Question for co-sleepers: how do you keep them from rolling out of bed?

[Sunrise888]

We have a cot with one side removed (because I can't lift him in asleep as I'm too short) pressed up against our bed. Our 10mo starts out in there and then moves into our bed for feeding at night.

The problem is that there is no real barrier. He once woke up, roamed around the bed silently (without triggering the monitor) and fell on the floor 😪. Now I go to bed when he goes to bed, read in bed or I'm super vigilant and hovering near the bedroom. I have the same problem during naps. It's just a shame that I can't spend the few hours when he's asleep doing something else.

How do other cosleepers keep their babies from rolling off without being in bed with them all the time? I wondered if bed guards would help - I think they might delay him but not stop him completely.

I just didn't really leave him alone but when he was older, a rustly mattress protector I could hear through the monitor helped.

He did fall out once or twice iirc. I put soft stuff down to break his fall.

I didn't put him to nap in there unless i was napping too.

I bought a lates (from memory) ‘speed bump’ which went under the mattres protector and fitted sheet. Made for the job. I can’t remember where I bought it from.

You could do the same thing with a rolled up towel.

I always went to bed with him, I had about a year of going to sleep at 6, as he was waking every 45 mins it was very welcome lol!

Latex!

Foam wedge bed guard! You can get them on amazon or from Purple Daisies. They go under the sheet so nice and soft. Both of mine have them on their own beds now and seem to snuggle into them!

Video monitor so we could see what DD was doing. Also making the duvet/pillows into a bit of a barrier. Co-slept from newborn to 2yrs old and she never once fell out of bed.

Super king mattress on the floor. We are still using it 20 years later- very comfortable.

I've heard a pool noodle, or if you can't find one, a rolled-up towel, under the sheet at the edge of the bed works well for this (I'm not a co-sleeper but a good friend is).

My dd had a cot that became a toddler bed when you removed the sides. She didn't have a side rail because I had read some scary things about children getting stuck in them and injured. I put an extra mattress on the floor as a soft fall area to protect her if she fell out. She did fall out a couple of times but was completely uninjured. She would (and still does) like to come into my room and cosleep with me and when she was young I would make the soft fall area next to my bed. She never fell out when she coslept with me though.

Mattress on the floor

Got rid of our bed frame temporarily and moved the mattress to the floor as soon as ds could roll.

Third the mattress on the floor. Works for us. Plus ds (11 months) now takes himself off to bed when he is tired. Awesome skill!