Mum's story about the 'dangers' of rocking children to sleep goes viral

This story about the "dangers" of cuddling your child to sleep might change some minds. Photo / 123RF

Most parents out there have heard all kinds of unsolicited advice and opinions from others, including things like "you're making a rod for your back" or "you'll still be putting them to sleep when they're teenagers" or any other kind of rubbish, albeit probably well-meaning, advice you can think of.

A woman shared a story that will stop any parent from worrying over whether they should stop cuddling their child to sleep.

Ashley Rose Fouts, from the US, shared the story of a mother who had been cuddling her baby to sleep since he was born.

"I've been rocking and cuddling my baby to sleep since the day he was born. I mentioned this to a nurse at my clinic recently. She said that she did the same thing with her son, and everyone warned her that she would still have a teenager sleeping in her bed," the mother said.

"And then she told me that, a few weeks ago, her teenage son came home from school very upset. He didn't want to talk, and just went to his room and listened to his music, typed on his phone and cried. The mother gave her son space, and night time came and she went to bed," the post continued.

From a group I'm in. "I’ve been rocking and cuddling my baby to sleep since the day he was born. I mentioned this to a...

Posted by Ashley Rose Fouts on Tuesday, 8 May 2018

"Just as she was about to turn off her side light, the door opened, and her 15 year old son padded into the room. He climbed into the bed with her, laid his head on her shoulder and cried. He told her all about the girl that broke his heart, all about the friends who laughed, all about the stresses of being him. She told him about her first broken heart, about friends who'd been cruel, and told him she understands. They talked in the dark for hours, until he fell asleep in her bed, still sad but relieved after their talk. She fell asleep in her bed, still sad for him but relieved after their talk.

"'So you see,' she said to me, when she finished the story, 'I was so scared that I would wind up with a teenager who would 'need me' at night, that I never stopped to consider how beautiful that would really be.'"

The story resonated with parents all over the world and the post went viral, with people sharing their own experiences on the subject.

"This. So much this. My son slept with us till he was 12, because of a sleepwalking disorder, and still at 14 climbs in here when he needs us. With migraines, or heartbreaks, or friends struggling, he knows he can always come to us," a Facebook user said.

"Yes 18,16 and 12 all come and lay in our bed with me for a chat when needed and I think it's the best thing ever," someone else said.

"What a beautiful story. Could have turned out very different. Make sure your kids know you always have space in your bed/time to talk," another person said.

The Facebook post has been shared more than 5,400 times and has received nearly 10,000 likes.