A mum who shares a bed with her children and her husband has defended her family against critics - insisting they got less sleep when they slept separately.
Charlotte Lewis, 33, loves to sleep alongside her husband, 34, and their children Izzie, eight, and Harvey, four.
She says her daughter had struggled to sleep on her own since she was an underweight newborn.
But after years of trying to help her with no success, they found a solution when Izzie loved sleeping in a family room with her parents while on holiday.
Now, the the family-of-four sleep in a giant bed made up of two double beds pushed together.
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While the parents have faced criticism for their approach, Charlotte is not fazed, suggesting families should do what works best for them.
The uniform company managing director, from Coventry, said: "There were four in the bed and the little one said absolutely nothing because they all slept happily ever after!"
She added: "I wish I'd just listened to what my daughter needed in the first place rather than trying to fit into society and the expectations we automatically put on ourselves.
"If I’ve learned anything from being a parent, it’s do what works for you. There’s no wrong way if you get the answer you want! However you get there, you’ve done it - take the win! We must stop comparing. Stop judging, stop belittling, and stop stressing the unnecessary."
And Izzie's parents love the solution, too.
"Now, there’s no more musical beds, no more broken night's sleep, no more tears, no more nightmares and other fears. We’re all together, safe and snug, and I couldn’t be happier," Charlotte explained.
"I love waking up to my baby's faces. I love the snuggles, I love the giggles we have at night. There's so much magic in it," she continued. "Haters are going to hate but sleepers are going to sleep, so two fingers up to the Judge Judys out there! Do what works for you."
The sleep disturbance for the family started back in 2014 when Izzie was born two weeks overdue but only weighing 5lb 9oz.
Doctors told the new parents that if their baby had been just one ounce lighter, she would have been in the ICU, so it was very important for them to help her gain weight and therefore Izzie had to be fed every two hours round the clock for the first three months.
Charlotte said: "Right from the get go, we disturbed her sleep. We were constantly told “once she’s on solids she’ll sleep, once she’s crawling and moving, she’ll sleep, once she’s in nursery, she’ll sleep, once she’s in school full time, she’ll sleep” etc, but the sleep never came.
"Izzie is now a healthy and happy eight year old but had never slept through the night.
"It would take two to three hours on average in an evening before she would finally fall asleep, just to then wake continuously throughout the night, usually around once per hour.
"As she grew up, she could voice why she didn’t want to be alone or why she was scared, so we tried all different ways to arrange her room to eliminate one fear at a time."
But no matter what the family tried, "it made no difference".
Even when sharing a room with her brother, she struggled with disturbed sleep, with the only time she could "sleep soundly through the night", being when one of her parents took turns sleeping on a mattress in her room.
So when the group shared a family room on a trip to the Isle of Wight in 2020, and Izzie grew to love bedtime, her parents were shocked.
"It was like seeing another child come to life. She was so happy and she slept all through the night, every night," said Charlotte.
So once they returned home, the family experimented by adding mattresses to one room for a family sleepover, and the rest is history.
The test was a roaring success and now the family share one giant bed, comprised of two doubles, every night.
Charlotte said: "Bed time is no longer a battle but a joy.
"They’re both safe, and secure and after eight years, we can finally close our eyes at night and say 'see you in the morning' instead of 'see you in an hour'."
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