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SIDS??

Ok i know that SIDS is Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but i thought it was a genetics thing? My friends baby died from SIDS and this whole time im thinking "thank God SIDS doesnt run in my family!" I came across a story about a ladies baby dying from SIDS when she went to check on her in her crib one night! Can someone please explain to me what exactly SIDS is and ways to avoid it...because now i am super paranoid!
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Avatar universal
Positioners aren't safe and are not approved by the FDA. For more info on risks and ways to prevent SIDS, see my daughters memorial page http://***************.********.com/2013/01/preventing-sids.html
Helpful - 0
287246 tn?1318570063
Well, I personally think the back positioners are okay.  The reason why is because when a baby is first born, they can't roll over.  By the time they can, they don't really need the sleep positioner anymore and the SIDS risk has gone down.
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362249 tn?1441315018
Ouch! well i thought they were ok! Serves me right for being behind on things I guess not having kids will do that! Srry another A$$-ume move on my part!i always thought those things looked safe but if they are removing em then guess not!
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1330108 tn?1333677304
The cushy things to place babies in are now NOT recommended and drs are saying do NOT place your children on them to sleep as they increase risk of SIDS and something else. They are trying to get them pulled from the market
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362249 tn?1441315018
Well they have the cushiony things you buy that place the baby in the perfect bk sleeping positon i think those are good! Also wanted to say from personal experience i have a Cuz her husband was with a woman b4 her and they had a child together and that baby died from SIDS so when my Cuz got PG they put the baby on at home fetal heart rate monitor just to be sure but she did fine the thing never went off and the 2nd time she got PG the baby he didnt even need the monitor and all worked out well! i think SIDS is just another one of those tradgic things that can happen sometimes and you never know nor can you control it!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
i was petrified of sids. My boys are 2 1/2 and I till check on them constantly. i couldn't do the swaddling with them. They absolutely hated it. My oldest sleeps like his father. One leg crossed with his blanket over his head. (I pull it off and by the next time I check on him it's back.) Scares me to death. It's easy for all of us to say relax but to actually do it is another story. We all worry. It's inevitable. As moms...we worry. About everything. All you can do is what the other ladies said...reduce the risk. Try to relax and just check on your baby as much as you want. (that was the only thing that kept me semi sane...checking on them. lol)
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1330108 tn?1333677304
They also make breathable bumpers for the crib so that if baby rolls against it they won't suffocate. Also studies have shown that having air that is circulating in the room (a fan) reduces the risk but honestly the biggest risk factor is smoking during pregnancy that includes the mother or anyone else in the family.
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287246 tn?1318570063
My doc said that side sleeping was fine and to just roll a blanket up and put one in front of her and one behind her back.  But she never cared for this either :(
Helpful - 0
964234 tn?1331949207
I am scared to death of SIDS and worry about it daily =(
My latest freak out was about a month ago (prior to that I was still swaddling) he is so strong now (at 17lbs) that he completley breaks out of the wrap and tries to eat it.  I walk in to check on him and he has got it over his mouth (not nose) but still it scared the heck out of me.  So, from now on he uses a sleep sack.  He was in my room up until 2 months old and now he is in his crib in his own room sleeping through the night.  I keep the baby monitor on, so I can hear what's going on and every time I go to the bathroom (which is 3-4 times per night I have issues even while not preggo) I check on him.  Now I worry because he rolls every which way.  He hasn't done it in his sleep yet, but will roll all over the place as a means of transportation during the day haha and he also scoots on his back or his belly... so I always worry about him getting stuck against the bumper.  So, any little noise I am there weather he is crying or not.  My hubby checks on him too when he gets up.  
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1222635 tn?1366396286
i was scared to death of SIDS as well. as time goes on you become less and less worried. i remember the first moments i had her and she was laying on my chest. i wouldn't take my hand off of her back to make sure that she was still breathing. and the 2 nights in the hospital i put her in the nursery so i could sleep and they could watch her 24/7. i checked her multiple times every night for months. but it fades and you become more confident in your childs health as time goes on. try not to worry! if you do all the necessary precautions you should be perfectly okay!!
