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Original poster

Baby keeps falling off things

28 replies

Worstmum2017 · 26/04/2017 09:57

I'm sure I'm going to get flamed for this I know I'm a terrible mother for letting this happen

The last week the baby has fallen off the bed once, although that was more a lunge off as I was between her and the edge and she wanted what i was eating so i moved it higher away from her and she fell grabbing for it.

Then she's gone off the sofa twice, I put her blocked in the corner sofa with the pouffe so it makes a safe area for her to sit, I left her there to make milk and was watching the whole time, She started crawling towards the edge and by the time I got from the kitchen to the sofa she'd fallen off
Yesterday she did the same when I popped her down for a minute while I wiped the seat of the high chair.

My husband says I need to put her on the floor but that isn't always safe/ practical especially around dinner time as we have a dog that circles for scraps.
I feel like he thinks I'm a terrible mother. A family member was also criticising why I had the baby on the bed with me and how she managed to fall off even after I explained she lunged and toppled off while my hands were full and before I could even react to stop her.

I have PND and anxiety and this is sending me into a spiral I don't know why I'm really posting I think I just need to get it off my chest.

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Aquamarine1029 · 26/04/2017 10:01

I think you need to put your baby in a proper high chair or other baby safe area. Repeatedly falling is not good.

LineysRun · 26/04/2017 10:05

I think you urgently need to invest in a play pen / travel cot to put the baby in while you are busy with something else. They are £30 in places like Tesco.

Do you have a crate for your dog?

Cakescakescakes · 26/04/2017 10:07

We had a jumperoo which was great when you needed somewhere safe to put the baby for a while.

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Cakescakescakes · 26/04/2017 10:08

Also don't worry too much. Most babies take a tumble off the bed and once they are walking they fall CONSTANTLY for a while. You're doing your best :)

reallyanotherone · 26/04/2017 10:11

I agree with your dh.

If she's mobile enough to be lunging off the bed and rolling off the sofa, she needs to be on the floor if you need to go further than arms length.

She's done it more than 3 times- that should tell you she will continue to do it if you continue to leave her.

Get a playpen or a travel cot you can pop her in, as pp suggest. Or a baby gate for the door to keep the dog away if you need to.

TeaBelle · 26/04/2017 10:11

Definitely get a playpen - we have one that is an umbrella folding one so doesn't take up much room when not in use. Your baby could really hurt herself

Penhacked · 26/04/2017 10:15

Mine was like this, but I think the early lungers are usually the early crawlers, so in no time at all they will be all over the place on the floor anyway. Buy some of those alphabet mats and stick it in the place where you find yourself putting her on beds/sofas. If the dog is really that much of a pain
I would have a travel cot or other constraining device, one upstairs and one downstairs, but be prepared for crying while they are in it!

Northgate · 26/04/2017 10:15

You need somewhere safe to put her.

We have a playpen that we use as a safe place to leave babies on the floor downstairs.

MelinaMercury · 26/04/2017 10:17

We've all had this happen but i think the fact that it's repeatedly happening means that you need to take action before she hurts herself.

You need to find somewhere safe to put her, in a playpen or get your dog out the room and leave her to explore on the floor. It's not fair to keep putting her at risk and stopping her exploring because of the dog.

RollingRolling · 26/04/2017 10:17

Yep, get a playpen

Fragglez · 26/04/2017 10:20

You need a playpen if you want to keep her seperate from the dog. Or a chair with a harness if she wants to be sat up and can't do it without support.

Or a stairgate in the doorway to keep the dog out of the room if your layout would work like that.

If she is on the floor there is nowhere to fall.

I understand what you are saying about using the pouffe, but if she fell it isn't 'safe' anymore. She has outgrown it and you need to move forwards to match her development.

Crunchyside · 26/04/2017 10:21

Yes you might want to be a bit more careful... I had a friend whose 18 month old fell off the bed and hit his head, had to go to A&E, a couple of weeks later he had another head injury as he fell down the stairs - it doesn't look good on the parents if these things keep happening, although accidents can happen to any of us. I agree with the playpen suggestion. Wish I'd got one for my first, I'm definitely buying one for my second baby!

NotAPuffin · 26/04/2017 10:21

Definitely a playpen, or a stairgate to keep the dog in a different room. As your baby becomes more mobile, you're really going to have to deal with the dog, so you may as well start now.

BlueKarou · 26/04/2017 10:24

They do fall a lot - silly top-heavy beasties. I know what you mean about not wanting to put the baby on the floor; I have two dogs, and my son went through a period of grabbing handfuls of fur from the dogs, so really wouldn't have been safe to leave them on the floor together. What I did was to get a jumperoo, or put him in the highchair. Play pen also works if you have the room for one. It's a tough period, this beginning of mobility, but there are things you can do to make it easier to get on with things and keep her safe.

Alternatively I made his room baby-safe, so it effectively became a play room (as he was still sleeping in my room) and he got to crawl around and play while we were up there and the dogs were in peace downstairs.

