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Yet one more reason not to…

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m against bed sharing, or co-sleeping for a few reasons. Firstly, it can be dangerous. Every year a few infants die from sleeping with an adult. Oh, yes, I know that many of these cases may involved alcohol or drugs, but not all, so having cared for a family who lost their newborn when a very exhausted, sober, mother fell asleep and suffocated him, I just think it’s too risky. But that’s me. I know there are plenty of families who do it and survive. (So don’t send me a million messages about it.) And then there is the argument that a child really need his own sleeping space and it is much harder to get them to their own bed when they are older. Also true, but that’s a personal choice and if you’d rather argue with a toddler than with an infant, on any issue (binkies, bottles, toothbrushes) go right ahead. But I’ve got another, perhaps even better, reason for not sharing a bed with a child: it sucks!

The girls got shots on Tuesday. They’ve both had colds, pretty much, since September, but they tend to do pretty well with their immunizations and I always figure it’s better to feel really cruddy all at once and get it over with. So we got our “jabs,” as the English say and it all went fine. On Wednesday, they both woke with their runny noses and old man coughs that have been our constant companions for practically the entire Fall. But by afternoon, Eva had taken 4 naps and was feeling very warm. She’s such a good little sport, I didn’t want to make her unhappy but just out of curiosity I took her temperature anyway. 101F. Not that I care about the numbers, but it’s really cold in London this week and I wasn’t sure if she had a fever or if my hands were just frozen so I needed to see. Anyway, she’s been playing and eating and drinking and otherwise acting sick but “okay” so I’ve just been keeping an eye on her.

Last night she woke up around 11, crying, warm and flushed. She looked so pathetic that I picked her up and her took her upstairs. She lay there looking so sad that I decided I would let her sleep with me so that I could keep a better eye on her. She’s not a baby anymore and is perfectly capable of rolling away and pushing off blankets so I wasn’t concerned about her safety.
What I should have been concerned about, however, was my safety! I suffered through 4 hours of sharing my bed, complete with poking me in the face, kicking my head and talking loudly at me. After the final swat to my nose, I’d had enough. I picked her up and took her back to her crib, where she happily lay down and went right to sleep. Apparently sleeping with Mommy was a fun new game. But it wasn’t sleeping and it definitely wasn’t in the best interest of my own safety. I’ll find a new way to express my love when she doesn’t feel well, thank you.

Dr. Lara Zibners, Dec 02, 2010

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