Am I allowed to use crib bumpers? Should I be using a swaddle? Is it safe to co-sleep with my baby? Can I let my baby sleep on his/her tummy? How do I know if a crib meets all safety regulations?
There are a lot of questions when it comes to your baby’s sleep safety! I am no ‘expert’ but over the years I have answered a lot of these questions, done some research and shared many of the same concerns. I hope that this will help and if you have some advice that you want to add please share! 
We all have our ‘pround mommy’ moments when our newborn does their first 6hr stretch of sleep- how good does that feel?! The other night Myles slept from 6:00 pm to 7:30 am – yup! I know, craziness and no this does not happen regularly. It felt great (okay I was a lil’ sore 
) to have such a long stretch but I definitely had a moment of panic – why is he sleeping that long?? Is he okay? Is he breathing??
It brought me back to the days when we brought Kellan (our first) home…I would sit and watch him breathe while he was sleeping. I knew things had to change since I could barely focus on him, my head would be bopping and my eyes felt like sand paper. It was time to stop fearing and start trusting plus I really needed sleep. Adam (hubby) and I did the best that we could to provide a safe sleeping environment and if anything were to happen it was out of our control!
SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)- I know that the thought of SIDS can be very scary but we can be thankful that it is becoming less and less common due to safe sleeping habits. If you or someone you know lost a baby to SIDS- I am so sorry for your loss, I cannot imagine the heartache – my deepest condolences to you and your family.
Here is some safe sleeping advice that will hopefully give you the winks you deserve:
- ‘Back to sleep’. Studies show that the safest sleeping position for your newborn is on their back because it reduces the risk of suffocation.
- Sharing a room is great for baby but sharing a bed is not so great. There is a risk that you or hubby could roll on baby or bedding could trap baby. I am not going to lie- Myles makes his way into our bed when I sleepily nurse him. Adam and I are very aware of our space in bed but if you are a deep sleeper who moves a lot I suggest nursing babe and putting him/her back into their crib/cradle.
- It is best for babe to be in a smoke-free environment – a great reason to quit; your baby’s lungs deserve it!
- Don’t put anything extra in the crib- this is why I loved swaddling and using a grobag. You can keep them at the proper temperature without worrying about blankets going over their heads.
- When it comes to bumpers- it is a personal choice. They are not illegal but in my opinion they have pros and cons. I didn’t use them in the beginning because I was worried about suffocation but after 6 months they went on so Kellans arms/legs wouldn’t get stuck
- Only use a crib that has a label or sticker with a manufacture date after September 1986 (source: Public Health Agency of Canada).
- Do not overheat nursery
I could do an entire post on swaddling- love it!
Adam came home with a stat last week that an average parent Mom loses between 400 – 750 hours of sleep during baby’s 1st year. Sooo I would say do your best to create a safe sleeping environment and fingers crossed that you get some looong stretches!
If you have any tips for safe sleeping, please share in the comments below!
