Co-Sleeping in a single bed

[FatBigToe]

I've really wanted to co-sleep since day 1, but I put it out of my head thinking it wouldn't be possible for a number of reasons.

My partner wasn't very keen on the idea for a number of reasons, one being scared that he would squash him etc AND he is a smoker and a drinker, so not very safe. I think it probably would have been ok though if i'd put bub's between me and the wall, because it wouldn't have been possible for him to roll over onto him.

I'm currently living in shared accommodation and space is tight, therefore I only have a single bed and I don't feel at all confident sharing it with a baby - let alone a newborn! Although this situation isn't going to be permanent, I really wanted to co-sleep from when the baby was born.

I have a cot in the room which i'm fine with using for day sleeps, but preferably not at night. I like the idea of having him next to me and it would make night breastfeeding easier too!

So, has anyone co-slept in a single bed before and would you consider it safe?

[MountainGirl]

Ummm,... I think bubby is safer sleeping in a single bed with you than in a bed with your smoking/drinking partner:yes:

oh,..and sorry to go OTT,....but is your partner really 50? And you really 17? wow,.... When I was 21 I was living with a 50yr old,... used to drive people mental!:laughing:

[Nanay]

You could try one of those things where its like they are in their own bed but you just put it beside you if you're too scared. Currently I'm sleeping in DS1s bed (single bed) until DS2 is about 2 months old (and then i'll go back to my own bed)..however there were nights where i just popped DS2 beside me (breastfeeding) and we were just fine. I just make a concious effort to do it when i'm not overtired just sleepy and i find that we both sleep alright..but yeah i'd suggest those things i cant think of what they are called right now..but its like a rectangle cushion where bubs is in the middle and you just sleep beside it...

[MsMummy]

I think it depends on how big you are, and how much you like to be stretched out!

We've always co-slept in a queen (but want a king now that he's 8 months and takes up a bit of room!:D

I think you could do in a single if you put the head and one side in the corner (ie. both hard up against walls) and you bought a bed rail for the other side (some people say bed rails are dangerous because the baby can get caught between the rail and the bed, but you can buy the kind (about $50 from Target or Kmart etc) where it actually clamps down on the mattress about 10cm into the bed...I think ours is Safety First brand).

Or you could sleep in a Queen with your partner with the baby between either you and the wall or you and the bed rail. But if you feed lying down at night (which is great), then your partner will have to switch sides so you can feed from each breast comfortably. We don't switch sides but I alternate the baby between me and the rail and me and my partner, but you can't do that.

Sorry for the long post...more logistical than I imagined...:D

PS. We love co-sleeping so much. Can't recommend it enough.

[Merla]

We co-sleep in a queen, but that's with DH and myself and bubba (who is now 9 weeks). We have her cot permanently attached to our bed (took one rail off, tied it to the base of our bed with some rope, and got a piece of high density foam cut a Clark rubber to fit the gap on the far side (pushed the mattress over so there was no gap). It works wonderfully, there’s all this extra space for her to lie, she can’t fall out, and neither DH nor myself can roll on her (though most nights she ends up asleep on my arm anyway).

It might be the way to go in a single bed? If you attach the cot, you then have more space for little one, and no risk of him falling out/getting trapped between the wall and the bed.

[ladybugblue84]

If you don't move much when you sleep you might be ok. I have a single bed ATM & my DD often comes into my bed in the middle of the night & it is soooo uncomfy but she is 1. I like to stretch out. Another idea is taking the side off the cot & pushing really close to your bed like Merla said. I did that & it was heaps more comfortable then trying to share a single bed.

Nanay are you thinking of a Tetra bed thingy???

MsMummy I was able to feed from both boobs without changing the side I was laying on or where bub was laying! Just sorta layed a little further on my belly. Can't exactly remember how I did it but I can't remember it being uncomfortable. I was too lazy to change positions when we were both comfortable so I mastered it! Maybe I have exceptionally floppy stretchy boobs!?!?! :laughing:

[FatBigToe]

Scarlett_Jasper_Rafferty Yep, he really is 50 and I really am 17 (and a half :p)!

Merla That's what my IM suggested the other day, so I think I might give that a go! It seems like it's the best idea to me, I just don't think i'd be able to sleep comfortably with both of us in a single bed. An added bonus is that I should be able to fit a bf chair in the room now! :smiliedance:

Nanay If you mean those tetra bed things, i'm probably going to get one - for the beginning at least! It would probably help me feel more comfortable while i'm getting used to co-sleeping.

