To wonder how its possible for someone to forget about their baby [Warning: distressing news story]

[foreverondiet]

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3 deaths in 2 weeks in a tiny country. How is it possible to forget about your baby. Btw I don't think any of these were people who just nipped into the shops and left their babies in the car on purpose. But struggling to understand how it's possible to happen by accident?

That Washington Post article might be the saddest thing I've ever read. Apologies if I've missed this upthread, but does anyone know if Lyn Balfour went on to have a surrogate baby for the Harrisons?

Thanks Trills, I'll try that. It's shocking that so many babies have died this way in the USA in this year alone. You're right whothefuckfarted, we'll all be more vigilant after that article

Clearly have been thinking about this a lot! On way to work today and realised I actually have a good solution without alarms and things!

I have a mirror attached to my back headrest in the car. It was about £10 from tesco. Means I can see DD everytime I look in my rear view mirror so as long as the mirror is there I know she is in or not in the car. I guess you would just need to make sure the mirror was in any car that your child was going into.

I left DD2 behind at school last week.

I had gone to collect her and, unusually, had DD1 with me.

DD 3 saw my SIL and asked to go around to collect her DS from his classroom. DD1 started to fuss and so SIL took them both around, asking me to wait for her DD, who is in the class next to DD2.

Before the DCs came out, SIL had collected her DS and was back around. I saw her and thought 'great, she's back.'

I took custody of DDs 1&3, and did my mental head count 'one, two...' let's go. I had totally overlooked the fact that I had DD1 with me.

I got 3/4 out of the playground before I remembered that I didn't have DD2 with me.

I think it would be a good idea for an information leaflet to be given out with each car seat. It could alert people to the risks and give advice on what to do if they see a child alone in a car. It would only serve to raise awareness but would be a start.

My friend did something similar with her newly toddling DD.

We were shopping in M&S and I was quite pregnant with my DD at the time. About to leave the shop and she held the door open for me, totally forgetting that her DD was beside her, who legged it out the door and straight into the road. Luckily, I clocked her in time, grabbed her arm (nearly dislocating it, I felt so bad) and yanked her out of the road seconds before a car came hurtling along. She was so close to being hit and if both of us hasn't been there, she likely would've been.

Friend was, is and probably always will be wracked with guilt about it. She just totally forgot in that moment that she had a child.

While sometimes these moments of absentmindedness have such tragic consequences, I can see how they so easily happen. :(

My mother left me, and 17 years later, my brother in the prams outside shops. We were new babies at the time so she wasn't in the habit of pushing a pram. It amazes me that in 2 1/2 yrs of motherhood that I haven't left an infant behind... yet...

I had a moment earlier where I wondered where DS2 was. I have a seat on top of the pram for DS1. He was sat up there and blocking my view of DS2 who was fast asleep and very quiet in the pram as he should have been. My brain just lost track for a moment.

I could easily forget DS2 in the car- I haven't yet, but I notice DS1's presence more, and when it's nursery day, it's easy to feel like I'm on my own when DS2 is sleeping. I can understand how it happens.

I really wish I hadn't read that article linked to above . How absolutely heartbreaking for anyone involved in these situations. I can completely see that it could happen to anyone.

My mum used to do the nursery run for DS (now 13). We laughed about the day she got to work and DS said something to her and she jumped out of her skin because she thought she had dropped him off at nursery. Easily done with a sleeping baby .

I remember when I was about 8 and my mum came home from the shops (about a 15 minute walk away). As she sat down she said 'I'm sure I've forgotten something'. Then suddenly she looked like this -> , got up and ran from the house. She'd left my newborn baby brother outside the shop in his pram.