# How to avoid baby falling out of bed



## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Hi. My baby is 6 months old and she sleeps with us. She doesn't yet sit up or crawl, but she does wriggle a lot and can travel quite far along the bed, especially if there's a boob to be found elsewhere. This isn't a problem right now because we sleep in a waterbed (I know, I shouldn't co-sleep in a waterbed, but this one has no frame so there's nothing for her to get stuck between) with firm edges. It's a bit hard to explain, but the bed has a bit of a lip which she can't get over, especially since she can't roll over.

We've only been sleeping in this waterbed because we have been living in a temporary furnished apartment. We have now bought a house and a new bed and will be moving in next month.

My problem is that our new bed is a normal bed (in other words, no lip around the edge) and I don't want her to fall out, either at night or during naps. I saw that some people put a mattress on the floor for naps. I can't do this because the bed we bought is extremely thick. The legs are only a few inches long and the top of the bed is still at normal height, so removing the legs would only get us a couple of inches closer to the ground.

I have a few questions, since I haven't co-slept with a mobile baby in a normal bed.
--There seem to be no references to people worrying about their baby falling out of bed at night. Does this end up not being a concern? It's true that my baby and I are almost always cuddled up, except during the rare moments when I manage to "escape."
--Does anyone use a guard rail of some sort, rather than putting their mattress on the ground? I had bunk beds when I was little, and these had a nice bar that kept me from falling out. Something like that for an adult bed would be great (although annoying when I need to get up to pee!)

Note that my baby goes to bed before we do at night, but in our bed, so we have to leave her alone in our bed for a few hours. This new bed is HUGE: 210cm x 210cm (bigger than a king).

Thanks for your help.
Sarah


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## Linda in OZ (Sep 14, 2003)

:
For now I've got blankets and bean bags piled all over our yukky concrete floor but looking for better ideas


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## swedemom (Mar 11, 2005)

With DD i didnt worry about this, she was like a magnet, and never moved away from me. but i think ds is going to be different, already at 4 months he will roll away from me when he is done eating. We have these mattress protectors, its kinda like a thin, but firm foam and then we put pillows in under this, so it creates a 'hill'. we also will get a bed rail from ikea that is designed for a kids bed, so we maybe need two.

let us know what works!


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## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *swedemom*
We have these mattress protectors, its kinda like a thin, but firm foam and then we put pillows in under this, so it creates a 'hill'. we also will get a bed rail from ikea that is designed for a kids bed, so we maybe need two.

I'm confused about the mattress protector/pillow thing. You put the pillows under the mattess protector at the edges of the bed in order to create something like the "lip" that I described my waterbed having?

As for the IKEA bed rails, that's exactly what I'd like. I went to their site, though, and all I can find is one child's bed that includes a very short rail. It doesn't seem like they sell the rail separately. Do they?

Thank you!


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## Drummer's Wife (Jun 5, 2005)

DS sleeps between DH and I so I worry more about him getting squished than falling off the bed. We also have our mattresses on the floor but only because we recently moved and were too lazy to set the bed frame up. We are also planning on buying a bigger bed with our tax $.

I've heard of people putting up a safety rail and then having the other side of the bed pushed up against the wall.


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## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *momtoDNJ*
DS sleeps between DH and I

Just curious -- how do you handle alternating boobs while still keeping your son in the middle? Or are you not breastfeeding him?


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## Drummer's Wife (Jun 5, 2005)

Quote:

Just curious -- how do you handle alternating boobs while still keeping your son in the middle? Or are you not breastfeeding him?
I am still breastfeeding, he's 8 months. I turn towards him and feed from the one closest to the bed and then when it's empty lay more on my tummy and feed from the other one. Not sure if that makes sense but I do it somehow


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## broodymama (May 3, 2004)

We tried a bedrail but it wasn't long enough. We've been using a Snug Tuck pillow for about 11 months now.


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## beebalmmama (Jul 21, 2005)

DS sleeps between dh and I. At 4 mo he's not too mobile yet although he's getting good and coming to find me when he wants to nurse. I didn't get the nursing on one side until I tried it. Works like a charm except when ds wants his arm free, I kind of pin it down when I'm feeding him from the opposite side.


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## lisac77 (May 27, 2005)

We have our bed on the floor. DS naps and sleeps there. No falling out worries!


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## mighty-mama (Sep 27, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *sarahmck*
Just curious -- how do you handle alternating boobs while still keeping your son in the middle? Or are you not breastfeeding him?

To answer your question. While laying in our bed I"m on the right next to the wall. Ds between, when I'm nursing the left side, he's still in the middle. When it's time to switch to the right, I"m in the middle, ds is against the wall. He stays right on me. We usually sleep both on your sides, belly to belly, occassionally he'll go on his back.

we've moved our bed off the frame. It does sit on the box spring on the floor. We've moved our bed against the wall. When he sleeps before me, I place our baby monitor right next to him, this way I can hear if he's moving, and can peek my head in. Also the monitor is a target and once he wakes up he immediately goes for it, and doesn't think to roll off the bed. (so far, now watch my jinx myself.)


