Parenting involves a collection of several main tenants of attachment such as breastfeeding, babywearing, and co-sleeping with a baby among other ways. Co-sleeping with a baby is constituent of parents sleeping in a similar bed with their young babies. The act of co-sleeping with babies is prominent in contemporary society since it is believed to be the absolute care of parents to their young ones. Moreover, it is one of the essential aspects that create a platform of parental bonding with their babies, and a demonstration of close parental monitoring. However, the co-sleeping with babies has resulted in criticism and heated debates together with a stern warning. Experts claim that co-sleeping with a baby creates a likelihood of increased sudden unexpected deaths in infancy (SUDI) with the inclusion of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sleeping injuries, and fatal accidents. Therefore, an in-depth discussion about parental co-sleeping with their babies is of essence.
Co-sleeping with a Baby is a Biological and Cultural Norm
Parents have an innate natural love for their offspring especially the mother. Across all societies on the globe, the cultural expectation is to see parents take full responsibility for their children (McKenna, & McDade, 2005). This starts with co-sleeping with the baby at a tender age to depict a biological norm that is expected from each parent. For instance, co-sleeping has been culturally embraced by non-western societies with a history of all cultures regarding co-sleeping as a norm. Additionally, the hunter societies who made their babies sleep away from their mothers risked the lives of the infants who had to cry for attention from the caregiver. In contrast, a closely nested baby has a great opportunity of sleeping without waking up or having a hard time at night. Also, McKenna and McDade (2005 p.135) hold that “many western parents are increasingly adopting night-time infant caregiving patterns that include co-sleeping behavior, especially amongst mothers who breast feed.”
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Bowlby’s attachment theory comes in handy in the issue of parents co-sleeping with their babies. Bowlby holds that secure attachment among infants emanates from repeated and continued physical interaction with a primary caregiver, the compassion of the caregiver to the infant’s gestures, and an interactive environment that backs the infant in sensing and learning from the effects of their actions (Clulow, 2012). So, the proximity, receptiveness, and an enabling environment lead to a better attachment perspective to ensure proper child growth and development (Clulow, 2012). This shows that co-sleeping with a baby ensures proper growth among kids.
Arguments for Co-sleeping with a Baby
Parental Bonding
Bonding refers to the significant formation of physical, emotional, mutual and psychological closeness created between the primary caregivers (parents) and their infants. Parents co-sleeping with their babies has resulted in bonding due to the proximity that increases the intimate relation of parents and their children (Straw & Jones, 2017). It is believed that infants and young children can recognize their parents through their scent. This is achieved by the parent's ability to create an intimate relationship of closeness with their children by co-sleeping with them. Co-sleeping with babies, therefore, creates a mutual bond, which cannot be seen by bare eyes, but through an innate tie. Furthermore, it is an attachment developed between parents and children that bring responsiveness of parental love and affection to their little ones.
Parental Care
Co-sleeping with babies results in total parental care through the ability of parents to offer a close monitoring of their children. Notably, infants are prone to numerous health conditions that require close attention. The narrow focus of parents to their children forms part of an essential parental care (Straw & Jones, 2017). When parents fail to co-sleep with their children, the outcome may include the development of irresponsible care due to lack of knowledge to consider children.
Moreover, it may provide a channel of laziness and total ignorance to little issues, which may turn chronic. Thus, parental care is necessary and can only be achieved through the closeness of co-sleeping with babies. Similarly, it aids in tracking the progress of health or basic requirement like food or changing the child by dressing them among other numerous types of care required by the baby. “There was a strong relationship between regular, everyday mother-infant co-sleeping practices and successful establishment and maintenance of breastfeeding across cultures (Straw & Jones, 2017, p.26).”
Arguments against Co-sleeping with a baby
Sudden Unexpected Deaths in Infancy (SUDI)
Infant's lives have been terminated by parents who co-sleep with their babies. Parents always claim to be sleeping with kids in their rib, when in reality, both the parents and the baby are overtaken with sleep most parts of the night (Morris, 2016). Sometimes, even the caring mums co-sleep without knowing, hence, risk the life of the tender newborn. In most cases, parents who sleep fail to see that they are handling a delicate life under their arms and mistakenly cause the sudden and unexpected death to their babies. For example, a study by pediatrics in 2014 determined that approximately 74% of baby deaths of less than four months have resulted from situations related to bed-sharing (Shapiro-Mendoza et al., 2014). Similarly, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) also forms part of the disputes for co-sleeping with babies. As such, Shapiro-Mendoza et al., (2014, p.2) holds that “blankets, quilts, and pillows are examples of bedding that can be potentially hazardous to infants if under or around them during sleep.” Hence, soft objects and loose bedding can obstruct the infant’s airway and pose a suffocation risk implying that they should be kept away from the baby.
Reduced Parental Intimacy
Parents need a particular and uninterrupted time of having sex since it is one of the marital right and requirement for a healthy marriage. However, co-sleeping with the baby reduces the chances of having and enjoying sex as parents. Despite many locations in the house, parents know besides the bedroom where they can have sex, co-sleeping with the baby is a potential result of less intimacy between partners (Stewart, 2017). For instance, in Europe and America, parents co-sleep with babies one or more times, during the first three months at a rate of 70% of babies (Teti, Crosby, McDaniel, Shimizu & Whitesell, 2015). Above four moths co-sleeping with the baby becomes regular at that moment. The essence of doing this is to probably increase the time of intimacy and enjoy sex privileges without disturbances from the baby.
Conclusion
Co-sleeping with the baby is a biological norm that caregivers especially parents give to their babies. By doing so, the parent is responsible for the provision of care involving tracking the activities and conditions of the baby. Besides, co-sleeping has provided center support for most of the babies by providing adequate parental bonding, which increases affection and love between the parent and the baby. However, there has been criticism, disputes, and objections from some parties about the issue of parental co-sleeping with the baby. Experts discuss the existence of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUDI), Sudden Infancy Death Syndrome (SIDS), and sleeping accidents and injuries.
References
Clulow, C. (2012). Adult Attachment and Couple Psychotherapy . Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
McKenna, J., & McDade, T. (2005). Why babies should never sleep alone: A review of the co-sleeping controversy in relation to SIDS, bedsharing and breast feeding. Paediatric Respiratory Reviews, 6(2), 134-152. doi: 10.1016/j.prrv.2005.03.006
Morris, A. (2016). Adopting: Real Life Stories . Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Shapiro-Mendoza, C., Colson, E., Willinger, M., Rybin, D., Camperlengo, L., & Corwin, M. (2014). Trends in Infant Bedding Use: National Infant Sleep Position Study, 1993-2010. Pediatrics , 135(1), 10-17. doi: 10.1542/peds.2014-1793
Stewart, S. D. (2017). Co-Sleeping: Parents, Children, and Musical Beds . Rowman & Littlefield.
Straw, J., & Jones, P. (2017). Parent-infant co-sleeping and the implications for sudden infant death syndrome. Nursing Children and Young People, 29(10), 24-29. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.2017.e945
Teti, D., Crosby, B., McDaniel, B., Shimizu, M., & Whitesell, C. (2015). X. Marital and Emotional Adjustment in Mothers and Infant Sleep Arrangements during the First Six Months. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 80(1), 160-176. doi: 10.1111/mono.12150
