Can You Co-sleep With Twins? You Have To Think Some Things Through First

Sometimes, having twins can feel like you're parenting in overdrive. Sure, you get twice the joys. But you also have to handle twice the feedings, diaper changes, and crying sessions. Sadly, this does not mean you get twice the rest (although you could certainly use it). And, went it comes to rest, you may wonder, can you co-sleep with twins? Because if anyone needs as much sleep as possible, it's the parent of newborn twins.

This is a very personal decision. Co-sleeping in general can be a controversial topic, so it's helpful to think about your choice and even talk it over with a trusted doctor or midwife. Once you have enough information on hand, you can decide what works best for your own family.

First, there are many potential benefits of sharing a family bed with twins. According to Very Well, co-sleeping with twins may help you cope with the challenges of breastfeeding, because you can access either or both babies as needed throughout the night. This arrangement may also help you get more sleep overall, because you can feed one baby quickly and quietly without even getting out of bed, as explained in Parenting. Additionally, co-sleeping may help promote your senses of bonding and security. In general, you may get a little extra sleep, time for breastfeeding, and even bonding time with your two new babies thanks to co-sleeping. What's not to love?

Well, there are some potentially serious downsides of co-sleeping with twins. Sadly, in 2012, a pair of twins suffocated while co-sleeping with their mother, as reported in the Daily Mail. And the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) named bed sharing as the greatest risk factor for sudden infant death syndrome and additional causes of infant death related to sleep. This is alarming news for any parent, of course. As a compromise, as noted by the AAP you may consider room-sharing instead of bed-sharing, which will at least give you easy access to your two babies throughout the night, while avoiding the potential risks of suffocation.

Again, deciding whether to try out co-sleeping with your own family is very personal, so it's a good idea to weigh all of the potential risks and benefits carefully.