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## swedemom (Mar 11, 2005)

I was trying to remember what there is in n.america like this mattress cover. and i know my mom has one of those foam egg carton mattress thingy's (dont know what they are called







) its smooth on one side, and has dents like a egg carton on the other. if you had one of those, and then took a small pillow, rolled up, or wedged in under the foam thing. this would create a hill. its bulky, but as we have a big bed, like you, its works.

as for swapping boobs, this is our biggest issue. I usually go from the head to the bottom of the bed, in order to switch sides, but keep him on the outside, ie on the other side of me from my older DD. DD usually wakes and comes down to the foot of the bed as well, im sure we go back and forth 5 times a night hehehe


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## spirit4ever (Nov 4, 2004)

I'm very very jealous of your new bed







we have a king and fits me and both my ds's nicely but not really dh!! Anyway, I use the safety first guard rails, however, in the last few nights I've had to put ds down to sleep in the playpen until I'm ready for bed. He wakes up and looks for me w/o a peep







: and fell off







But I'm trying to teach him to get off the bed feet first, as soon as he figures that out and doesn't fall I'll either just stay w/ him or put him in the playpen!


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## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *swedemom*
and i know my mom has one of those foam egg carton mattress thingy's (dont know what they are called







) its smooth on one side, and has dents like a egg carton on the other. if you had one of those, and then took a small pillow, rolled up, or wedged in under the foam thing. this would create a hill. its bulky, but as we have a big bed, like you, its works.

Ah. I've usually heard it called "egg crate." I see what you mean now. It sounds like this is a lot like the Snug Tuck pillow mentioned by a PP. It sounds like both of these would be viable options for me.

Part of my problem is that we're moving into a new house so I can't picture the bedroom quite well enough to be sure about this, but I'm pretty sure that I won't be able to push the bed up against the wall because it has a big window which is partially a door out to a little balcony. So even if I wanted to block this, which I don't, it would mean sleeping against glass, which sounds more dangerous than risking falling out of bed.

For those of you experienced with mobile babies (again, mine still just sits there like a little lardball, with some scooting upwards), do you think it's necessary to block all exposed bed edges, or just the mommy side of the bed? I don't mind losing 10 or so inches using one of these hill schemes, but I don't want to lose 10 inches from 3 sides, nor have the hassle of vaulting out of bed.

Thanks for all the responses.
Sarah


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## ShaZaM (Apr 19, 2005)

Hi there,

Just wanted to add that we also sleep with our son, will be one in December, and he is incredibly active- has been for months now. What we do is surround him in pillows (with enough room for him to move about) when he takes naps and when we put him to bed earlier than us. I have also taught him that it's OUCH to fall off and that he needs to turn around to get down from the bed, which is quite high up. When he wakes up, he usually crawls to the edge and starts making sounds.... I then go up and get him out of bed. So, he realizes that there is a danger, but we still take precautions. We have 5 pillows around him.









Hope this helps!


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## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ShaZaM*
When he wakes up, he usually crawls to the edge and starts making sounds.... I then go up and get him out of bed. So, he realizes that there is a danger, but we still take precautions. We have 5 pillows around him.









Thanks for the input, ShaZam. It seems that most people's concern is primarily focused around nap time, not night time. I've never been even vaguely worried that my baby would fall out of bed at night, but I don't know if that will last once she's more mobile.

Am I correct that night time falling isn't much of a concern for most of the co-sleepers out there?

P.S. It's great to see other MDC members in the Netherlands!


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## ShaZaM (Apr 19, 2005)

Saramck,

I am not usually concerned about the night time falling out, though recently my son has been sleeping in weird positions and also moving UP the mattress, which luckily has a bit of a headboard. He sleeps on his tummy with his legs under and slids up when he moves. I have padded this headboard cuz he was waking up when he would move his head. So...saying that, I am not usually concerned about him falling out of the bed at night since we are on each side of him, but if you don't have a headboard it and no wall to lean against, it might be a concern later...but I think each kid is different. You might want to wait and see how she progresses? Maybe she won't be a one that moves around a lot?

I am also excited to see other MDC posters here in the NL!!! How exciting!!! I use to live in Amsterdam and just recently moved to Leiden. I wouldn't be opposed to meeting up one of these days... I am always looking for like-minded people to meet!


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## sarahmck (Feb 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ShaZaM*
I wouldn't be opposed to meeting up one of these days... I am always looking for like-minded people to meet!

Agreed. I've been having a bit of a challenge finding people whose parenting style I have *anything* in common with. It would make for a refreshing change!


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## True Blue (May 9, 2003)

We put a guard rail on one side. The kids' ones go almost to the end of the bed, and it is generally far enough down to prevent falls. Until they get really mobile like my daughter and sleep at the bottom of the bed LOL.


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## minkajane (Jun 5, 2005)

We were worried about this for a bit and the second we mentioned it, DS went and proved us right by rolling right out of bed during a nap. Good thing our floor's carpeted! That day, we put together the crib and started doing a sidecar arrangement. That way, he's still with us, but we don't have to worry about him rolling out of the bed or waking him up when we get in and out of bed.


