Crying it Out --> Brain Damage?

Last night was a little rough. Simon was not happy and cried and cried unless he was nursing. Which meant that mommy couldn't get the sleep she so desperately needed. I was exhausted. Exhausted. But I was terrified about letting him nurse in bed while I fell asleep. I was too scared I'd be sleeping so soundly that I would roll over on him and smush him and smother him or something. 

Which got me to thinking about the people who recommend that you just let your baby "cry it out." That means putting him down and letting him wail while you largely ignore it. I don't know how people can do that. Even at my most exhausted, when I'm begging him to let me sleep, I couldn't do that. Sure, sometimes you just need to walk away for a minute for your sanity, but to just let him cry all by himself all night? No way. No freaking way. 

A friend of mine showed me this article (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/14/the_odd_body_crying/) that reports there is a possibility that letting babies cry it out actually damages their brains. Yikes! From the article:

Research suggests that allowing a baby to "cry it out" can cause brain damage.

Some experts warn that allowing a baby to "cry it out" causes extreme distress to the baby. And such extreme distress in a newborn has been found to block the full development of certain areas of the brain and causes the brain to produce extra amounts of cortisol which can be harmful.

And:

Allowing a baby to "cry it out" when it is upset will probably be regarded as child abuse by future generations.

One way to avoid crying it out would be bed-sharing. You are right there to comfort your little one. Of course, co-sleeping has its risks, too (like my fears I wrote about above). That's why we've been using the co-sleeper (a bassinette that attaches like a sidecar to our bed) instead of having him directly in bed with us. It's sort of a compromise solution for us. But there are ways to make bed-sharing safe for babies. There are rules. For some people, bed-sharing works wonderfully. Some people get there because all along they've known they want to bed-share. Others start doing it by accident, out of desperation for a good night's sleep. I still don't feel comfortable bed-sharing, but I envy people who are confident enough to do it. 

So what did I end up doing last night? I left the lights on and told myself I was "just resting my eyes" as I nursed him in bed. Basically, I was tricking myself into thinking that I wasn't actually sleeping with the baby in the bed. But I so totally was. And he was fine. Brad said that when he got home, I was crashed out, but I had my hand on him so he couldn't roll away. It was fine. 

But I still don't think I could do it again unless I was as exhausted and desperate as I was last night. Oh well.