Although initially preferred to meet its needs easily, co-sleeping with the baby later becomes a habit for parents. Having been made to acquire the behavior during their infancy, the child will themself want to co-sleep with their parents later on. Thus, the behavior will continue. Stating that nevertheless this condition negatively affects the child's personality development, Yeditepe University Hospitals Specialist Clinical Psychologist and Specialist Dietitian Merve Öz made recommendations to families:

The fact that a child sleeps in their own bed separately from their parents is the first and most important step towards becoming independent individual. A child who sleeps in the same bed with his parents will not be able to emotionally separate from them either. This condition can lead to problems at every stage of their life. It will become difficult for the child in later life to make themself accepted as an individual when they enter a new environment. In addition, they will have much difficulty because they have not experienced the ability to calm themself when they face emotional problems. Therefore, the child's self-confidence will decrease, and they will feel powerless and incompetent. And this can lead the child to withdraw into themself over time.

Parents Are Negatively Affected

Co-sleeping with the child harms the private lives of parents. Parents' worry about crushing their children prevents their transition to deep sleep. In addition, since children have a risk of falling from bed, parents have to be constantly alert. For these reasons, they may experience fatigue, and insomnia problems. Therefore, this can reduce their quality of life.

Here Are Important Recommendations

It will take time for the acquired habits to fade. It is important to be patient. First of all, make sure that your child spends time in their room. If you are to play games together, your choice of place should definitely be in favor of your child's room. Find out about the parts of her room that they like or dislike. Together with your child and by taking their ideas, correct the parts that can be corrected. Make sure that the room belongs to them. Spare a corner in their room for the pictures they have drawn or their photos with you.

You can lie next to your child for a short time until they fall asleep, and after then you can move to your own bed. You can chat with them or read them a fairy tale before they fall asleep. After they get used to this situation, instead of lying down next to them, you can sit next to them and wait for their falling asleep. If you have activities such as reading or telling fairy tales before sleep, you can initially limit this ritual to one fairy tale by mutual agreement to prevent resistance to sleep, which your child shows in order not to be separated from you.

If your child wakes up and comes to you, you should take your child back to their room or bed instead of letting him lie down next to you. You can lie down or sit next to them until they fall asleep. Even if taking your child to their bed after putting him to sleep seems to be a solution, this can cause anxiety when your child wakes up. Taking them initially to their room to sleep will prevent them from feeling anxious and confused.

Press Coverage: sozcu