What to Do When Your Toddler Climbs Out of the Crib?

It's time to take safety measures if your kid has been escaping the crib. Curious and eager to learn about their world, toddlers need constant supervision until they reach an age where they may safely venture off on their own.

If you have a child who is about to turn one, you may find that your home has become a makeshift jungle gym. Your child will soon be climbing the stairs, the coffee table, the couch, and, much to your chagrin, the crib.

A parent's worst nightmare is discovering their child has mastered the art of jailbreak from the safety of their crib, and it's natural to assume that this means it's finally time for them to graduate to a twin or full size bed. This was once the recommended practise.

However, hold on a second. The move to a real bed should be delayed as long as possible, and other strategies should be tried first.

There are several things you can do to keep your young child secure during the night as they sleep in their own room.

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Does Your Baby / Toddler Need To Stay In The Crib?

But first, a word of caution: if your infant or young child has already learned to climb out of the crib, don't just leave it like that. That's not a phase you want to wait out. Risks arise when a newborn or toddler routinely escapes from a crib. Obviously not all the time, but it does happen sometimes.

The risk of harm from a baby's fall from the crib is real. A youngster is especially vulnerable if he or she is alone in the house during the night and has the door unlocked.

Why It's Happening

Do you guys remember how often we used the horrible word "milestone"? We plan to use it publicly once more. When your toddler finally masters the art of jumping out of the crib, you may expect a slew of new and exciting changes in his or her body and mind. Here are the new provisions:

Physical.

A lack of coordination could have prevented your child from successfully climbing out. It requires some balancing as they lift over one leg at a time, with the lifted leg being the one that is positioned over the railing. