6 yrs of no sleep..time to stop co-sleeping?

[momeclectic]

Help!! I am the mother to two very high need children, ds (age 4 1/2 ) and dd (age 6). I have not had more than 2-3 hours of consecutive sleep in over six years. To say I am sleep deprived is an understatement (LOL). I have managed to hold things together until recently. Good old perimenopause has entered my life, exacerbating the sleep deprivation symptoms. You know the ones: where you put the milk away in the cabinet, you forget your husband's name, etc. The "fog" from lack of sleep and hormones is now interfering with my ability to be a mom; I can barely function throughout the day

I have always co-slept with my children. They cry if they wake up and I'm not in bed with them, and they do not want my dh: only Mom! Logically, I should transition them to their own beds. Emotionally, the thought kills me; I enjoy snuggling my little ones. I feel stuck. I have no idea how to "wean" the children from co-sleeping. I know it will take effort, but how do I do it at night when I want the path of least resistance? I have been the obstacle to transitioning them to their own beds, but now I need to. How do I do it??? I feel so lost and trapped.

Thanks for reading this long post and letting me vent.

[meemee]

as a happily cosleeping mom of a 7 year old i should not be replying to your post.

however being perimenopausal myself i know exactly where you are. the problem with me is that my HNs child started sleeping thru the night at 3 - 3 1/2 but i have never gone back to sleeping thru the night.

the good news is that the age is easier than a 3 year old.

first do you plan to let them cosleep with each other? that' what worked for my bro and me. we had each other in the same bed and it made a huge difference.

second is your dd super independent wanting to do things on her own. if so then she can help decorating her bedroom or getting new sheets for their new bed.

what can you do with both of them that will get them excited to sleep in their own space?

you might have to end up laying with them on their bed before you move to your own.

start the evening a little early to give them a chance to take their time. a new stuffed toy to take to bed with them to hug.

soothing music to help them fall asleep and stay asleep.

[larzanna]

And if YOU still want them there, maybe work out some agreement with them that after....3am or whatever time has given you a good chunk of sleep they can come in if they wake up, but not before.
That way you can still have morning snuggles, but get some good sleep too.

[Pookietooth]

Is one waking the other? I would be wondering why they wake. Do they only wake if you are not there? They might be cold. Are they waking due to food allergies or something? My ds has slept through the night since around 4 or so. They really should not be waking at that age.