Fright of my life

[Cattia]

I think once you have a baby the thought of anything happening to them is so awful that you would do anything to keep them safe. We have an angelcare sensor pad and I would not sleep without it! Maybe they are exploiting paranoid parents but frankly if it helps us to actually sleep a little more easy and if there is even the slightest chance that it might actually save a single baby's life then isn't it worth it? I agree that there is limited point to having one if you can't do cpr but I went on a baby first aid course before I had my LO to learn how to do baby lifesaving / first aid. I personally would not be without my monitor for anything!

 

[jenny82]

i wouldn't have one. i think it's the same as a doppler.. causes more worry than it's worth! i think as a mum, you will know if something is wrong, you don't need a machine to tell you. x

Mine hasn't caused more worry. Its actually eased my worry. A machine doesn't make me less of a mother either...

 

[anothersquish]

i wouldn't have one. i think it's the same as a doppler.. causes more worry than it's worth! i think as a mum, you will know if something is wrong, you don't need a machine to tell you. x

Just be aware that this comment is particularly hurtful to those of us who have lost a baby to SIDS. Im sure you dont mean it too but I read this and thought "well I didnt know my baby had stopped breathing and died so that makes me a bad mum because I didnt know....."

Admittedly I dont have one now as I co-sleep (I didnt with the baby that died, she was in a moses basket next to the bed) and I know that it would increase my problems IF it went off falsely, but thats because of my previous experience. Ive had a hard time this last week (little girl died at 6 weeks, Theo has just turned 7 weeks) waking every 15 minutes and checking hes breathing then watching him breath for a good ten minutes before falling asleep for 15 minutes....and so on. Honestly, I would be doing the same even with a monitor, probably also having to check it and then test it every single time too so for me it would make things worse...however I completely understand why people have them and if it makes them feel better and more confident then thats whats important.

 

[wispa86]

if i didnt have mine i'd be in and out of his room every 5 minutes and getting no sleep myself and disturbing him in the process.

the beeps go off after 20 seconds of not breathing and we all know the difference between 20 seconds without oxygen and minutes/hours without it!

O/P - we have had a couple of false alarms when Ben was teeny because i didnt have the sensitivity turned up high enough and he sometimes shimmied up the cot and off the pad, so it didnt pick up his movement! It could have been something as simple as that rather than your LO not breathing or just shallow breathing. I must say that if ours goes off i absolutely brick myself and fly at top speed into his room!

 

[sparkle_1979]

i wouldn't have one. i think it's the same as a doppler.. causes more worry than it's worth! i think as a mum, you will know if something is wrong, you don't need a machine to tell you. x

Just be aware that this comment is particularly hurtful to those of us who have lost a baby to SIDS. Im sure you dont mean it too but I read this and thought "well I didnt know my baby had stopped breathing and died so that makes me a bad mum because I didnt know....."

Admittedly I dont have one now as I co-sleep (I didnt with the baby that died, she was in a moses basket next to the bed) and I know that it would increase my problems IF it went off falsely, but thats because of my previous experience. Ive had a hard time this last week (little girl died at 6 weeks, Theo has just turned 7 weeks) waking every 15 minutes and checking hes breathing then watching him breath for a good ten minutes before falling asleep for 15 minutes....and so on. Honestly, I would be doing the same even with a monitor, probably also having to check it and then test it every single time too so for me it would make things worse...however I completely understand why people have them and if it makes them feel better and more confident then thats whats important.

I totally agree that the above comment was very insensitive. How in earth are you supposed to know something is wrong when you are asleep. Babies "can" go to be looking and feeling totally healthy and sadly this may not be the case a few hours later. Please think before typing on a sensitive matter such as cot death as some mums here have had to go through the terrible trauma so im sure your comments are highly offensive to them

 

[lylasmummy]

I also think some ppl are being insensitive on this subject saying you should know...HOW EXACTLY??? I have a Tommee Tippee sensor mat and it has gone off around 8 or 9 times since Lyla was born, I believe she gets in such a deep sleep that she just forgets the "breath" and I believe the alarm sounding wakes her and she breathes again, so if I didnt have the monitor, god only knows what might have happened. Every time its gone off its only been for a second or so then she's moved so I value it very highly and will always leave it in her cot.

 

[sparkle_1979]

I didnt have a monitor until the other day, purely because I thought I'd lay awake worrying it was going to go off, but then I thought I can't worry anymore than I actually do anyways and I've found it to be comforting.

 

[Blah11]

Thing is, the monitors we use in NICU (which is a probe directly attatched to their tummy) sometimes go off falsely when the baby is in such a deep sleep they're "shallow breathing" and it looks like they're not breathing when in fact they are - how on earth is a pad that's all the way under a mattress supposed to detect that?

Personally I think the things are a waste of money and are only there because of the fears that parents have on SIDS and, as a result, will spend money on anything they can - it plays on people's vulnerability and I think that's wrong..

One thing I remember a consultant at work saying was if people have these mats, what would they do if they went off and it was a genuine case of the baby not breathing? Would you all know how to resus a baby? I'd be interested to know if there are any "instructions" on this in with the mat itself..

I 100% agree.

 

[Cattia]

I think CPR is something all parents should be able to do anyway, regardless of whether they have a monitor or not.

 

[sparkle_1979]

I've booked to go on a course have to wait a mth though

 

[Sunflowers]

I think CPR is something all parents should be able to do anyway, regardless of whether they have a monitor or not.

This, absolutely this..

I can't imagine the utter devastation in finding a blue baby and not knowing what to do - mind you having said that even though I do resus babies at work were I to be faced with having to do that on my own baby I don't know whether I'd be use to man nor beast..

 

[Vici]

Thing is, the monitors we use in NICU (which is a probe directly attatched to their tummy) sometimes go off falsely when the baby is in such a deep sleep they're "shallow breathing" and it looks like they're not breathing when in fact they are - how on earth is a pad that's all the way under a mattress supposed to detect that?

Personally I think the things are a waste of money and are only there because of the fears that parents have on SIDS and, as a result, will spend money on anything they can - it plays on people's vulnerability and I think that's wrong..

One thing I remember a consultant at work saying was if people have these mats, what would they do if they went off and it was a genuine case of the baby not breathing? Would you all know how to resus a baby? I'd be interested to know if there are any "instructions" on this in with the mat itself..

I 100% agree.

And me

 

[amandad192]

I was watching something on TV a few days ago about pregnancy and babies; They were talking about something babies do in the womb. Apparently in the womb babies stop trying to take any oxygen for a short while if supply is limited. There's research happening or going to happen into whether this is why some babies just suddenly stop breathing. I didn't quite catch it all properly so can't give very much information.

I have the angelcare monitor and it was given to me by my step-mum. I haven't used the sensor pad yet as she still has it in a box somewhere from when she moved, but said any time I want to just ask her too dig it out. Just wondering..will it fit a moses basket/crib, or just a cot??

 

[Cattia]

I used mine in the moses basket for three months no problems. We are using it in the cot for the first time tonight and I am so on edge in case we get a false alarm! (although clearly that would be better than the real thing).

 

[Beth09]

I wouldn't be without mine, its a real comfort!

Even if you didnt know what to do if your baby stopped breathing, surely its better to know straight away so you can call an ambulance then to find out the next day?

I don't think there is anything wrong with them at all they do no harm!