A MUM has hit back after being judged for still sharing a room with her five-year-old son.
Levi explained that she’s always had her little boy in her room – despite the fact they do have space for him to have his own in their council house, as they could transform their living room.
And while she knows that some people will have something to say about their sleeping arrangement, Levi insisted she’s still thoroughly enjoying them sharing a room.
“So a lot of people think it’s weird that I won’t give my 5 year old his own room and we actually share a bedroom,” Levi began her TikTok video.
“Let’s talk about it.”
Insisting it’s “not normalised enough”, Levi pointed out that there are a lot of families in similar situations.
And, instead of having to sacrifice their living room by turning it into her son’s bedroom, Levi came up with a “space saving way” for both of them to share the bedroom.
She added that she’s “not being selfish”, but pointed out her little boy “doesn’t want to sleep alone”.
“So why would I then deprive him of having a living space by sleeping in there?” she asked.
Levi added that growing up in a two-bedroom house, and sharing a room with her brother when they were little, made her realise she actually prefers not having her own room.
“Those were probably some of the favourite times of my life,” she smiled.
That’s not to say her son will always share a room with her though, as she’s already thinking about when he will need his own room.
“A lot of people have said 6, some people have said 10. I’m not too sure,” she mused.
But she added she’s going to wait for the “right timing” before trying to move his son.
“What age do you think a child should stop sharing with a parent?” she wrote in the caption.
“They are only small once!”
In the accompanying TikTok video, Levi showed herself setting up a little “den” underneath her son’s midsleeper bed for him to enjoy.
The comments section was quickly filled with perople having their say on the situation, with one writing: “He’ll grow up to be a calm child.
The reality of living in a council house
LEANNE Hall, Digital Writer at Fabulous, has discussed what it was like growing up in a council house, and why those living in such properties are often judged…
When I was a child I grew up in a council house, and was blissfully unaware of the discrimination that came with that, until I became an adult.
My younger years were spent running up and down the stairs of my flat, meeting with other friends who lived there and making the most of the communal garden.
But now, it seems no matter your circumstance, everyone has something to say about why you shouldn’t be there.
Living just outside of London like I did, rent prices are still high, and as my mum was at home raising three kids at the time, it wasn’t easy to find a job that fit around that.
People in council houses are often labelled as ‘scroungers’ or ‘lazy’ but it’s nothing of the sort.
Most families in council homes experience overcrowding, and let’s not even mention the horrendous amount of damp and mould that comes from living in old social housing that hasn’t had work done to them in 50 or so years.
It’s not ideal for many, but it does provide a secure home without the fear your rent will shoot up every single year, which I would argue is vital to children growing up on the poverty line.
“I’ll co sleep or share my room with my daughter until she’s 7, that’s the age when they can self regulate.”
“I shared a room with my mum and sister until I was 12 and I didn’t get my own room till I was 18,” another added.
“Now I share a bed with my mum cause we’ve only got a 2 bed and it too expensive to rent.
“I also didn’t want her sleeping on the sofa and she didn’t want her kids to sleep on the sofa.”
“I love this,” Levi replied.
“This is normal for a lot of people and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it.
“Who cares, everybody has a place to sleep in family home and everyone is comfortable!”
“It depends on his development, usually sometime between 6-10 would be the right period to give him his own room,” a third said.
“I agree,” Levi said.
“I feel around age 6-10 I may start to see the signs of needing privacy or just seeming that little bit older.”
But others disagreed, with one person insisting: “That is a bit weird!”
“No no no, you need to let go,” another wrote.
As a third admitted: “As someone who’s always shared a room it does affect us.
“I struggle to fall asleep on my own and have anxiety around it.
“When my partner works away I don’t sleep.”
