Pregnancy & Baby 

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Three in the bed

If you want your daughter to stay in her own room, you will have to resist bringing her into your bed. It’s a question of short-term versus long-term sleep solutions.
The approach is to go to your daughter when she wakes, reassure her and briefly settle her, then leave the room. If she cries, wait outside, but not for long –
a couple of minutes at most – then go back in and reassure, settle and leave. You keep on this tack until your daughter is peaceful and you can risk going back to bed. The same approach applies if your daughter is able to get out of her room and simply appears in your bed. You need to take her back to her room.

This method is not a one-night wonder. You’ll probably have some seriously broken nights but they will be worthwhile, if it means more settled ones in the future.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that parents who regularly have a child in bed with them can put their own adult personal and sexual relationship on hold. There is also some concern that parents who are very heavy sleepers may risk rolling over onto a baby or toddler, with the danger of suffocation. So it’s worth dealing with the problem, taxing though it may be.

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