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Original poster

Would you, do you, use a sleepyhead at night?

78 replies

DieHardISaChristmasFilm · 26/12/2019 11:07

DS is 5 weeks old. Until now the sleepyhead has been for daytime naps only, however his night time sleep has completely gone to pot.
Last night, after hours of no sleep I cracked and put him in it, and had a lovely 4 hours of sleep. I was starting to fall asleep while feeding him so was more worried about that being a danger. After this DH is suggesting we use it at night, I've read the lullaby trust warnings and am worried, help!

OP posts:
StylishMummy · 26/12/2019 19:10

We used one with both DDs who were severely prem, from newborn right to 13 months apiece. This was last year and the year before when they were certified

M0reGinPlease · 26/12/2019 19:11

I did. My DD slept in them day and night until she was over a year and half old (obviously the bigger size by then). If I had another baby I'd probably use it again.

However, I think a lot of parenting is about trusting your instinct and if you don't feel happy about it are you really going to get a restful sleep with baby in it?

RachelEllenR · 26/12/2019 19:14

Yes I did and would again, I did use a snuza breathing monitor too.

Interested in this thread?

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0-3 months old Babies & sleep Children's sleep Families
CFlemingSmith · 26/12/2019 19:16

We used ours and I wouldn’t hesitate to use it again for the following reasons:

A) like others have said, the sleeping guidelines (lullaby trust) are based on so many factors so if you don’t drink/smoke/drugs etc the risk of anything happening is incredibly low
B) the lullaby trust doesn’t advocate co sleeping however no child has ever died from co sleeping safely that followed all the guidelines and the countries with the lowest rates of SIDS co sleep, so I really do take what the lullaby trust say with a pinch of salt and common sense

GinNsnowmen · 26/12/2019 19:19

No

Salene · 26/12/2019 19:29

I used one for both my babies. Definitely helped them sleep

gonewiththerain · 26/12/2019 19:30

Yes I would and I will get one for baby number two. I did set out to cosleep safely with number one due to him not sleeping but the fact I was exhausted did cause a couple of co sleeping scary moments that I don’t want to repeat. I was sleep deprived to the point I couldn’t count and had to stop driving for a while.

Sleepyhead and a clip on monitor and a angel mat thing for the next one.

Crashtestdummie · 26/12/2019 19:32

I do and I am considering getting the next size up as my baby sleeps well in them. I started using it before the new guideline against using them came out and I did try to put dc to sleep without but it was a hellish few days of no sleep so I went back to it.

Like pp have said read the safe sleep guidelines and make the best choice for you and your baby.

Sunshinegirl82 · 26/12/2019 19:36

Yep, both of mine have slept in sleepyheads all night pretty much from birth as the only other option was to hold them 24 hours a day.

When I had DS1 they were "officially" ok for overnight sleeping although the guidance has changed now. I took the view it was safer than falling asleep holding them.

They are not sleep positioners in the same way as some of the pillows etc. Parenting is just one endless risk assessment!

Ambrose2 · 26/12/2019 20:24

I wouldn't and don't

1 of mine was rubbish at cot sleeping, and 2 of them slept beautifully in a cot (flat on back) from day one, but I wouldn't have slept a wink either way if they'd not been following safe sleep advice

Cruddles · 26/12/2019 21:02

Yes for both, DS aged 3 and DD nearly 1. DD still in the large one, although almost too big now

JigglyRafferty · 26/12/2019 21:07

My son now 21 month slept in one up until he was about 9 months old in his cot. We had a breathing sensor mat on his cot. As far as I know they are safe as the fabric is breathable.

hettie · 26/12/2019 21:52

Dc1 was in NICU, then a general post surgery paediatric ward. The specialist nurses there made a 'nest' (they called it that) out of rolled towels and blankets. Of course he was on loads of monitors.....but still... Make of that what you will

recreationalcalpol · 26/12/2019 23:09

Axe has it spot on. There are a lot of ‘mamas’ around who could really do with some education on risk before coming it with the ‘OMG hun, but why do you want your baby to die?????’. Formula feeding is also a SIDS risk factor, but no one attacks the fed is best brigade like this and rightly so.

anothernamejeeves · 26/12/2019 23:19

No. I work in a job where I am involved with SIDS and trust me all parents wish they'd have just listened wished they didn't do this wish they hadn't done that. That choice they may robbed their child of a future and their dreams. They are not recommended for a reason and the lullaby trust is not an organisation of busy bodies with no knowledge just telling parents not to do certain things to patronise them. They have professors paediatricians detectives gps and experts work for them. Research has been ongoing for years. I really would hate any more parents to suffer thinking 'why didn't I just heed the advice'

SparkyBlue · 26/12/2019 23:21

I use one for dd who is just growing out of her one and I am planning on buying the larger one soon. I absolutely love it and only wish I had used one for my older dc.

minipie · 26/12/2019 23:35

Yes I did for DC2 who is now 4 so before the certification changed. I’d use it again if I had another baby tomorrow though. It definitely helped with sleep and mine are rubbish sleepers.

I take the view that having a very sleep deprived mum is a much bigger risk (I nearly dropped dc1 down the stairs as I was so tired, and had terrible PND). SIDS is awful of course but statistically very very rare if you aren’t smoking drinking or on sofa. Nobody measures the risks and problems caused by parent sleep deprivation but for me they were a bigger risk.

Amanduh · 26/12/2019 23:41

Nope.
A breathable fabric means nothing in this case.
Absolutely not worth the risk.

Oct18mummy · 26/12/2019 23:53

Health visitors advised not to use overnight we just had it for day supervised naps

Sparrowlegs248 · 27/12/2019 00:09

Yes I did. It was in the bedside cot. The sleepyhead does have a firm base, and isn't softly cushioned. Other sleeping kids are much softer/floppy.

