6 year old still sleeping with mom

[gigi73]

My daughter is a single mom. Her 61/2 year old daughter still sleeps with her. Is this acceptable? I feel uncomfortable about it. They live with us (grandparents) in a separate one bedroom basement suite. Grandmother.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

In general it is best that children not sleep with their parent(s). Sometimes the available space dictates sleeping arrangements, but one of the problems that sometimes occurs is that parents meet their own emotional needs by having their child sleep with them.

[ANS04]

My son is 5 1/2 and still sleeps with me (his Mother). It has nothing to do with sexual interest. His Father and I have been separated since he was two. I believe it is more of an emotional need. He does state sleeping alone makes him scared.
As he gets older...he is starting to be able to sleep next to my bed...or fall asleep with me but be put into his own bed.
I do believe though that very soon I will consistently make sure he is sleeping in  his own bed in my room...and then transition him into his own room.
Lastly, I want to add that my son co-slept as an infant. I often wonder if this contributes to his emotional need to sleep with me now.

[turkee23]

i was the same way when i was a little girl.... i slept with my grandma from the time i was a baby till i was about 5, then i slept with my mom till i was 8, then she got married and had to get me out of the room...i didnt take it well at all i slept right outside of her bedroom door (on hard tile) for a year or so, then i upgraded to the couch right outside my moms door, then to the couch in the other room and eventually graduating to my own bed in my own room by the time i was about 11 or 12......sooooo please trya nd get your daughter to break this habbit or it willget HARDER!!!.....

[gigi73]

I am sure there is no sexual interest. It is more a) not much space in the apartment and b) some sort of dependency. When mom is not home the child sleeps in grandparents room on a couch close to grandma's bed.

[blayzmoon]

PLEASE NOTE: I have no expertese in this whatsoever, the following is just an opinioon based on life experience. I know many people who still have their children sleeping in their bed with them. Most have grown out of it by about 7 1/2. I suppose the reason behind the behavior might be more relevant than what age the child is. My husband is gone a lot (deployed with army) and when my daughter was upset i would ask her why and she would say she is afraid with dad gone and that her bedroom was scary. I would try to convince her everything was okay to no avail. I would end up falling asleep hugging her and she would end up sleeping in my bed. Nothing weird about that. This continued until my daughter turned 7 and her dad started to be here more regularly. She feels more confident and secure with her dad around. No problems anymore. My frind is in the same situation with dad gone a lot and she still has her 6 year old daughter and her 3 year old son in bed with her (and her husband when he is home) It may stem from an emotional need for comfort, nothing more or less. Age is less important than emotional well-being. That said your daughter could provide that security and emotional support if the child were to sleep in a kiddie bed in the same room, but not in moms bed. (Thats what i ended up doing, before transitioning her to her own bed) She is 7 1/2 now and no longer wants to sleep in my room. She feels secure and confident and happy. I am glad i didn't force her into her own room before she was ready as it may have cause her more emotional distress instead of improving things.

[mommydaughter]

does the mom show a sexual interest in her?