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## slinginhipmama (Feb 15, 2005)

We've always used bedrails, I picked them up 2nd hand at a childrens consignment shop. It was the best $7 I spent!!! There are 4 of us in the bed so I put one on each side. One to make sure ds#2 (who is still bfing and switching sides quite often during the night) doesn't fall out and the other to make sure dh doesn't either


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## Sharlla (Jul 14, 2005)

Right now we are using boppies on the side of the bed for when he sleeps on the outside, and that works well. He does not roll around in his sleep at all. I would like to get a bed rail but havn't come across one yet. I had seen one at the thrift store for $1 a couple months ago and I could kick myself for not buying it


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## wtchyhlr (Oct 15, 2002)

Well... we have our king size bed on the floor, wedged in a corner. And DS doesn't relaly move much (HA yeah right) So last night I nursed him down, and got up to briefly get a drink of water after he went to sleep. Well DH had a question, we ended up talking, and next thing we knew, DS was crying inthe bedroom. So i went to check on him, and he wasnot only OUT of bed, but he was halfway across the room, poor kiddo. He calmed down immediatly when i picked him up, and laid his little cheek on my shoulder, so I don't think he hurt himself getting off the bed in the dark. i'm not sure if he rolled or crawled or what. I feel horrible







I would've totally put pillows around him, but was only intending to get a 3 second drink of water. DH distracted me with conversation.


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## CadenJames062503 (Nov 27, 2004)

I'm looking for bed rails for my bed cause ds is rolling out of bed! It seems no matter what I do he finds a way out! But he also rolls around like crazy!!!


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## nicnbrenna (Nov 30, 2005)

My daughter sleeps between us but when she was 5 months old, my husband was up getting ready and she fell out, I felt horrible, and almost stopped having her in the bed, but since then, she's been doing fine sleeping between us.


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## Parker'smommy (Sep 12, 2002)

We have a co -sleeper that dd sleeps in for the first part of the night and then she moves into our bed when she wakes. So, we are able to keep her in there while we are in the family room and don't worry about her falling out. Yes, she could technically crawl out of it and onto the king size bed and out the other side. But I keep a monitor in there so that I can hear the first peep and get to her before she even tries to crawl out. The cosleeper is also great in that it extends the bed. Dd and I can be on the very edge of our bed so it makes it bigger in a way and there is no risk of her falling out that side or being smooched up against a rail or wall. The rest of the time she is snuggled between dh and I.


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## ShaZaM (Apr 19, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *sarahmck*
Agreed. I've been having a bit of a challenge finding people whose parenting style I have *anything* in common with. It would make for a refreshing change!


Sarahmck,

I just wanted to acknowledge the fact that you are interested in meeting up one of these days... just wanted to sort of give you a heads up that December is a crazy month for me, but in January I would LOVE to have a coffee/tea and chat with you!! Hope this suits you? Until then I will continue to check MDC and see what is happening!

Later,


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## FlickervilleMom (Nov 27, 2001)

Sarahmck,

I'm a mom to four girls, ages 3-9, and I breastfed and co-slept with all of them. For naptime, I would nurse my DD to sleep (on our king-size bed) then gather pillows off the other beds in the house to put around her. When she became mobile, the monitor went *on* the bed, *INSIDE* the ring of pillows instead of NEXT TO her on the night table. (I had to be quick for a few months!)

At night, my DH and I would sneek into bed on either side of her to start off with. First waking, she'd nurse between us. Next waking, I'd roll or slide her to my other side, next to the edge of the bed and "wedge" her in with one of those foam wedges made for helping to prevent crib death. I got one before I decided to co-sleep. I cut the short belly side off and the material between the two wedges. When I would switch DD to the edge side of the bed, I just got into the habit of grabbing the "wedgie-thing," and stuffing it behind her back. It worked beautifully! (A rolled up bath towel circled with masking tape worked in a pinch on vacation once, too.) They had to do so much moving to get out from that "trap" between the wedge and myself that I would wake up before they ever fell off the bed.

As each DD got older and more mobile, she also required less nursing at night and I got away with just switching her out of the middle if I really felt lop-sided!

Hope this helps!


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## foehnjye (Mar 4, 2005)

Hi! We are now co-sleeping with our second baby, and I bought what's called a Family Bed from Humanity Infant and Herbal http://www.humanityinfantandherbal.com/

I wish we'd had this with our DD who was very mobile after 12 months and despite sleeping in between us the entire time we co-slept with her (3 yrs) she still managed to fall off the bed a couple times due to her nocturnal migration!

This bolster would be very easy to make, I was just too busy to do so. It is a little pricey, but the material they used is VERY cushy and I love sleeping on it. Even though our little one is only 6 weeks old, I'm sure it will prove invaluable later, and I do not have to worry about accidentally pushing her off in the middle of the night if she's on the edge of the bed.


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## pitchfork (May 3, 2005)

Not speaking from experience here, as I'm still pregnant with my first, but this solution looks good in terms of baby not rolling out, it holds a body pillow/bolster along the side of the bed. We ordered one, instead of buying a co-sleeper, but as I said, can't report on actual use. Only drawback to me is that it might be a bit tricky getting in and out of bed on that side

http://www.humanityinfantandherbal.com/


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