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Original poster

10mths,constantly waking in night as hitting head on cot bars when moving in sleep- any idea's?

31 replies

JoBaz · 20/08/2006 22:02

Help

I have a 10 mth old boy who has always been a poor sleeper, he had to be swaddled till 6 mths old & even then i had a job to get him to give it up. I think its because hes a real figet & this wakes him up. Anyway.... we stayed away last night & he stayed in his travel cot which has mesh sides.. & do you know what.. for the 1st time ever, he slept for 9 hours solid! normally I only get 4 or 5 hours at once on a good night, sometimes even less, & im now convinced it because he is so active in his sleep & he smashes his head off the bars & this disturbs his sleep??
Has anyone else got this problem & what do you advise?
I am aware this may be a one off & nothing to do with the cot bars, but im pretty sure its all the banging thats waking him.. I could just let him sleep in his travel cot every night, but thats not supportive enough for his spine etc.. as most say only to be used occasionally..

I have searched google for hours & cannot find a normal cot with mesh/Net sides instead of bars. do you know does such a cot exist? & if not, why not! as im sure many babies have this problem??

please help this sleep deprived mum whi hasent had a nights sleep for over 10 mths!

xx

OP posts:
morningpaper · 20/08/2006 22:04

Well I have a 10 month old and she's never slept through either

Why not buy a proper cot mattress that fits the travel cot?

MerlinsBeard · 20/08/2006 22:08

cot bumper? mine have both gone thru phases where they bash their heads on the top and/or sides of the cot. They have corrected them,selves after a while tho so no proper advice - sorry

Frizbe · 20/08/2006 22:10

Go to furniture shop and buy foam pad for top off cot?

Frizbe · 20/08/2006 22:10

of not off sorry

monkeytrousers · 20/08/2006 22:13

Cot bumper. My ds is a regular head banger. He won't hurt himself though, so don't worry too much

SecurMummy · 20/08/2006 22:19

Why not search for travel cots that are for more than occasional use? I am sure they are out there....

Original poster
JoBaz · 20/08/2006 22:22

Morning paper-

Thanks for your advice, I too thought about this but dont think they make them in travel cot sizes as they arent the same shape as normal cots??
Can I ask what problems you have with yours sleeping? Is your baby breastfed? Mine is & im sure that part of the problem too- the regular waking from when he was little has become a bit of a habit?

OP posts:
Original poster
JoBaz · 20/08/2006 22:24

Secur mummy-
I thought they would be out there too- but I have looked & looked on google & they say all travel cots are only for occasional use- I think its becuase the fact they are for travel they dont come with proper thick matresses..
I am seriously thinking of contacting a cot manufacturer & suggesting my idea- A cot with mesh/net sides as im sure it would sell well?

OP posts:
Original poster
JoBaz · 20/08/2006 22:26

Frizbe-

I would have to put pads all the way around as he twists, turns & all sorts all night- he starts up one end- & then an hour later hes up the other?

OP posts:
cowmad · 20/08/2006 22:43

why not pull the bars off your own cot,buy some nett an make your own"prototype?"

Original poster
JoBaz · 20/08/2006 22:45

Cos Im such a worrier- & awful at DIY !!!!!!!! he would fall out in the night as I wouldnt do it right!! Then evenn if he did sleep I would lay there all night worrying my handy work would fall apart!

OP posts:
princessmel · 20/08/2006 22:48

I say cot bumper too. my sil had this prob and just used a travel cot full time. I don't think you are supposed to though.

bonkerz · 20/08/2006 22:51

my 8 month old does this and i have two cot bumpers all the way round her cot which prevents all bumps and also the nasty legs and arms escaping when she moves about!

SecurMummy · 20/08/2006 22:58

Hmm, I know people who have used travel cots full time - but perhaps they just ignored the recommendations?

I don't think you will get a thick mattress for a travel cot as the sides are mesh they move and therefore there is a risk that a baby will get trapped between the side of the cot and the thick matteress - this is the reason (IMO) that they won't mae cots with net sides too!

