Why on earth did I invent the Safe T Sleep Sleepwrap - part 2?

Continued on from last weeks post....

After my experiences as a nurse I knew there was a definite danger of my son falling out of his cot.  Nobody around me at the time seemed to have any practical answers.  Although many knew or had experienced babies climbing and falling out of cots and off beds, it is, even today a largely unspoken territory – a ‘hidden’ statistic. It is my experience that this is largely due to the shock and guilt that parents and caregivers often experience when this type of fall has occurred.

In the workshops and seminars I facilitated over a period of twenty years, mothers’ stories highlight  the intense guilt felt by mums whose babies had fallen from a cot or bed.

Putting him into a single bed at eight-nine months of age did not seem a good solution to me, as he could roll out. There were many ‘bed guard’ type products available, which in my humble opinion would just have given my son further to fall if I wasn’t there the second he woke up from a sleep.  

I considered and tried floor sleeping without success. My ‘action man’ baby thought it was permanent play time and once got stuck behind the door and cold air draws up more severely through floors.  Hygiene is not always the greatest at floor level, so a mattress on the floor was not a suitable option for me.  Animals, especially cats are known to sometimes sit on and smother a sleeping baby. 

I needed to consider the idea of a safety device and I loathed the idea of a restraint (just as many people initially loathed the ideal of car seat restraints).

At the same time several of my friends and relatives were also struggling with similar issues.  So we all started to try and find solutions.  I kept my design extremely simple, which has become its uniqueness. It caters for both young infants and older toddlers. Specifically by keeping a young baby in the high SIDS (cot death) risk period positioned comfortably and safer whilst an older infant may be taught to turn right around inside the wrap, allowing desired sleep positions.

I remember it took weeks trying to fold different fabrics, beach towels and sheets to find the kindest, most comfortable and flexible yet safer ‘wrap’.  I finally thought of the two separate pieces – one around the entire mattress, and one around the child.  I had a ‘eureka’ moment in the middle of the night and leapt out of bed to make prototype number seven.  The previous models were either too restrictive or absolutely useless and they became rags.  I was excited and yet at the same time stunned with utter disbelief at the simplicity, practicality and flexibility of it! And Cameron loved it! His body relaxed and he went back to sleeping like a baby and I experienced enormous peace of mind! It worked!

I can honestly say that at that time, the then un-named Safe T Sleep Sleepwrap was, the most helpful parenting ‘aid’ to me, next to breastfeeding, and learning positive parenting techniques.  It was also an obvious source of comfort and security to my baby as he started to sleep more restfully and longer.   It literally changed our lives overnight, and we were all much better off for the extra peace of mind and restful sleep it brought. 


Love Miriam


The Safe T Sleep Family

Why on earth did I invent the Safe T Sleep Sleepwrap?

As a young, seventeen year old nurse, single, (with no children), I can remember thinking how incredibly unbelievable and unacceptable it was that parents could allow their children to climb or fall out of cots and beds!  And of course, idealistically thinking that such things wouldn’t happen to my children in the future!  There was even an element of disbelief that such accidents could be due to cot and bed falls.

The very first time I worked on the children’s ward at the age of eighteen to nineteen years old I nursed a ten and half month old boy. I was saddened to read on his report card that he had fallen from his cot and suffered severe, permanent brain damage .

Years later, when our first child was born, I, like thousands of parents of all cultures and ages, had decided that I was going to be the most wonderful mother in the world!

At seven and a half months our baby had started pulling himself up on furniture and was walking at ten months.  As far as he was concerned, finding his feet, standing, trying to climb and walking, all replaced sleep.  I used to spend up to three-quarters of an hour lovingly trying to settle him.  I have since learnt that during the learning to stand - pulling-up stage, many babies go through a stage of six to eight weeks when, once standing up, the brain does not appear to tell them how to sit or lie down again.   During this period many, previously great little sleepers, begin to develop overtiredness, poor sleep habits, increased risk of injuries and start to drive their parents, babysitters and caregivers mad. Often the child also becomes overtired and sleep deprived with all the associated behavioural problems.

My eldest son would be extremely tired and showing obvious signs of needing sleep, but he had this primeval instinct to immediately get up on two legs as soon as the lullabies and back massaging stopped.  I would then spend up to another half an hour cuddling and distracting him, give him a drink, etc.  Then after a little while, with now an obviously overtired child, I would try again and the whole cycle would start all over again!

As if behaving like a jack-in-the-box wasn’t enough, our naturally adventurous seven and a half month old boy decided that it was also time to develop and train for his future sports career – mountain climbing and abseiling!  I had to do something as my nursing background had shown me the real dangers of cot falls.  See what I did next week....


Love from Miriam of the Safe T Sleep Family.