Do you check on your child once they are asleep, and what's the point?

[lukewarmcupoftea]

Just wondering!

My DDs (2.4 and 0.7) are such light sleepers that I wouldn't dare. DD1 is ill at the moment and I had a crisis of conscience last night about whether I should check on her before we went to bed. But then I reasoned that if she needed us, got worse, or was sick, she would cry anyway, so we would go in then (and they both have monitors in their rooms so we would hear them wherever we were in the house). Surely all checking would achieve would be waking up a little girl who needed her sleep?

I can see that it would be lovely to look on your little sleeping angels (if they didn't wake up), but isn't that more for the parents' benefit rather than the child's? Or am I being a bad mum not looking in on them?

Now they are 4 and over I only check on them when I go up to bed but I used to check a couple of times a night.

I do it to make sure they are in bed, asleep, covered up and warm enough, not trapped between the bed and wall and that they are not in any kind of discomfort.

No you're not being a bad mum at all. I check mine 'cos I want to. Can understand why you don't.

I look in on ds, but it is just because he looks so sweet.

When he was younger I rarely looked in on him because the door squeaked and woke him (not just the hinges before anyone asks why we didn't just oil it!). I also figured if there was anything wrong, he would soon let us know. Besides, if something had (God forbid) gone something seriously worng, I wouldn't have been able to do anything anyway. (sorry, grim but true)

Ah yes, can see the point more when they are in a bed etc. At the moment its just cots for both of them, with sleeping bags, so not much chance they'll be sleeping in any unusual positions!

I check on DS when I go up to bed. To make sure he's ok.
If he's wiggled right to the top of his cot I'll pull him down a bit to lessen the chance of him waking up in the early hours.
I check the thermometer too.
Takes 30 seconds and he is super cute too of course.

I was the same as you - I never used to check dd when she was a baby - she was a really light sleeper and would spring into action at the slightest noise.

Nowadays she's a much heavier sleeper so I go in before bed and check on her.

But yes, if it would wake him up, I wouldn't!

I check on mine all the time. Logically I can see there is no point and if god forbid she wasn't breathing I doubt I could do anything. But I can't help myself.

I always check ds1 as he has a tendency to come out of his covers and I want to make sure he's not cold! Plus I need to give him another kiss

Yes, totally talking about the logical reasons. If it was up to me, I'd sit there watching them breathing all night!

Oh and I also go in to put something on his bedside table for the morning (like a car, book etc) so he occupies himself for 10 mins before he starts shouting on us in the morning!

I check mine to make sure they haven't taken ill, or somehow managed to get their heads stuck somewhere, or tried to climb the bookcase, fallen off and knocked themselves unconscious. Okay, I'd hear them if any of those things happened but I have to check or I can't relax.

I always check on my ds before I go to sleep. Don't know why I do it now, other than he looks cute and rosy cheeked and gorgeous of course. I was only saying to my dh last night I need to stop this now! DS will be 2 next week; think its pfb syndrome with me.

Once I checked on DS and he had somehow managed to get his blanket wrapped around his head - I never moved so fast to get it off! Luckily he was fine, a bit hot, I don't know how long he had been like that He was about 14/15 months old.

I don't check on him as much in this house as I did in our old house as I have a downstairs toilet now, but do tend to have a quick look in on him every couple of hours or so since that incident. I think as they get older you can check on them less, also if you know there is nothing anywhere near their cot that could harm them - I have stopped using blankets now for example.

Mine are 9 yrs an 7yrs and I still check on them when I go to bed , usually end up turning their reading lights off , putting the duvet over them properly etc .

Why ? - Habit now and I like seeing them asleep , one of the best parts of the day .

I often check on my two (both in beds: 6 and 4) when I go and have a wee during evening and give them a kiss when I go to bed, rearranging duvets etc to cover them.

Last night, I managed to get ds1 (6) to put his entire pyjamas back on whilst he was asleep and tell me he loved me and ds2 (4) gave me a hug and wouldn't let go for 1 minute - I had to wriggle out of his clutches!

Both were sound asleep.

When they were infants I did the same - less easily as I had to bend over cots and risk falling in!

I check on DD's when I go to bed to make sure they are tucked in properly, in their own bed (to avoid early morning fights) and to reset the alarm clock.
(They have one of those ones where the picture changes at getting up time but always play with it before they go to sleep!)

I check on my pfb 15 month old several times.... and he's in our room! I check before I go to bed a few times, too - I put my hand on his back to make sure he's breathing and cover him up if he needs. I'm a bit of a worrier, though...

smallandkind - that's so cute

deloola - I hope ours become heavier sleepers as they get older as well, would love to be able to give them a sleepy night night kiss and cuddle without having the fear of a 2 hour trauma getting them back to sleep

I don't check on DD (13 months) as opening her door wakes her up. She's in a cot in a sleeping bag so don't think she could get herself into too much bother. Very occasionally if she's unwell I leave her door open so I can check on her in the night, but even then i run the risk of waking her as she seems to sense me looking at her!

what captain underpans aid and also because some illnesses are silent iyswim. DS3 had meningitis when a baby, and was very silent so I always check for temperatures, covered upness, objects round neck (eg ds1 always wears necklaces etc) - guess I am a bit neurotic...

I always check on mine before I go to bed, mainly because I would not be able to relax nd sleep without checking that they were fine. The are 3.4 years and 22 months.

On Wednesday this week when I went up to check DD2 had been sick in her sleep. This is the first time she has ever been sick (apart from as a tiny baby and she wasn't ill before going to bed) it was everywhere, all over her pillow, all over her but she hadn't made a noise whilst doing it and was still asleep. I am very very grateful that she was lying her side whilst sleeping, and that I went and checked on her. If not just for making sure she hadn't choked but the thought of her being in that state until morning is horrible too.

truthisinthewine That same thing happened to dd a couple of weeks ago, was so glad I checked her, made me go cold to think of her lying in that state for 8 hours or more.

I always check a couple of times a night, ds is 6 and dd is 3. I like to make sure they are covered up and comfortable.

Yy truth, that has happened with both DD's at one point or another, being sick and then going back to sleep [vom]