After reading Joylyn's post re: sleeping in an adult bed in order to
co-sleep and nurse her daughter post-op I had to add my experience as  well.
My daughter had surgery at four months of age for a tethered spinal  cord.
She was in the PICU for five days post-op.  Because I had gone  to the PEDS
ward during her consults (at one month of age) and asked how I would  be able to
feed her while she spent three days prone and two days supine?   A WONDERFUL
nurse acted as if this was no big deal and said they would just put  her in an
adult bed so I could lay next to her.  So that was my suggestion  to the PICU
staff.  The neurosurg team wheeled her from the OR on a regular  bed and
didn't have to move her once in the room.
I spent much of the next week in bed with her.  Her incision ran up  half of
her back and started about 1/8" of an inch (less than 1 cm) above her  anus.
The docs said that they expected to treat her for a skin infection  b/c the
stool would be on the incision periodically.  Not only did she  never get a skin
infection she recovered very quickly.
The pediatricians and residents were very impressed by the nursing  technique
(smooshing my breast as close to her mouth as possible, she did the  rest)
and went on to tell other staff members who had not actually seen her  nurse.
Because she was on an adult bed, one of the nurses and I figured out a way
for the nurse to raise my daughter straight up (still prone) off the bed so I
could scoot under her and then have her on my chest for a couple of hours at a
 time.
I think if more mothers are assertive (first educated on benefits of
co-sleeping and how to do so safely--I wish everyone could have heard Dr. James
McKenna's presentation at ILCA!!) like Joylyn (and I was with both my babies on
the post-partum ward) that the staff would learn and learn.  And then it  would
be "the way we have always done it".  We are a long way from that but  we are
making changes slowly but surely.
Could a skin-to-skin policy be the beginning of a turn in the tide for
co-sleeping?
Christie Pillado
El Paso, TX

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