Baby Climbed Out Of Crib, Now What To Do To Stop It?
In this article we’ve established that baby climbed out of crib and now we need to make sure she stays safe.
From making her first step to moving to her own crib, every millstone that your child makes is worth celebrating. But every millstone that your toddler makes comes with its own challenges. For instance, when your child starts to walk, you need to monitor all her moves closely to ensure that she does not end up hurting herself. Moving your child to her own crib also comes with its own challenges.
For instance, your baby can climb out of the crib and fall, injuring herself. If you plan to move your baby to her own crib, then one of your greatest worries is your child climbing out of her crib and falling, injuring herself. This post will give you tips on how to protect your baby from climbing out of her crib.
Is it dangerous for your child to climb out of her crib?
Yes, it is dangerous for your baby to climb out of her crib. If you realize that your toddler can climb out of her crib, that should worry you because she can easily injure herself by falling from her crib.
When toddlers develop the motor skills to get themselves out of their cribs, the risk banging their heads or slipping on the floor. That is why you need to immediately take appropriate action when you find out that your baby can climb out of her crib.
However, it is important to note that taking action does not mean that you should move your kid to a big kid’s bed. Just because your baby can climb out of her crib does not mean that she is ready to move to a bigger kid’s bed. Many babies exercise their motor skills by climbing out of their cribs. If you switch your toddler to a bigger kid’s bed when she is not yet ready, you will create much bigger problems, some of which can be fatal.
How to protect your baby from climbing out of her crib
The safety of your child is the top priory of every parent. Below are tips on how to protect your child from climbing out of the crib.
- Don’t overreact
- Lower the mattress
- Remove items that encourage her to climb.
- Remove all items that make it easy to climb out.
- Build a predictable sleeping routine
- Put the lower end of the crib against the wall.
- Adjust your baby’s nap and bedtime
- Only use the crib for sleep.
- Take your child to the crib when she is asleep.
- Ensure that your baby’s room is clean
- Install a baby monitor
Don’t overreact
It normal to get scared when you see your child climbing out of her crib. However, if you overreact and make it a big deal, your kid will probably do it again because she thinks you are applauding her. When you see her climbing out of her crib, you need to relax and tell her gently not to climb.
Don’t show her signs of panicking because she will take advantage of that and repeat the same action because she thinks you are impressed with her efforts. However, if you ignore her and request her politely without showing any signs of anger or panic not to climb out of her crib, she will be tricked to think that she did not do some exciting and thus will not repeat it.
Lower the mattress
Lowering the mattress by removing excess pillows, bumpers, and beddings that could be raising your baby by up to two inches, thus making it easy for her to climb out of her crib, is a great move. Your kid’s safety is a top priority, and locking her from making easy breaks by climbing out easily will guarantee her security. You can rest comfortably knowing that your child will not slip or knock her head while climbing out her crib.
Remove items that encourage her to climb.
If your child loves climbing out of her crib, then it could be because there is something that is she wants to get. If you have placed something encouraging her to climb and get out, you need to remove it from her crib.
This way, she will be less interested in climbing because she has nothing that motivates her. Some of the things that inspire children to climb out of their cribs include dolls, food, toys, much more. Ensures that remove anything that will attract your baby.
Remove all items that make it easy to climb out.
Some items make it easy for babies to climb out of their crib. If you notice that your child easily climbs out of the crib, the chances are that she has some helping hand. This is true, especially if you have already lowered the mattress by two inches, and she is still climbing out.
Some of the things that may help her climb out of her crib easily include toys, blankets, and books. Your toddler can use all these items to elevate herself and climb out of the crib.
Build a predictable sleeping routine
Building a predictable sleeping routine may help to reduce the chances of your toddler climbing out of her crib. Every child is used to a certain sleeping routine. For instance, if your child is used to having a nap at 2 PM and sleeping at night at 8 PM, you need to maintain that sleeping pattern.
