Is it possible to bf and NOT cosleep?

ted wrote:

Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?


Sure. My babies were in cradles in our room for
the first several months (4-8, depending on the child) and
then in cribs in their own rooms after that. The first
two were breastfed for 15 months, the last is still going
at 8 months. You just have to go get the baby to feed
him or her. It's perhaps less convenient, but it's
certainly doable.

Best wishes,
Ericka

Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?


Shaina slept in her own bed from the start. (In a carriage by our bed for the
first 6 weeks, then in a crib in her room.) I got up and fed her. Not a big
deal. (Despite what Larry said, it was really not a PITA, since she only fed
once at night after the first month or so, so it WASN"T that big of a deal. I
fed her, put her back to bed, and went back to sleep myself.) I suspect that
many co-sleeping parents assume that it must be really hard to not cosleep
since, I suspect that, on average, co-sleeping babies tend to wake more at
night and nurse more at night (BECAUSE mom is right there...) so they assume
that not colseeping must mean either getting up every hour or so all night, or
forcing baby to learn to 'cry it out' or some such.


Naomi
CAPPA Certified Lactation Educator

(either remove spamblock or change address to to e-mail
reply.)

"Naomi Pardue" wrote in message
...
Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?


Shaina slept in her own bed from the start. (In a carriage by our bed for
the
first 6 weeks, then in a crib in her room.) I got up and fed her. Not a
big
deal. (Despite what Larry said, it was really not a PITA, since she only
fed
once at night after the first month or so, so it WASN"T that big of a
deal. I
fed her, put her back to bed, and went back to sleep myself.) I suspect
that
many co-sleeping parents assume that it must be really hard to not cosleep
since, I suspect that, on average, co-sleeping babies tend to wake more at
night and nurse more at night (BECAUSE mom is right there...) so they
assume
that not colseeping must mean either getting up every hour or so all
night, or
forcing baby to learn to 'cry it out' or some such.

True. It must depend on how frequently they feed. DD is only 3 weeks old
and she wakes me up once a night. DS woke me up frequently, but that was
when he started getting ear infections. Before that, he slept through the
night. I have easy kids. They have good temperaments.

Ted asked:

Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a
crib/away from you at nights? How did
you manage that?

Our 5.5 month old BFed baby sleeps in a crib in her own room. For the
first 2 months or so she slept in a bassinette in our living room, right
outside our bedroom...then after that she moved to a crib in her own
room.

DH and I were never comfortable with co-sleeping. We live in a small 2
bedroom apartment...1 bedroom for us, 1 for DD. Our bedroom barely fits
a full sized bed, and DH and I take up all of the space in it. In
addition, while I was able to nurse laying down, I was never able to
fall asleep. I spent several miserable nights in a half asleep fog,
laying next to DD constantly worrying that I would fall over on her
while DH slept cramped up on our small couch. All 3 of us were
miserable.

Once I gave up on co-sleeping I just resolved that I would have to get
up at night and get her. It was rough in the beginning, but I think
most babies aren't a piece of cake those first 2-3 months. When she
would cry, either I or DH would get her and I would sit on the couch and
feed her...once she was sleeping again I would put her back down and go
back to bed. I'd make up for sleep loss at night by napping during the
day.

As I said, it was rough...BUT I also think it had a payoff for us. She
gradually started waking less and less at night, until we were down to
one feed. Then she learned to suck her thumb at about 3 months and has
been sleeping through the night (9-10 hours) ever since.

All in all, I think whatever works best for YOU is the way to go. For
some that's co-sleeping, and for others it's not. Just make the best of
what ever situation you're given and all will go fine...

Kathy

"ted" wrote in message
om...
Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?

Absolutely, Ted. I breastfed for 7 or 8 months, but the baby slept in her
own bed, and in her own room, from about two weeks old, on.


How did you manage that?