I think bumpers are the way to go!

Frizbe · 20/08/2006 23:00

Defo cot bumpers right the way around and a baby sleeping bag as well, stops them turning around as much!

cowmad · 20/08/2006 23:14

noo goo on try...wrap it from the bottom and tie it at the top on either side,like a bag,i suppose,ask an art an crafty friend to help!

OzJo · 21/08/2006 02:59

use the travelcot..Dd, now 3 was in one till nearly 2, ds, 13 months is still in one. I just had a horrror of them getting their legs stuck and twisted in the wooden bars. There's a ordinary cot matress in it...no back problems whatsoever!

princessmel · 21/08/2006 07:56

About the bumper... Ikea do a relly really long cot bumper in pink,blue or cream thats v cheap. About £9 i think. We had it in cream for ds and Pink for dd! Its so long it goes all round the cot. We also had grobags for ds to stop legs-in-bars problems too. Dd not in one yet but she's def not as wriggly in the night as ds.

kitbit · 21/08/2006 08:42

our travel cot is the same size as our normal cot so we have on occasion used the normal mattress in it...sadly it is at a friend´s house at the moment so I can't get the manufacturer for you...sorry! But they are definitely out there.

mellowma · 21/08/2006 09:27

Message withdrawn

mellowma · 21/08/2006 09:28

Message withdrawn

emismum · 21/08/2006 11:46

I have a night roamer baby too. She's now 11 months and when she's not well she's very restless and really bashes her head on the wooden bars. When its not too hot weather she goes in a "growbag" which seams to reduce the night time fidgets considerably. Have not got round to buying an extra long bumper yet but think I will as she is getting ore active now that she's mastered crawling in a straight line.

Almond6 · 18/11/2007 19:30

My son is nearly 6 years old. He started banging his head against the cot when he was about 1.5. He sleeps through it, although badly. It us the poor parents who don't get any sleep! He banged so hard that he made himself bald and looked like a monk with a badly shaved head. My doctor and the health visitor said that there is nothing wrong with him and to get myself some ear plugs. We padded the headboard to try and soften the blow to his head and the noise. He eventually broke the cot at the age of 3, so we then got a normal single bed WITHOUT a headboard (not easy to find!). This somehow shocked him into not banging for nearly one year, at which point something triggered it off again. The other night, when he was coming down with a cold he got me up 18 times! My mum showed me an article from the Times by Dr Tanya Byron which talked about this phenomenon and said it was a type of narcolepsy and that most children grow out of it by 6 (about 6% carry on) and only about 3% of teenagers are still doing this. So for the forseeable future there is no rest for these parents. My husband said that all he wants for Christmas is a good nights sleep. The health visitor said that this is a "very common problem" - yeah right! I am yet to find ANYONE who has the same sleep disorder. None of our friends realised how bad it is until they came round for dinner and would sit at the dinner table and conversation would cease and they would say "is that your son?" then you'd get the "oh my god" etc. It's no good trying to bribe him with prizes etc as he really doesn't seem to realise he's doing it. He is geniunely convinced in the morning that he managed to get through the night without it. ANYONE OUT THERE WITH THE SAME ISSUES - WOULD LOVE TO CHAT AND SWAP HELPFUL HINTS.

firststeps · 19/11/2007 13:21

JoBaz - there is a lady on ebay who makes travel cot mattresses to fit individual travel cots "here cgi.ebay.co.uk/TRAVEL-COT-MATTRESS-for-any-ANY-SIZE-for-any-MODEL_W0QQitemZ250186233357QQihZ015QQcat egoryZ53674QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem" if the link doesn't work the company is called mattress makers and they cost around £20, alternatively Mamas and Papas sell a cot bed mattress for about £25 but it will probably only fit their travel cots.

KC12345 · 05/03/2008 15:58

www.babymattressonine.co.uk make travel cot mattresses