If you abruptly change the schedule to 10 AM naptime and 9 PM bedtime, she will stay awake on the bed for long, and that may trigger her to climb and get out of the bed. Once you have introduced your child to a specific bedtime routine, ensure that you stick by it. This way, she will have little time to think about climbing out of the bed because she will be tired and want to sleep. Also, avoid changing her crib position to different places because that will make her uncomfortable.
Put the lower end of the crib against the wall.
Some cribs have sides that are lower in height than others. If that is the case with your toddler’s crib, you need to put the lower sides against the wall. This will prevent your child from having an easier escape route.
Adjust your baby’s nap and bedtime
As toddlers move from one stage of development to another, their internal clock also changes. For instance, if your baby used to nap twice a day, you will notice that she now wants to take one nap a day.
As your baby moves to the next development stage, you also need to change her nap time. If you notice that she is not comfortable taking a nap twice a day, readjust it to one nap. This way, your child will have more time to play and get exhausted, making it easy for her to fall asleep during her nap time. Adjust the sleeping schedule to reflect her development millstones.
If you put your child to sleep when she is not ready, she may start doing crazy things like climbing out of bed to protest the move. However, if you put her to bed when she is exhausted and ready to take a nap, she will fall asleep almost immediately, meaning that she will be less likely to climb out of bed.
Only use the crib for sleep.
Some parents use their toddler’s crib as a playing ground or as a means of punishment. If you do so, then your child is more likely to climb out and, on the process, injure herself. To avoid this, you are advised to use the crib only for sleeping.
Children easily associate their feelings with places. Therefore, if you put her on the crib to play or keep her there until she calms down, she will not view the crib as a place to take a nap but as a place to play or as a punishment zone. This can trigger her to climb out of the crib. However, if you make the crib a place to sleep, she is less likely to climb out because she knows it is a resting place. So, ensure that you use the crib only for sleep, use a playing ground, or as a means of punishment.
Take your child to the crib when she is asleep.
Sometimes children climb out of their crib to protest that they are not ready to sleep. The best solution to this is taking her to bed silently when she is asleep. This way, your little one is less likely to climb out of the bed unless she wakes up in the middle of the night. If she is tired, she will sleep the entire night.
Ensure that your baby’s room is clean
Keeping our baby’s room clean all the time helps to enhance her health and helps to protect her from doing a crazy thing like climbing out of her crib. Babies are inquisitive and will try to get something that impresses them, even if it means climbing out of the crib. Babies have an instinct to explore and will be drawn to anything that looks attractive. If her room has a lot of dirty stuff, including food remains, empty boxes, and much more, she may be tempted to explore. Always ensure that your toddler’s room is clean and free from anything that may make her want to climb over the crib.
Install a baby monitor
Installing a baby monitor on her crib will help you monitor all her moves on your smartphone. This is important as it will enable you to come to the rescue before she climbs out of her crib and injures herself. When you invest in a good monitor, you don’t have to be present on your baby crib all the time to watch over her. You can do other chores in the house but still monitor all her movements closely.
However, when using a monitor, you need to stay close to your child crib to take fast action just in case she decides to climb out of her crib.
What if the baby climbs out of the crib at night?
It is relatively easy to monitor your baby’s movements on her crib during the day. However, that is not the case during the night when everybody is asleep. Some babies cry to get the parents’ attention before climbing out of the crib, while others do it silently without anyone’s knowledge. It is also challenging to detect your baby’s call if you are also asleep.
The best solution to protect the baby from climbing out of the crib at night is by making her crib foolproof. This includes removing all toys, books, and stuffed animals that she may use to climb out of the crib. You also need to extend her cribs height to ensure that she cannot climb out regardless of what she does. Using sleeping sacks can also help to prevent her from climbing out.
Conclusion
Your baby’s well-being and safety should be your top priority as a parent. Therefore, you need to do everything within your powers to ensure that she cannot climb out of the crib and fall and injure herself. The tips given above can help enhance your toddler’s crib safety, thus protecting her from climbing out. However, the crib’s general environment will also determine whether the child will stay on the crib and sleep or climb out. If you want her to remain in the crib, you need to make it sleep-friendly, comfortable and welcoming. You also need to take your little one to her crib when she is ready to sleep.
