We have two full-size beds and are interested in putting them together on the floor for co-sleeping, as we have heard of others doing. (We currently co-sleep in another way but need more space.) My question is, what do you do about the seam in between the mattresses? I don't want our baby to get wedged between them, and I don't want anyone to end up sleeping on the seam, which I'm sure would be uncomfortable. If our beds were on boxsprings, I imagine we could bind them together under the mattresses so that we wouldn't really feel it, but I don't know how to use straps or anything like that when it is just mattresses. We have thought about sleeping perpendicular to the seam rather than parallel to it to avoid some of these issues, but I wanted to see if anyone had any other thoughts.
Thanks!
Thanks for all the awesome advice! You brought up many suggestions I had never heard of before. So far, we are just sleeping perpendicular to the separation between the mattresses, and that is working fine. However, it is good to know about the other options should things change. For the person who asked about co-sleeping, there is lots of information out there, but briefly, it is just sleeping with your baby. People choose to do this for many reasons, including making breastfeeding easier, being closer to your baby to promote attachment, and wanting to live in a way that is more in tune with our natural instincts and the way humans have lived throughout most of history.
I believe there are things you can buy that help hold the mattresses together so you don't feel the separation. My grandparents for the longest time had a "king size bed" which was just two twin beds put together. I wish I could you more, but look around online or google it and see what you find.
A.
I'm not sure of the solution because we just used our king bed since it's just the 3 of us. But a really good source to consult would be Elizabeth Pantley. She would know the answer if anyone would. Just Google her name and when you get on her site actually email her and she will email you back! She did for me! Good Luck I love Attatchment Parenting! L. Ann
I would be afraid the baby would get squished in the seam too. How about buying a king size mattress? How many are sleeping in the bed? If it is just the 2 of you and 1 baby you could buy one of the co-sleepers that attaches to the side of the bed. You could also let the baby sleep in a pack n play next to your bed.
As a mom to four, I have to advise against co-sleeping. While co-sleeping sounds like a perfect solution, it is not there are way too many chances for something bad to happen to either you or worse, your child. It is dangerous, if you are a heavy sleeper you could suffocate your child and never know it. My husband and I both have seen many cases of this during our years in emergency medicine. If you are a light sleeper you could come away from the experience with very little rest which could lead to health problems for you.
U need to have 2 twin beds to move together and put a mattress pad on top of tht and i suggest getting a crib for your baby. I have tried that once and the baby didnt sleep at all and some1 is gonna roll on top of it. make sure you dont have sex when the baby is on the mattress or in front of the baby
Hi there:
There is a product that can be found in the ad sections of
baby and mommy-type magazines that is a mat specifically for co-sleeping. It's designed for use on the bed and has a big roll at one end to keep baby from falling off the bed. I believe that it comes in different sizes and looks to be something that would be useful for gapping the seam in your bed, as well as co-sleeping safely. I don't know what it's called; I just remember seeing it in a magazine (Mothering, maybe?). I'm sure you could Google it and find it. It wasn't cheap, but you could use it for other things once your child is older, like just for laying on to watch TV and using the raised part to put your head on like a neck roll.
I know this is a bit vague, but seriously - look it up. It sounds perfect for your situation. Enjoy all the snuggling with your sweet baby - it's the best!
Good luck and keep up the great work, Mommy!
From a store like Bed Bath and Beyond, you can buy a kit that will help you. It's a T-shaped strip of foam that goes between the seam under your mattress pad to fill the gap. You can also get (or make) a strap to put around the edges of both mattresses to bind them together.
Although I did this with two twin beds, you might find something to make this work:
I bought a mattress pad and put it over both, then a sheet over them. Perhaps a king size will do the trick? Make sure you butt the mattresses up against walls and keep them in place with furnature so that they remain tight together. W
Way to co-sleep! Best thing I ever did.
