Is Sleeping with Your Toddler a Good Idea?

Do you ever wonder if sleeping with your toddler is a good idea? Does your mind battle between the idea of getting a crib or having your angel wrapped in your arms during the night?

For parents in their middle ages, parenthood evolves from the sense of accomplishment of leaving the milk and diaper days behind them to the disciplining stage, which becomes tougher as the years progress. But for new parents, everything emerges as new subject that brings surprises, knowledge and wonderful experiences.

It is understandable that mothers want their children near them all the time, especially for breastfed babies less than a year old. This is the perfect time for a mother and her child to bond as keeping that warm touch would be the language that bridges their worlds. This wonderful feeling, however, sometimes makes moms want to sleep with their babies and toddlers at night. But does it really bring positive effects?

Wait, Wait, Weight

Are you sure you want to keep your child between you and dad in bed at night? Providing a crib or bassinet for your little angel would be the best thing to do. Imagine for a second how deeply you sleep when you are tired, or how much do you move when it’s humid and you are trying to get comfortable? You could easily roll over and hurt your child unintentionally.

Separation anxiety

Being a superhero in the eyes of your child, protecting him or her from all kinds of danger and harm is indeed rewarding. However, as much as you want to be with them all the time, play with them, cuddle, and kisses them, there is a need for you to teach them to be brave and independent.

By doing this at an early age, you are becoming more of a responsible mom and dad. Independence would surely be the first step in teaching your children respect, freedom, worth and wisdom. When a child is used to sleeping with their parents, dependence becomes a necessity. The child will be used to the situation of having their parents around all the time from the moment they wake up until they go to bed. Some psychologists have said that this could present a problem later on down the line, when the time comes to leave your child with a relative or a nanny.

While occasionally sleeping with your child in bed can provide a sense of safety for them in cases where they may have had a nightmare or just want to feel closer to their parents, it is a good idea to teacher child that it is okay to sleep in their own bed, once they have this concept down, it's okay to be lenient about these rules. The idea is just to ensure them that they will be safe at home, whether they are in your bed or their own.

Sleeping with your toddler may be a very strong mode of bonding but there are some things you have to consider. If your schedule permits you, try to do it that way during nap or rest time; but try not to do this during night time sleep.