About what you'd imagine.Sarah slept in a bassinette next to my bed for
about two weeks, maybe three, and then I moved her into her own room
(actually, into the laundry room, to be perfectly honest, because the
rushing water lulled her to sleep). You'll learn to wake up at the first
cry, even without a monitor, if the rooms are close.

Do you have any particular questions? I may be able to tell you what worked
for us. In short, though, it was pretty simple.

Donna

Yes. When DS was very little, he slept in bed with us, or in the pack n'
play next to the bed. As he got older and was more capable of sleeping
longer stretches, he slept in a crib. When he woke up, I woke up like a
shot, went in, nursed him in a rocking chair, put him back to sleep and
went back to bed. No muss, no fuss. Well, mostly. ;-)

-Shannon

"ted" wrote in message
om...
Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?

Thanks.

This is purely anecdotal but IRL the mom/baby pairs that slept seperate were
all sleeping through the night by 18mos. Night feeds were down to one by a
year and generally much sooner. I know one other person IRL that breastfed
and co-slept and both her kids are like mine. Nurse all night long well
past a year ;-)

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (2)


I suspect there generally is a correlation, but that doesn't in any way mean
that co-sleeping *causes* night waking. I suspect it's far more often the
other way around. :-)

I, incidentally, was a part-time co-sleeper beginning when DS moved from
bassinet to crib (7 months) and continuing through the present. (He'd
typically start the night in his crib, and I'd bring him into my bed when he
woke after I'd gone to sleep.) Except for brief bouts of teething and the
like, I've never nursed him more than once during the night. And in fact, he
was *much* *less* likely to night nurse on those nights when he went to sleep
in my bed in the first place.

Holly
Mom to Camden, 3yo
EDD #2 6/8/04

"HollyLewis" wrote in message
...
This is purely anecdotal but IRL the mom/baby pairs that slept seperate
were
all sleeping through the night by 18mos. Night feeds were down to one by
a
year and generally much sooner. I know one other person IRL that
breastfed
and co-slept and both her kids are like mine. Nurse all night long well
past a year ;-)

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (2)


I suspect there generally is a correlation, but that doesn't in any way
mean
that co-sleeping *causes* night waking. I suspect it's far more often the
other way around. :-)

I do think you've got it right.

"Nikki" wrote in
:

ted wrote:
Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?



I know lots of people IRL that sleep seperate and breastfeed. They
just go to the baby, feed them, put them back in the crib, and then go
back to bed themselves. The ones with the helpful husbands sometimes
have their husbands go get the baby and bring to mom, then take the
baby back so mom can stay in bed sometimes.

I co-cosleep btw.

This is purely anecdotal but IRL the mom/baby pairs that slept
seperate were all sleeping through the night by 18mos. Night feeds
were down to one by a year and generally much sooner. I know one
other person IRL that breastfed and co-slept and both her kids are
like mine. Nurse all night long well past a year ;-)

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (4) and Luke (2)



I started getting up and going to the couch to bf him everytime he woke
up. Then when he started to drink also when I attached him laying down..
I ended up like that too. Untill 20 months Ruben woke up every night
around 3 and got into our bed. He then got his fill and everytime he
would wake up he would attach himself.. (just pushing my shirt away until
he found what he wanted).
--
Simone
Mom of Ruben Raymond Rocco 08 march 2001
EDD of Stefan Sean S? 11 July 2004

ted wrote in message . ..
Did any of your bfed babies sleep in a crib/away from you at nights?
How did you manage that?

Thanks.

Easily - ds was in his cot beside the bed. He'd wake me and I picked him up
and brought him into bed with me - fed him sitting up (propped on pillows)
and put him back in his cot when he finished. Easy - no major activity on
my part (I didn't even have to get out of bed) so it didn't wake me fully
and he was in a sleeping bag so I didn't have to worry about tucking him
back into blankets etc - just picked him up sleeping bag and all.
when he started sleeping through the night without feeding he was moved into
his own cot (6 months) and I haven't fed him at night since (he's 20
months). Yes, he woke/wakes at times, but I settle/d him back other ways.
hth Van