Bed Guards

I think bed guards have been around for some time. I know when my Dad was very poorly not long before he died, the NHS provided a guard for his bed so that he wouldn’t fall out in the night, so I expect there are versions around for any bed.

Yes, but to use for normal children who aren't ill?

Seems a bit much for the 5-year-old, but if the 3-year-old is new to a proper bed I think it's useful.

There are a few situations where I think a bed guard can be useful: young children who are new to a proper bed, top bunks (for safety), and people who are at risk for falling out of bed (e.g. hospital patients post-op, people who are confused, etc.). Our Mum used to put a chair next to the bed.

Maybe to stop youngsters getting up and wandering about ?
Though that said, a small child can find a way out of its cot.

They've been around for years. We had one for DD when she was little and would def have taken on hols for strange beds that might be high up off the ground. Think the 5 yr old probably doesn't need it tho.

Never used them myself when they were first in beds I d put a chair at the side
I had bed guards for my little Nan all 6 stone of her when she had dementia She somehow used to pull them out, throw them across the room, then fall out, ?

It's not always wise to use bed guards for people with dementia as they may cause themselves a more serious injury climbing over them.
I never used them for my children

I didn't use them for my children but I did put a quilt on the floor beside their beds for a few weeks to break their fall if they did happen to fall out of bed. I don't remember them falling out of bed but perhaps they just got up and put themselves back in bed. Who knows?

My mum used to tuck us in so tightly we couldn't move.

Miss A

It's not always wise to use bed guards for people with dementia as they may cause themselves a more serious injury climbing over them.
sodapop nor for children who do the same, one tipped up and trapped DGS when he tried to climb over it.

I put a quilt on the floor, as well Tangerine, so that they would have a soft landing!

I had a bed guard when my children were small.

DS went into a single bed a few months short of 2, when his DS was born. I do not think I used it for much more than a year.

Never used it with DD. At 15 months she could, and would, climb out/up/over and through anything , so it was safer to leave the bedside off.

Two grandchildren had them, the third had a quilt by the bed. Our children slept in beds before they were two as they were both climbers. We put cushions on the floor by the bed for a few nights but soon stopped. There seems to be more anxiety about children now.

So far no tales of any children who have actually fallen out of bed and damaged themselves in any way. This is what I meant by a solution for a problem that never existed.
I think the equivalent for our generation was cat nets. We were all paranoid that a cat might suffocate our babies, but I now read that there are no recorded incidents of this ever actually happening!

Never used bed guards but had low beds for children when small. Can’t remember any falling out of bed.

I think there have been cases of cats suffocating babies, though very rare. They like sleeping in warm places. In Sweden, where babies are often left to sleep outside in pram or buggy, I found the family cat sleeping on top of GC (more than once). Not on face though and GC wasn’t very young. Parents not that bothered though did use net sometimes- for insects!

Grandson 4yrs has a quite high bed and he is one of those kids that seems to toss and turn all over his bed.
When with us he has an airbed on the floor or he would be falling out all the time.