder whether our cultural preferences as to how we want infants to sleep push some infants beyond their adaptive limits

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E-beth said:

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

My son's doctor and I have been going round and round about this. Doc says son should absolutely never sleep with me. Parenting stuff says that he should get used to sleeping alone all night, and if he cries to be picked up from his crib, leave him there and let him cry.

NOT!

From day one, my son and I have both slept better when he was either in my arms or lying beside me. In the hospital I would not sleep all night and would cat nap in the day when I was left alone with my newborn and could sit up holding him.

So recently I decided to follow doctor's orders and put baby in his crib. He goes to sleep in my arms and I put him in his crib. Then at 3AM he wakes up crying and turning him over and patting him isn't what he needs. So I cuddle him, and he zonks out. Sometimes in the night he will reach over in his sleep and pat my arm, as if to reassure himself that I am there.

So I am gradually getting him in his crib. It just looks so much like a cage and he looks so tiny in it.

anyway, thanks for showing me a link to make me feel like maybe I am not totally messing up my kid for life.

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Brittney Moody said:

Papist, Aren't your kids big now though- not infants? Just wondering- not that it makes a difference because I say let them sleep with you for as long as they want- they won't be around forever.

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