Don't be too hard on yourself, what's done is done. See what you can do differently in the future and don't dwell on the past. I'm sure you're doing a great job.

SleepFreeZone · 26/04/2017 10:27

Yep you can't be propping a baby up in areas off the ground and expect them to stay there. They do lunge and if they can crawl or roll they will do it!!
Your problem seems to be the dog so you need to find a way to keep baby and dog separate at stress points in the day and then this will stop being a problem.

RoganJosh · 26/04/2017 10:29

Can you leave the baby on the floor but take the dog with you? Or keep the dog shut in, say, the kitchen?

WellThisIsShit · 26/04/2017 10:31

You do need to find a couple of other places to put her that are safe. It's a bit of a shock when they change so suddenly, and what you've been doing before doesn't work anymore... they keep us on our toes by their sudden spurts of development!

You aren't a bad mum at all, I think every baby has fallen of a bed of sofa at some point. You get caught on the hop, and that's nothing to be ashamed of, it's called motherhood!

But now you know, you can't carry on doing the same things and expecting a different result, or the bumped heads and lunging into space will continue.

She's going to be in this stage for a while now it is time to use the floor more, play mats, a jumperoo, a baby seat, high chair or other safe places.

If the floor is unsafe due to the dog then you need to change things so either the dog or the baby is portioned off at key times, like at feeding time.

I know some people have very strong opinions on play pens but used right they're great!

I had a baby Dan one that took up most of the lounge and was big enough for me to sit in too to do some playing and settle DS down in. I made it snuggly with a sheepskin rug and would use it just for 20-30 mins at a time so he didn't get bored or lonely. As he got a little older I set out different toys in it or strapped onto it, so it was a stimulating place to be and he liked to see what was new each day.

I'm confess I also positioned it so he could see the tv when he was a toddler and getting far too adventurous to be stuck in it - reserved for absolutely essential moments when I needed my hands free and it just wasn't safe for a marauding toddler with no sense of danger!

I'm telling you this so you can see that being a good mum isn't about being perfect, or having lofty ideals and standards to measure yourself against. Life isn't perfect and you do what's best at the time, and it's very important Not Judge Yourself Too Harshly!

It was a monster thing though and you could go for a smaller one that's off the floor (like a travel for) if you don't want to split your room into two. Oh which reminds me, they also do great barriers that are like fences with baby gates in them so you can literally divide a room into two if that works better from a dog/ baby space sharing?

mimiholls · 26/04/2017 12:57

The highchair is a safe place as is the floor. Remove the dog and pen it in another area using child/pet gates.

Pastaagain78 · 26/04/2017 13:25

Don't be too hard on yourself but you need a plan. I had a playpen/travel cot in the kitchen, exersaucer upstairs. If you can't use the floor you need something. I think you will also feel less anxious and rushed if you know she is safe where you have put her down.

2014newme · 26/04/2017 13:29

Travel cot or play pen
Bouncy chair
Highchair with 5 point harness

Constant accidents are considered concerning (sorry, but as a parent you are expected to keep your child safe)

If you child ends up in hospital and has multiple injuries /bruising it would cause concern.

2014newme · 26/04/2017 13:30

Dog in crate at mealtimes
Or get rid of dog

duxb · 26/04/2017 13:57

If I have to leave my DD (five months) I leave her in her sleepyhead, jumparoo or on the floor. I make our dog follow me (or leave her asleep in her own bed).

The only safe place for a baby is the floor or somewhere secure. Unfortunately things they can't do one day, they can do the next. The same with how quickly they can move.

Control the things you can i.e: move the dog out of the way and put your DD on the floor if nothing else

WellThisIsShit · 26/04/2017 14:28

"A family member was also criticising why I had the baby on the bed with me and how she managed to fall off even after I explained she lunged and toppled off while my hands were full and before I could even react to stop her"

Don't worry about what people say.
Unless someone is close to the baby stage themselves in some way, or has an unusually clear recall, it can be hard to understand how a baby goes from immobile to mobile in the blink of an eye. Also the way they can suddenly lurch in such an unpredictable way. Babies just don't have the muscle control or the reflexes that make those kind of dives so unnatural for older kids and adults.

Now you've seen the crazy nosedive to the floor happen, you have to be prepared for that to happen again and plan accordingly. You can't carry on using the pouffe and sofa combo, as clearly it's not safe anymore and you cannot rely on you moving quick enough or even seeing it happen if you are more than an arms length away, and doing another task.

How's your dp in all this? Is he being supportive generally? And are you getting support and treatment for the PND and anxiety. It's such an awful thing to have and makes everything so much harder.

C0RAL · 26/04/2017 14:34

Put the baby on the floor, it's their natural habitat.

Get a play pen for the dog.

Gillian1980 · 26/04/2017 19:35

We had a jumperoo in the living room, a similar thing in our room and a high chair in the kitchen. If I had to do something which meant I wouldn't be able to grab her immediately (doing my hair, making a drink or food etc) then I'd pop her in those and she wasn't able to move.

Most babies have a fall at some point but I'd get something secure until she's more stable.

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