I co-sleep with my baby, have no routine and carry her as much as I can – critics say they’re bad habits but I get more rest

• Tiffany Chesson, 28, from Sittingbourne, Kent, is mother to five-month-old Lottie
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A mother has revealed how she follows ‘instinctual’ parenting and co-sleeps with her baby, has no routine and carries her as much as she can – despite trolls saying it’s a bad ‘habit’.

Tiffany Chesson, 28, from Sittingbourne, Kent, started co-sleeping by accident with her first child Teddy, five, and found it was the only way to get him to fall asleep.

Now mother to five-month-old Lottie, Tiffany chooses to bed share and finds it helps her get more sleep.

Tiffany and partner, Shaun, 28, an account manager, also refuse to use any products on Lottie and only bath her in milk and water. 

Tiffany says Lottie is a ‘velcro baby’ and she likes to have her strapped to her as much as she can to maintain close contact.

Tiffany Chesson, 28, from Sittingbourne, Kent, started co-sleeping by accident with her first child Teddy, five, and found it was the only way to get him to fall asleep. Pictured, Tiffany, 28 and her partner, Shaun, 28 and their daughter Lottie and son Teddy, 5

She says trolls say it’s a ‘bad habit’ to get into – but claims it made her eldest, Teddy, feel more ‘secure’ and he is now ‘more independent’.

Tiffany, a customer experience director, said: ‘She’s a velcro baby. She doesn’t like being put down. I get to be hands free by wearing her. I just like having that close contact. I’m wearing her as much as I can. We benefit from all the hormones.’

Tiffany struggled to get Teddy to fall asleep as a baby but after accidentally co-sleeping with him she found it was the only thing that worked. He co-slept with them for seven months but now sleeps well in his own bed.

Tiffany said: ‘We learned a lot from having Teddy. I accidentally ended up co-sleeping. I would never have done that. But he wouldn’t sleep without being held. I made more of an intention with Lottie.’

Tiffany has co-slept with Lottie since day one – and she says done safely it’s not dangerous.

She said: ‘So many parents end up co-sleeping by accident. There’s a lot of scare mongering. We follow the Lullaby Trust safe sleeping guidelines. The bed is very firm so she can’t dip down and there is a pillow by her head. There is no adult duvet.

‘I do a cuddle curl – which is an arm over her and leg under, so she can’t slip. It just means I get sleep. 

She added: ‘When she needs milk she can latch on. I don’t really notice waking up each time to breastfeed.’

Now mother to five-month-old Lottie, Tiffany (pictured alongside her children) chooses to bed share and finds it helps her get more sleep

Tiffany and partner, Shaun, 28, an account manager, also refuse to use any products on Lottie and only bath her in milk and water

Tiffany will also carry Lottie around as much as she can – meaning she can easily do chores and run errands with her strapped to her.

The pair also do contact cuddling – instead of putting Lottie down in a cot to sleep.

Tiffany said: ‘People say I should ‘get out of the habit’. But when a baby feels secure it’s going to be more independent.’

Tiffany has no set routine for Lottie – but did feel the pressure first time around. She is now led by Lottie and when she wants to sleep and feed.

She said: ‘I put a lot of pressure on myself. They are growing so fast – what works one day, the next it’s a different case. I’m being more instinctual.’

Tiffany has also never done any sleep training – choosing to comfort her children if they cry instead of waiting it out.

Tiffany (pictured next to Teddy) says Lottie is a ‘velcro baby’ and she likes to have her strapped to her as much as she can to maintain close contact

The family also make sure they get out for a walk every day and don’t use any products on Lottie’s skin.

Tiffany said: ‘Baby’s skin is very sensitive. They don’t need to be scrubbed. Teddy needs the fresh air and the chance to run around.

‘Our parenting is instinctual – and what works for us. It’s led by them but our lives don’t revolve around it.’

Tiffany says the parenting choices she has made with her second baby have made postpartum a lot ‘easier’. She said: ‘It’s just been easy. I feel very happy. Having that more chilled attitude.’

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