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.