Helpful - 0
1320677 tn?1305757368
this is such a good question, especially for us first moms. Ive heard of SIDS but never really went into detail into it. the fact that no one know why it happens and that it could happen to any baby scares the **** out of me. im so nervous now. :(
i know once i have my baby girl i won't sleep at all just to check she's breathing every second.
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1294482 tn?1354489288
My son co sleeps with me still and he is 2. Maybe I am paranoid but I like having him right there where I can see him. My Dr said to do whatever I was most comfortable with and we would sleep better that way. SIDS is very scarey and I think all new moms worry about this. Do what you can to try and prevent it and try not to work yourself up.
Helpful - 0
184674 tn?1360860493
Swaddling helps, as it keeps their arms away from their face and covered up to stay warm all at the same time, whereas unswaddled, if they have a blanket, they can pull the blanket over their face. However, some babies do not like to be swaddled. In that case, you could look into a sleep sack, which is like a blanket bag you put the baby in that zips up under their chin, and it has arm holes so the baby can move its arms around (unlike a swaddle blanket).
As far as I know, SIDS has nothing to do with genetics. All babies have a risk, and generally, if an infant dies from SIDS, the cause of death is usually some form of suffocation due to something over the face or re-breathing too much of their own carbon dioxide.
Another way to avoid SIDS is to not fall asleep with the baby on your chest, as their head is under your chin, and they take more breaths per minute than adults do, therefore re-breathing your carbon dioxide as you exhale. I read a horrible, tragic story of a father who fell asleep with his baby on his chest as he sat on the couch, only to wake up with his child dead in his arms. The cause of death was because the baby inhaled too much of his carbon dioxide.
Helpful - 0
1194973 tn?1385503904
I honestly never checked my baby except for the first night. She co-sleeps with me so I never worried too much about cribs and stuff.
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Avatar universal
Thank you ladies! I gotta write all this stuff down so i can remember! (:
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1222635 tn?1366396286
oh & also some people believe pacifiers helps reduce the risk of SIDS cause it keeps the baby from falling into the deepest stage of sleep where most SIDS occurs.
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1222635 tn?1366396286
i did constantly check. my daughter is almost 7 months and i still check occasionally. you do not have to swaddle although i believe it helps a lot of babies sleep deeper & longer. i swaddle my daughter. and yes sleep the baby in the bassinet or crib, on his/her back with no blankets or stuffed animals and you should be fine!!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
my baby was swaddled tighly- just enough so she couldnt wriggle her arms out. and the first 5 months she spent in her bassinet right next to my bed, TRUST me you wake up to any TINY little noise they make. They grunt squack make SO much noise lol.
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Avatar universal
thank you ladies! So when my baby is born, do i just swaddle him and put him in his bassinet or crib? Did you constantly check on your baby to see if everything was ok?
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1222635 tn?1366396286
by ways to avoid it i mean ways to reduce the risk. i should have worded that better.
also co-sleeping is thought to increase risk. whether it be with you or other children/babies.
Helpful - 0
1194973 tn?1385503904
Genetics may play a part, but it's not the only factor in it. SIDS is more or less where a healthy infant dies for no apparent reason. I don't believe there's any way to really avoid it, but there are measures you can take that might to help prevent it. The main thing is to place the baby on their back while sleeping and not their stomach. Other potential risks are smoking while pregnant or secondhand smoke after giving birth, overheating and poor prenatal care.
Helpful - 0
1222635 tn?1366396286
SIDS is not genetic that we are aware of. it is called sudden infant death syndrome because doctors do not know for sure what causes it. theories & ways to avoid it are :

1) do not sleep the baby with any blankets or stuffed animals until 1 year of age (doctors believe it causes suffocation in some)
2) sleep baby on back at ALL times (doctors think that tummy & side sleeping can create suffocation where baby breathes too much of his/her own carbon dioxide & not enough oxygen)
3) don't let baby get overheated (SIDS commonly occurs when baby gets too hot while sleeping)
4) always sleep baby on a firm surface (doctors think fluffy surface can "trap" carbon dioxide & contribute to breathing too much)
5) don't smoke around baby or anywhere where baby can breathe 2nd hand smoke and don't smoke during pregnancy (smoking during pregnancy or around baby increases the risk of SIDS)

try not to worry.. babies are out of the high risk category by 6 months and SIDS doesn't occur after 1 year.
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