Tia Mowry co-slept with her kids for years—because it was the right choice for her family

[Editor’s note: This article describes one parent’s experience with bed-sharing. To learn more about the American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep recommendations please visit the AAP.]

Raise your hand if you’ve ever found yourself asleep with your child next to you in bed. ( ♀️)While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends room-sharing, they discourage bed-sharing, particularly in the first four months of a baby’s life, due to safety concerns.

But the reality is that many parents fall asleep with their babies next to them in bed. Whether it’s because your baby won’t sleep without those cuddles, because you’ve drifted off while nursing, because you didn’t have the heart to put a sick baby in their crib, or because your doctor has given you the okay to snooze alongside your babe, bed-sharing is very much a thing.

And Tia Mowry is getting real about her experience with it.

When asked about her most “non-traditional” parenting move, Tia shared that she’s a big-time bed-sharer. “My 1-year-old [daughter, Cairo] is still in my bed,” the actress said during an interview with PEOPLE. “Ever since she was born she was always in our bed.” But this isn’t her first experience with co-sleeping: Tia also shared that she slept with her son until he was 4 years old.

Tia is hardly alone when it comes to sleeping with her kids. A 2016 study found that only about 44% of survey responders never slept with their babies in bed with them—and that those who slept with their babies were more likely to keep breastfeeding for the recommended six months. Fellow celeb Kourtney Kardashian is a co-sleeper, and many mamas find that while they didn’t plan to co-sleep, it is what works for them. That’s why there are even special co-sleeping beds big enough for parents and kids.

But as popular as co-sleeping is, it can still be seen as controversial. Even Tia’s own mom isn’t on board with the Sister Sister star’s decision to bed-share with her kids. “[My mom is] like, ‘You need to do the cry-out method. Put your baby in the crib. And I’m like, ‘No!’ I don’t want my baby to have any sign of stress whatsoever,” Tia explains.

Whichever side of the line you fall on, one thing is clear: Sometimes parents need to do things they never expected to do in the name of more sleep. When it comes to parenting, there’s only one absolute: You have to do what keeps your family safe, healthy and happy. And while we’d urge all mamas to familiarize themselves with child safety guidelines, ultimately we all have to make the choices that are best for our families.

You might also like:

• We need to stop shaming moms for co-sleeping—and research shows why
• True life: I never thought I’d co-sleep, but it’s what works for my family
• One mama’s scientific case for co-sleeping