by Melissa Willets posted in Parenting

After enduring three different sleep experiences with newborns, I am confident saying when your baby sleeps in his or her own room, it's easier than practicing co-sleeping.
Consider this: With my first and second babies, I had them snooze in a bassinet right next to my bed for several months. And no one really slept all that well. But when my third child was born, I moved her into her own crib and room almost immediately. Guess what" She slept through the night super-early. And, blissfully, so did I!
So here's why I think co-sleeping makes things more difficult for the entire family. But first, please know that I get it; new babies are sooo small, it seems crazy to let them out of your sight, even for a second. I maintain it's even crazier to let sleep deprivation take away from your enjoyment of this precious, irreplaceable time when your baby is new.
1. Moms need sleep to function. When my babies slept in bassinets next to my bed, I heard every little sound and movement they made. So I didn't sleep, like ever, because I was constantly propping myself up to peek into the bassinet and make sure everything was okay. She moved her arm! She sniffled! She deep-sighed! These were all false alarms, because the baby was still sleeping soundly. Me, on the other hand" Not so much. Upon moving my daughter across the hall to her own room, in her own crib, I was able to get a good night's sleep, and feel happier, healthier, and b...