Which is worse: cat meowing or baby crying?

Hello, (I'm sorry if this is long!)

I have a 3 year old kitty who is my baby. We are very attached and he wants to be with me every second of the day. (I work from home on my computer, so he can be with me a lot during the day.)

The problem is, I can't let him sleep with me at night. I'm a very light sleeper and every time we try it, he wakes me up every half hour by smooshing his nose all over my face, pushing his face into my neck, resting his chin on top of my forehead , or lying on top of my face, all the while purring like crazy. So by about 3 a.m. I always end up putting him in an extra room to sleep. I've made him sleep in this extra room since he was a baby and he never seems to mind going there. He even runs in there himself at night. I give him a treat and it's all fixed up with toys, water, a chair he likes to sleep on, etc. It's downstairs and I sleep upstairs so I never hear him.

I have tried letting him have the run of the house because I felt guilty shutting him in there by himself and he ends up literally "screaming" outside of my door or banging against it. I think he gets a running start and crashes into it every 5 seconds.

So here is a real problem coming up. I need to rent "his" room because I need the extra income. I don't know what to do. I'm afraid I'll never sleep again. Last night I tried putting up a Japanese screen against the bottom of the stairs so he couldn't come upstairs. I figured I wouldn't hear him all the way down there and he could have the run of the house. I used masking tape to connect it to the walls so he couldn't knock it down. I was just falling asleep when I heard this huge crash and a sound like thunder when he came racing up the stairs. I opened my bedroom door and he came tearing into my room all fluffed up like a squirrel with a long piece of masking tape hanging from his nose. And he was limping so I think he hurt himself when the screen fell down.

I was thinking I would take his chair that he sleeps on and put it outside my bedroom door. And then just try to bear the sound of him crying and banging on my door all night. I'm afraid to use the screen again and I have no other way to keep him downstairs. I was never good at letting my human babies cry themselves to sleep. I'm not sure how I'll do this, but it's sort of my survival at this point. Do you think he will just give up and be quiet and go to sleep at some point? How long can he cry and bang against my door? Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can keep my sanity, not feel guilty, and change his behavior? Help! I put the room up for rent November 1 and I need to get this situation resolved before I really won't have it available for him.
Thank you very much!

Can you perhaps get a large dog crate (the kind made out of all bars so he can see through it well) big enough to fit all of his necessities and a comfy place to sleep and place it in your room?

He may be quieter just sleeping IN your room and not necessesarily in your bed and on your face.

Thank you for answering. I'm so happy because I thought of an answer. My kitchen/family room door closes and there is a trellis I use for my clematis that fits right in the doorway to the living room. I washed the dirt off it, duck taped it to the wall - he can see through it to the living room, his favorite chair is in the family room now, and his food is in there anyway. Yay! A solution. The trellis worked and I don't care if the duck tape pulls the paint off the walls. He's way in another part of the house and I can sleep and all is well! (I still let him in my bed in the a.m. to cuddle though.)

Thanks!

Have you got a bedtime routine?

For my cats, they get an hour of playtime (DaBird, laser pointer, teasers etc.) then they are fed and we go to bed. Even the kittens respond well to the routine and are very good overnight. They all sleep in my room, under the bed covers.