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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Sleepyhead to sleep in

59 replies

newmum520 · 22/05/2020 01:41

AIBU

I want to put my week old DD in a sleepyhead overnight, my friend said it's far to risky.

Checked with midwife who said it's totally fine.

Just wanted to see if anyone had any opinions either way?

OP posts:
namechangeonehundred · 22/05/2020 03:06

I'v also just finished feeding my DD. Sometimes she sleeps through but other times wakes for a feed. It does all get better and you're doing brilliantly being on your own.

Bouncingbelle · 22/05/2020 03:14

I was on my own with a prem newborn and if it was a bad night, used the sleepyhead for Co sleepIng (used it constantly In his cotwhen he was bigger). I took my quilt off the bed and put DS in the sleepyhead in the middle of the bed then slept right beside him. It’s a solid base and cos of the sides you can’t roll onto baby. Not having much room in the bed made no odds to me at that point, I was so tired I’d have slept on a washing line! I figured it was safer than me falling asleep holding him.

MrsTerryPratchett · 22/05/2020 03:23

And keep in mind... I have such insomnia about it with DD at 9 that I would LOVE to be back there with her. For a day or two, I'm not insane.

kleew1 · 22/05/2020 03:27

My LO was 5 weeks prem and wouldn't settle at all. I used a sleepy head and swaddled. Both reccomend against but a lifeline for me. She is 2.5 now.

Hope you manage to get some sleep!

Original poster
newmum520 · 22/05/2020 03:35

Thank you everyone

She is currently asleep well her eyes are closed and she's not crying, in the sleepyhead in her cot, I have everything crossed that she drifts off at least for a bit.

I've heard that prem babies are unsettled until their actual due date but not sure if that's true

OP posts:
Original poster
newmum520 · 22/05/2020 03:36

Definitely looking up co sleeping tomorrow.

Great tip from a lot of you

OP posts:
Batshitmeansbatshit · 22/05/2020 03:37

When DS was new he wouldn’t settle in a crib, the space freaked him out. He ended up in his Phil and teds carrycot placed in the crib next to the bed for the first few weeks. Not sure how helpful it is , but a common problem. Take care.

Daftodil · 22/05/2020 06:13

Have you considered other factors? Not sure where you are, but it was 27 degrees here last night. If baby has too many layers on she might be overly hot which might be making her more thirsty.

On that note, could you put a fan on? The fan will make white noise which might also help.

Could she be waking up with reflux? Does propping the head of her cot up help?

Obviously it is stressful when breastfeeding, but if you need some sleep, you could consider mixed feeding. My DS1 was the same - pretty much fed and cried and barely slept for the first 12 weeks. It gets easier as they get bigger because their tummy gets bigger so they can eat more to keep them going between feeds. I would occasionally (sometimes once a day, sometimes once every 3 or 4 days, depending on how much I needed sleep!) give my DS a bottle of formula as this helped him sleep longer (it didn't affect my supply - I bf until he was 2yo)

Original poster
newmum520 · 22/05/2020 11:07

Morning

Yes in the south also so it was very warm and I had a fan on. Don't think she has reflux but the cot tilts so I can try that.

Not against bottle feeding as well so will also try that.

In the end I got a couple of hours so feeling a bit more positive today

Thank you everyone

OP posts:
ShebaShimmyShake · 22/05/2020 11:25

Ours was a godsend.

Waveysnail · 22/05/2020 11:35

I ended up putting chicco baby/newborn chair in middle of my king size bed. Put baby in it and curled around it and went to sleep. Only way I got any sleep in first couple of weeks with all three of mine.

stnvcfo · 22/05/2020 11:43

We purr our DD2 in a sleepyhead inside her cot from night one and she has been fine. I think it says somewhere on the sleepyhead website that they are fine for overnight use.
I am just dreading weaning her off it now because she loves it!!
Good luck, sleeveless nights are the worst. Promise it does get way way better Daffodil

Pleasenodont · 22/05/2020 11:47

The sleepyhead is NOT a sleep positioner, it has never once been linked to SIDS and has been used in Scandinavia safely for many years. They are SAFE.

Givemeyourbunsandyourbiscuits · 22/05/2020 17:08

Midwife shouldn’t have said the sleepyhead is ok.
How preterm was your baby? Preterm babies are at higher risk of SIDS so co sleeping is strongly advised against.
It doesn’t help right now but things will get better Flowers

Gooseygoosey12345 · 22/05/2020 18:40

The sleepyhead isn't a sleep positioner. Apparently they're used in NICU (no idea how true that is as I've never been in a NICU). We used one with DS and it was an absolute godsend. I wish I'd have bought the next size too!

PrayingandHoping · 22/05/2020 18:43

Your midwife said it was ok? I'm shocked as their guidance (and that given by HV) is that they are strongly advised against

The reason they can be used in NICU is because they are being supervised 24hrs a day. When supervised positioners are ok. But overnight when you are sleeping yourself they are not deemed as safe sleeping

PrayingandHoping · 22/05/2020 18:45

The lullaby trust put sleepyheads in the same category as sleep positioners. Even the users instructions on sleepyheads state for supervised use only

bluefoxmug · 22/05/2020 18:51

They are SAFE.

they are if used correctly.

only for short periods a day
never unsupervised (i.e. never when you are sleeping yourself)
never ever on a soft surface (on your bed, on top of the cot mattress.

gg96cgp · 22/05/2020 18:56

Used a sleepyhead with both of my children and know many others who did with theirs. Frankly it was a godsend for us and both were great sleepers from very early age.

Original poster
newmum520 · 22/05/2020 19:56

Thank you for all the views and opinions I understand it's a very personal decision.

OP posts:
namechangeonehundred · 22/05/2020 19:58

How are you getting on today op? Did you manage to look at your next to me crib? If it's up and ready I'd have a go at feeding baby whilst she's lying down in it and seeing how you get on.

byvirtue · 22/05/2020 20:08

Op sleepy heads are fine, when my dd was little I could find no evidence of deaths attributed to their usage over night (there is a stat on sleep positioners used in the USA that averaged 1 per year over 13 years). Cosleeping however is linked on average to 133 deaths per year in the U.K. so I find it amazing people are so anti sleepyhead and yet pro cosleeping, it’s bonkers.

ButterBees · 22/05/2020 20:10

I used it for both mine, they are amazing and I'd recommend to anyone. Like the pp, I also did loads of research about them and felt secure using them.

Stripeytopgirl · 22/05/2020 20:15

Just do what you think is right OP. There will be people who follow the guidelines to the letter even if it means they’re mentally & physically exhausted. That doesn’t make them better parents.

If your gut tells you it’ll be ok, it’ll probably be ok. Don’t ignore those instincts! Totally normal to be neurotic I was insane Especially with a preemie.

FWIW, I co slept with both mine from birth. Was not recommended at all with my first, in fact the total opposite but it was the only way to get any sleep & it worked for us. By the time DD2 came along (not even 2 years later) they had totally changed the goal posts about co sleeping. So what they’re telling you now might be different in 2 years.

Trust your instincts, basically!!

comatosemuvva · 22/05/2020 20:27

I always put the sleepyhead in the next to me crib with the side down, i know it is against guidance but my midwife also said it was fine and that it used to be within guidelines but they were changed, like everything else is constantly changed. If it's between you falling asleep holding her or her in a sleepyhead, you need to weigh up the options

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