Co-sleeping: Guardrail recommendations?

[Melody7]

Well, our DS is really becoming mobile (7mths) and I think we're going to need guardrails on our bed soon. He's fine at night (a boobie-magnet - but you never know!), however during the day, if I didn't hear him when he wakes, there is the possibility that he could crawl off the bed and fall on the floor.

Here's the dilemma, our bed is not an ensemble. The mattress is recessed about 5cm into a base frame. We liked the idea of the mesh guardrails that fold over, however that may not work with our bed.

Has anyone got any suggestions re brands/guardrail creations etc? We can't put our mattress on the floor, and fortunately our bed is quite low to the ground, but I still think we need something to keep him safe.

In the meantime, we're teaching him when he gets to the side to "Stop. Turn Around and Slide Down" (sounds like a fire drill! )

[Liz]

You'll probably find at the crawling age, they'll find the part of the bed without the rail to fall off. LOL. My DS did fall off the bed a couple of times.. but it was when he woke up before me and decided to crawl away! It's funny, he knew not to crawl off the edge, but he'd fall off when he sat up, coz he couldn't judge placing his bum on the bed when he was near the edge. LOL.

Perhaps lay out some pillows or some kind of cushioning on the floor to break his fall?

It was a concern of mine too, but it rarely came to fruition.

Re the rails - DS's mattress is set into the base of the bed too, altho not by 5cm I don't think, but we have the rails that go under the mattress, and they still manage to work.

[sunshine_sieben]

Hi, I have a bed like yours and I've got one of those folding mesh rails from Big W. I think it's "Safety First". But I'm not sure. It works well. But that's maybe because our mattress (latex) is quite "squashable" IYKWIM. So it kinda gets "dents" on the sides where the 2 poles of the guardrail are.
Could you maybe go to a shop and ask about their return policy in case it doesn't work?
And yes, pp is right, unless you have guardrails on both sides, it will never bo 100% safe. When DD started crawling I made the transition to the cot. At least for day & early evening sleeps. That's after she crawled off the bed and got a black eye :-(
But the guardrail gave me peace of mind at night, too.
Another thing I did as early as possible (when she could stand) was to teach her to climb down from beds & couches feet first. It only took her 3 or 4 goes and then she got it.

Sasa

[Melody7]

Thanks Girls.

I've found with some of the rail brands that, because they are designed to go an child's bed, they have "stoppers" at the end of the pieces that go under the mattress - designed to grip the other side of the mattress. Have you found any brands that don't have these?

[Snowy Love]

I've got a rail that fits a queen bed - the stoppers come up on the other side - its First Years brand

[Melody7]

Hi Snowy Love,

Good to know they exist. I've got a KS bed - so that may pose a little more of a hassle.... do you think it's really worth it?

[Snowy Love]

It was for me as DS either sleeps between DH & I or on the edge of the bed next to me and he would move about in his sleep, so the guardrail gives me peace of mind he won't fall out in his sleep. When he started crawling we taught him to get off the bed backwards & feet first so I didn't worry too much about him falling off when we woke up.

Having said that, he managed to get between the rail and the top of the bed one night in his sleep about a month ago - gave me a hell of a fright. I wedged pillows between the bed & my bedside table after that.

I guess it depends on how much your little one moves in their sleep and the drop from the bed to the ground - if it not too much maybe having cushions or something on the floor would be a better bet, 'cause all the rails I saw had stoppers and the one we got was the only one to go up to Queen size - it def wouldn't stretch to King

[sunshine_sieben]

Mine doesn't have the stoppers. I have a king size bed, too and it fits fine. It's a safety first (secure lock) from Big W that sits on top of the mattress. The part that goes underneath the mattress has "teeth" to stop it from sliding out from under the mattress. And it gets squeezed onto the mattress tightly so there is no chance of it moving. In my case it also is held in place by the side of the bed frame.
Babyzone Direct has it on their website, too for $50.9 on special at the moment (normal price $59.95) At least you can have a look at a picture of it there.
I hope that helps.
Sasa

[Melody7]

Thanks so much Sasa, I'll definately look into that one.

[~Trish~]

You can buy the Safety 1st ones from Big W too. Also Valco have bed rails without stoppers, there are quite a few brands without stoppers that would be suitable for most beds. I prefer Safety 1st because you don't have to remove the guard when making the bed, you can just fold it down.

[Ginger]

i noticed the safety first one is on special at big w atm.

[relw]

Hi there, I'm posting this ages after your conversation finished but thought you might like to hear my cautionary tale...

I have my mattress on the floor and recently put a guardrail along one side of it (the other side is against a wall). My DS is nearly 9 months and active, so last week he pulled himself up to standing along the guardrail, which went about 20cm above our bed, and flipped (tumbled) over the top of it and onto his head. Fortunately it wasn't a big fall and he was fine but it was pretty scary. I was in the bed at the time and just didn't think that it would happen - thought we only needed to worry about that sort of thing happening when he was in bed alone (we co-sleep). We had the guardrail on the bed when it was on it's base (it's an ensemble) but I got worried about safety when he started pulling himself to stand, so a few days before this happened put the mattress on the floor - am so glad we did!

I guess all I'm trying to say is that the guardrail is helpful but not totally protective against accidents. We took it away and just put pillows on the floor to cushion him if he falls (it's only about 20cm).