Is sids an everyday occurence?

Question

i have a month old girl and i am petrified of sids. i know all the do's and donts but i am still scared of waking up or finding my gal not breathing. how common is sids. thankyou

Answer 1

SIDS is less common the older the baby gets.  By about 3 months, the danger is significantly reduced.  I always slept propped up on pillows with my baby on my chest for the first 3 months because I read something saying that SIDS can be prevented if the baby can feel your breathing to keep them on track.  I don't know if it is true or not, but my family lost 3 babies to SIDS in about 15 years and I was paranoid that it ran in the family.  One just 2 years before my first child was born.  Nothing anyone said could get me to relax.  I couldn't help it.  I had 4 kids.  All for kids slept on my chest for the first 3 months of their lives just because I wasn't willing to take any chances.  Around 3 months, I started putting them in their bean bag, in the bassinet, and I slept with hand on their belly.  Call me paranoid, but I didn't lose any, and we both slept through the night every time.  There is nothing wrong with a little paranoia when it comes to your kids.

Answer 2

I was afraid of SIDS also, but when my daughter started to roll over thats when I really freaked.  She was always great at lifting her head from a very early age, but it still worries you.  Its normal, especially for a first time mom.  Like everyone else said, 1 in every 2000 babies dies as a result of SIDS.  Just make sure you keep things out of the crib, the sheets are tight, you dress your baby according to the weather.  Never overdress her because that could result in SIDS.  Also if you use a bumper (I have to because my 8 month old likes to hug the rails, and then gets stuck) use a breathable mesh one.

Answer 3

I'm pretty sure it's safe to say from the moment our little ones are born we immediately start worrying. When we brought our first born home I had to check on him every 15 mins just to make sure he was ok and still breathing. When he slept all night for the first time I awoke in the morning in a frenzy thinking he had died...After having my second baby I still have moments when I double check his breathing and feel to make sure he's still warm and he's 4 months old.

They say that by 6 months the chances of sids are extremely rare. Before 6 months it could be 1 in 5 possibly or 1 in 10 sorry I'm not quite sure.

There's not much more you can do other than following all the precautions and just have faith that everything happens for a reason!

A mothers job is never complete and neither is our worrying!

Good Luck!

Answer 4

You're not alone!

But, remember, only one out of every TWO THOUSAND babies die of SIDS.

(Still scary, though!)

Answer 5

Your not alone, as you can tell from the other answers, but I too freaked out a lot about sids.  When my first was born I would lie awake practically ALL night watching her breath.  It gets better with time.  When I had my second I figured it would be easier, but it wasn't.  I found myself doing the exact same thing with him.  He is now 6 months old and about 2 months ago he started rolling over both ways and insisted on sleeping on his stomach.  Every time he rolled to his belly, I would roll him back over.  When I took him for his 4 month appointment I asked his dr and she said once.he can roll over good in both directions he can sleep on his stomach if he wants. I don't worry as much now but I still find myself checking him like 3 times a night.  

The dr also told me that the majority of cases of sids happens between the ages of 2 and 6 months.

It will get easier, just hang in there, your not alone.

Answer 6

your not alone there! I brought an angel care monitor which detects breathing it sounds an alarm if baby stops breathing.  I couldnt live without it

Answer 7

I'm petrified of that too. We have a co sleeper so I can watch her as she snoozes. I believe sids happens enough to take every precaution.  

Answer 8

I had one of the monitors mentioned by the first answerer and no longer use it as we got heaps of false alarms... It was great for the first 3 or 4 weeks then it went of like 3 time in one night. We took her to the hospital in a panic and they said she was fine and it was nothing to worry about. We obviously kept worrying until the next day I watched her breathing while the alarm went off....

If you do get one, don't think of the alarm as saying "quick your child isn't breathing" but more "hey... just come and check on your child"... don't panic and pick her up straight away but check her colouring first. If she is really not breathing long enough to set the alarm off then she will be blue. If her colour is fine then chances are she is ok but still check her obviously.

It is scary but it does get better...

1999 out of every 2000 babies will NOT die of SIDS

Answer 9

I am a CMA

From what I have read in the United States SIDS claims one child out of every 2,000 births..

Best Wishes

Mother of 3