MsMummy I'm not that big, but I do tend to be rather restless! The bed rail is a good idea, although it would be for my benefit and not the baby's! :laughing:

[MsMummy]

MsMummy I was able to feed from both boobs without changing the side I was laying on or where bub was laying! Just sorta layed a little further on my belly. Can't exactly remember how I did it but I can't remember it being uncomfortable. I was too lazy to change positions when we were both comfortable so I mastered it! Maybe I have exceptionally floppy stretchy boobs!?!?! :laughing:

I suddenly got a mental image of a middle age woman I saw near my work one day. She (literally) had her boobs tucked into her tracksuit pants. And, no, she wasn't wearing her tracksuit pants THAT high. Anyway, I'm sure you're not on par with the boob-tucking woman. I can technically do it, but I find it a bit uncomfortable as I have to lean over more. The other thing is my baby is really lazy so I have to take it to exactly where he wants to put his mouth.:D

I just re-read BFT's original post, and hope I didn't get confused - i was thinking of just you and the baby in the single bed - the three of you won't be in the single bed, will you?:confused: That would be really tight.

[Seekrit]

I was worried about co-sleeping on a single bed too. I went "home" 4 hours after Eva was born but rather than home, I stayed at my in-laws (they were inside the hospital catchment so I was still able to get home midwife visits) on a single bed.
First night she slept in a bassinet beside the bed.
Night two she was waking and feeding and feeding and waking so after getting out of bed a couple of times I said "blow it." and put her in bed with me. It's amazing how small I can make myself :p

The good thing is newbies can't roll, so there's no need to worry about extra-roll-room for them. I slept with Eva in the crook of my arm as well.. My midwife gave me a brochure on safe co-sleeping and now I can't find it so I'm no help really :p I can't remember if it said something about crooks of arms or not.

But yeah, now we're on a queen bed with her cot side-carred. But I wouldn't recommend that if your partner is a smoker.

[FatBigToe]

I just re-read BFT's original post, and hope I didn't get confused - i was thinking of just you and the baby in the single bed - the three of you won't be in the single bed, will you?:confused: That would be really tight.

Don't worry, you didn't get confused. I doubt that i'd fit in a single bed with my partner, let alone adding a baby to the mix too! :laughing:

Since i'm not living with my partner, I don't think his smoking is going to be a major issue at this point. On occasions when we are together I can either kick him out of his bed or we could all move to the floor or something. I'm sure i'll come up with something when the time comes!

[MimiGrace]

I'm not a mum (so i haven't got the baby that i'm super tuned into :p), but i'm a really restless sleeper too,

but the second i'm co-sleeping with a baby, i will be completely aware of where they are at all times, and not roll on them, or even be able to sleep with them in my arm. can't do it with a doll or anything else. but i can with a baby (just food for thought. its scary to do it the first time, cause they're so small and stuff, but we are amazing creatures ;)).

but try the cot against the bed idea until you feel comfortable doing it in the single bed :thumbsup: and don't do anything if you don't feel safe doing it, imo.

[MsMummy]

Sorry, I called you BFT, I meant FBT...I had always misread your username as Big Fat Toe.:o

[ladybugblue84]

I suddenly got a mental image of a middle age woman I saw near my work one day. She (literally) had her boobs tucked into her tracksuit pants. And, no, she wasn't wearing her tracksuit pants THAT high. Anyway, I'm sure you're not on par with the boob-tucking woman. I can technically do it, but I find it a bit uncomfortable as I have to lean over more. The other thing is my baby is really lazy so I have to take it to exactly where he wants to put his mouth.:D

My boobs are certainly not tucked into my tracky pants :laughing: ....well not yet anyway :p.

[FatBigToe]

Sorry, I called you BFT, I meant FBT...I had always misread your username as Big Fat Toe.:o

I do the same thing too! I have to correct myself all the time - Big Fat Toe flows so much better, don't you think? Now you're going to be stuck hearing the story of how it came about... Ha ha ha! :devil:

For memory it started when I found out I was pregnant. The whole weight/body issue thing was coming up, so DP said that I had a fat big toe (I think I must officially have an obese big toe by now)!

Well it was a lot funnier irl, honestly! :yes:

[sweetseven]

I'm not fond of co-sleeping because I wake up with a sore back (due to not moving at all with a baby in the bed). However I have done so when bub is having difficulty sleeping.

I've slept in a single before with a baby, without any problems. XH has also climbed into the cot to sleep with a baby on occasion.

As for feeding in bed, with my latest bub, I do so facing away from my partner. For the upper breast, I just put bub on a pillow when she was newborn. As she got older, the pillow was no longer necessary, and I would just need to lean slightly forward.

[ladybugblue84]

XH has also climbed into the cot to sleep with a baby on occasion.

Holy Moley that must have been a sight! I couldn't even imagine being in my DD's cot scared it would fall to the floor under my weight :laughing:

[FatBigToe]

Holy Moley that must have been a sight! I couldn't even imagine being in my DD's cot scared it would fall to the floor under my weight :laughing:

I'm just imagining how cramped it would be length wise and i'm short!

[Areca]

Dh and I have both climbed in to the cot to settle down a baby before. It's a great way to do it when they wake up every time you put them down and get uspet, but no longer co-sleep because they think that the big bed = play.
It's just a bit tricky climbing back out of it when you're trying to be quiet, and delicate so you don't disturb the baby/toddler that is fast asleep but curl up and it's pretty comfy!