Safer Co-Sleeping
Your baby has been crying for hours in the ; middle of the night. ; Nothing will calm ; her. ;
Finally, she settles in your arms but ; awakens and screams the minute you set her in her crib. ; Out of exhaustion, you take her into bed with ; you and both you and baby snuggle in for a cozy sleep.
Except for North America and Europe, most people in countries around the world sleep ; with their children. ; The trend is also ; increasing in Canada and Australia, ; although many parents don’t like to admit to the practice. ; ; They worry about safety concerns and advice ; from friends and relatives that once their baby is in bed with them, they’ll ; never get her out. ; But the reality is ; that most parents will sleep with their baby at some point in time whether for ; a temporary period or an on-going practice. ; ; Whether for half the night while getting the baby to sleep, or getting ; more sleep during the early hours of the morning, or for naptimes. ; ; Baby could be teething, sick, have night ; terrors, and need night-time parenting. ; ; Or you could be on holidays with no crib. ; ; How can parents make it safe?
An adult bed is just like a motor vehicle; ; both are not custom made for infants. ; ; For cars, we have invented car seats to reduce the risk of injury and ; death while travelling. ; ; For beds, we ; have several safety recommendations to reduce the risk while sleeping ; together. ;
There are basically two ways to have a ; safer sleep-sharing experience. ; Some ; parents try the sidecar approach. They put the crib in the master bedroom with ; one crib side down. ; The lowered crib ; side is moved right next to the bed. ; ; This is called co-sleeping. Other parents just get rid of the box spring ; and put a king size mattress down on the floor so there is no danger of ; falling. Just as adults are aware of the edges of their beds and seldom fall ; off, mothers and babies become well aware of each other as they sleep, so ; rolling over on baby is not common. ; This ; is called co-sleeping. ; The risks of ; suffocation, wedging and entrapment and falling can be reduced by the following ; tips:
Never put baby to bed on a waterbed. ;
Never sleep with baby while under the ; influence of drugs, prescription drugs and alcohol, or if partner is under the ; influence of the same. ;
Never leave baby unattended on an adult ; bed. ;
Keep pillows, comforters, stuffed animals ; and sheets away from baby. ; Dress baby in ; a warm fleece sleeper and Mum in a warm cotton turtleneck so the upper body ; doesn’t get cold and you don’t need blankets or comforters to cover up.
Tie-back long hair and fasten up.
Make sure sheets are fitted under the ; mattress. ;
Always put baby on her back to sleep. ;
Avoid siblings in the same bed. ; If siblings do share a bed, Mum should sleep ; between sibs and baby. ;
If using a bed with legs, make sure the ; spacing between headboard and footboard is no more then currently allowed for ; mattress-crib spacing in safety approved cribs.
If Mum or Dad smoked during the pregnancy, ; avoid sleep sharing.
Mattress must be firm.
Never sleep on couches, overstuffed chairs ; or sofas, or hide-a-beds.
Never cover up baby’s face.
The mattress should not be against a wall ; or furniture because baby could become entrapped.
Baby should not sleep between Mum and Dad ; due to overheating produced from both bodies. ; ; Sleeping between Mum and end of mattress on the floor is the safest.
Avoid strings and ties on baby and parent’s ; nightclothes.
Avoid overheating the room and baby.
Avoid sleeping near window treatment cords ; could strangle or windows could pose a falling risk.
Avoid using bed rails for infants under one ; year.
No infant sleep environment is 100% ; safe. ; But by following the safety ; recommendations for cribs or co-sleeping, we can greatly reduce the risks.
Author - Judy Arnall
Judy Arnall is a 10 year veteran Parent Educator, award winning speaker, and mother of five children. She is author of “Discipline Without Distress: 135 Tools For Raising Caring, Responsible Children Without Time-out, Spanking, Punishment or Bribes.”
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