Sparrowlegs248 · 27/12/2019 00:09

Pods not kids

BertieBotts · 27/12/2019 22:35

The dummy "reduction" in risk study was found to have been sponsored heavily by a dummy manufacturer and IIRC it also only applies when the baby is used to having a dummy, because when babies who are used to having dummies to sleep don't have them, this represents an increase in risk. Giving those babies back the dummy causes decreased risk but only in relation to the increase from not having it as usual. So they removed that from the recommendations sharpish because overall, dummies do not reduce risk. They also have negatives such as potentially interfering with breastfeeding.

There is no point beating anyone with a stick about feeding method and SIDS as this is not the kind of thing you can change night to night - it makes absolute sense to focus guidance on things parents can change night to night.

Also, The Lullaby Trust (and the NHS, unicef, etc) don't actually blanket advise against co-sleeping any more, they only advise against in high risk situations: Smoking parent(s), alcohol/drugs causing drowsiness, soft beddings, surfaces other than a firm flat mattress, premature babies.

It is nothing to do with picking and choosing advice. Sleepyheads are risky because they have three specific, known risk factors associated with them:

  • Asphyxiation caused by the baby's face pressing into the fabric. Probably rare, but not impossible, and definitely not disproven by putting your own face into the fabric and trying to breathe - you are an adult, not an infant and doing this for a few seconds is not the same as breathing that way for hours.
  • Rebreathing of carbon dioxide caused by the baby's face being near to the padded side so that the air they breathe out cannot circulate. You can see babies close enough for this to be an issue on almost all photos you ever see of this product. Newborns naturally turn their heads to one side as they have a large protruding back of the head. This is also an associated risk with cot bumpers, and hardly anyone questions their unsuitability these days. Interestingly in some countries, fans are recommended to help air circulation - never heard of here. (In others they are considered a deadly risk :o - so take your pick...)
  • Positional aspyhxiation caused by incorrect chin-on-chest position due to the baby being placed partially on the edge of the sleepyhead, ie, with their head resting on it and their body in the middle, for example to help with reflux.
Sunshinegirl82 · 27/12/2019 23:08

In an ideal world all babies would sleep in a completely clear cot on a firm, new mattress but no-one really tells you what to do when your baby just will not sleep in an "approved" place.

I had the sleepyhead for DS1 and at that point they were deemed ok for overnight sleeping. Tried not using it with DS2 as the guidance had changed and he slept for no more than 45 minutes in the cot. I was post section, trying to breastfeed an (it turns out) severely tongue tied, jaundiced baby, pumping every 3 hours 24 hours a day. I was completely wrecked! Reintroduced the sleepyhead and baby settled for 2-3 hours in it.

I know it increases the risks but all the options available to me at that point seemed to increase risk! Sleeping holding baby is obviously high risk, I was so tired (and on a lot of painkillers) so thought co-sleeping would also be quite high risk. What other option was there?

I do understand that it's important that people have all the facts around safe sleep and obviously it's important that we have guidance but it does sometimes feel that you are just told what not to do with very little help on what you SHOULD do if your baby just won't sleep in a clear cot.

BertieBotts · 28/12/2019 10:13

Co-sleep or take shifts would be my vote. But realistically you're right, some people don't have the option to do either. And you do have to do harm reduction sometimes ie take the least worst option, being aware of the risks but balancing it against the risk of not doing that.

I am never really sure about tiredness as a co-sleeping risk factor. I always wonder if it's more because if you're that tired you're more likely to overlook some factor which contributes to safety. Essentially, if you do it properly co-sleeping is just the baby sleeping on a massive firm, flat surface, it's just there is an adult in that space near them as well, which in my experience actually increases safety since you tend to be somewhat aware of them in terms of temperature changes, positioning, coughing, fever, etc. If you do the c-shape position it's almost identical to the recovery position, you can't roll. So I can't see that being tired would be a problem. Medication yes if it causes you to be in a deep sleep. If you're on opiate painkillers because of childbirth then this is short term; ideally you have people around you supporting you and so shifts can be a viable option. Obviously not everyone does have that support, but if you do that's what I would ask for. I would also personally shift this lens to that, rather than blaming the sleep advice, which is really just giving information: Why are some new mothers so terribly alone and unsupported that they are forced to resort to unsafe sleep arrangements for their babies in order to get some rest?

If it's a different medication unrelated to birth and needing to be on it long term then that might be a situation I'd weigh up the benefits of continuing to breastfeed vs formula feeding since the act of separating the feeding from sleep does seem to lead to longer sleep stretches earlier than breastfeeding. But again I'd come back to the support argument rather than saying sleep advice is unhelpful as it is.

Sunshinegirl82 · 28/12/2019 10:38

It's less the sleep advice really, although I do think that there are some issues there - there have been several threads recently by women feeling unable to leave their sleeping baby to go to the toilet as the advice says that baby should have all sleeps in the same room as an adult. I do think there is perhaps an issue with the way certain things are communicated.

The lullaby trust pretty much says "if you're going to co-sleep do it like this, but definitely don't do it if you're very tired or taking drugs that make you drowsy." So the advice says both sleepyheads and co-sleeping whilst very tired are out. @BertieBotts you would choose the co-sleeping option even if very tired but that would also be contrary to the advice.

When people ask for advice they are met with lots of blanket "it's not safe - I wouldn't risk it" type responses when it's fairly clear that people are struggling or they wouldn't be asking. They need to do something so which of the things that increases risk should they do? That's what they're really asking.

Taking shifts might work for a few days or weeks but people have other children and jobs and lives so for many that wouldn't work long term.

I do agree that women should be more supported but that is a long term goal and won't help women right now in the moment. I just think we have to be realistic.