You could use a number of fixes, a large fitted sheet, a king sized mattress pad, but they do sell something just for this purpose, It usually joins two twin mattresses. "Create A King Bed Doubling System"
Google that and a number of places sell them.
Hi I have 5 kids and we cosleep, right now it is 5 in a king size (5 yo sleeps at the bottom under his 3 yo brother, baby next to me and Daddy) but we have also done queen and twin next to each other.
Good for you for cosleeping and not letting the crib manufacturers and medically indoctrinated scare you out of staying close to your baby. Cosleeping is safe if done properly. Those who think otherwise should google "James McKenna" and do some reading.
The problem with two mattresses is more than the gap, it's also changing the bedding! With two mattresses together, especially if you are keeping them together by pushing them tightly against the wall, it is very hard to change the bedding. Also it makes it harder for people to get our of bed, especially mama who usually gets stuck in the middle!
Sleeping with the crack at your knees might not be a bad idea, as long as you have enough room for those who are nursing to reach you without crushing baby or husband. Certainly it would be easier than having to procure pads and things to hold the mattresses together. I've never heard of those t-shape things people are talking about to fill in the gap, they sound useful. I rolled up an old mattress pad and used it to fill the gap, we didn't have a teeny baby at the time to worry about. Covering both beds with memory foam would work, but then you'd have problems again with bedding because even a king size flat sheet probably won't be long enough to cover two full size beds. So you need to plan on using full size fitted sheets. Which may rule out the t thing? You'll have to research that.
To keep the mattresses together without making it too hard to change bedding, I suggest using a strap. Something like seatbelt material, long enough to go around the outside of both beds, with a heavy clamp on it. You kind of pump the clamp to tighten it. Truckers use them and I use them sometimes in my part-time job as stagehand. I don't know where you would purchase such a thing! But it would bind the mattresses together with the sheets on, and would be easy to loosen to change the sheets, and tighten the beds back up by yourself, provided the bed is away from the wall on at least two sides. Or possibly you could get a long belt of that type of material, and attach rings to it like a ring sling uses, and get the same effect, I don't know if you could get it tight enough not to slip using the rings.
Good luck finding a solution!
Oh and if you want check out alternamas on yahoogroups. It's a local group of Memphis mamas who breastfeed co-sleep, etc.
R.,
I think perhaps you could buy a king size bed pad, or better yet, a feather padding to lay under the bottom sheet. This would also help keep the bottom sheet pulled taught and you'd be less likely to feel the seam between the matresses. I also agree with someone earlier who suggested letting baby sleep in a pac-n-play next to the bed. That's what we did with my son. It sat right next to my side of the bed so I could basically just sit up and pull him into bed with me in the middle of the night if he woke up and needed to nurse. That way, we both got at least some restful sleep. I hope this helps!
M.
What do you mean by cosleep R.? I have never heard of it. Sorry but that sounds strange.
Hi R. D, I would try putting some of the no slide rug stuff under the mattresses and on the top of them get what I call the eggshell foam things and run them the other direction of the mattresses and if you had to get two sizes it would not matter because they are just foam and you could cut it to size. Wilma
They do make foam things that go across the mattress and it has like a T that fits in the crease, so you feel like you are sleeping on one big bed. I am not sure where you get them (I know that doesn't help), but if I were you, I would go in a mattress store (some place that just sells mattresses) and ask them about it or what they do.
I know they make them because the first king size bed ... that is the way it was made.
Do you plan on cosleeping for long? If not, get one of the cosleeper systems that attach to the bed side...(or like the other ladies have said) use a pack in play that has the bassinet on it, and then you can just reach over if baby is fussy and doesn't need anything more than a pat to go back to sleep. If you are going to be cosleeping for a long time..I'd look at some of those for sale for free for trade sites, and see if someone has a king for trade for your full bed. Also they make those little foam kiddie chairs that pull out into a toddler size sleeper that might be a good idea if you move your bed to the floor level.
I think a catalog called "improvements" carries a seam cover for putting two mattresses together.
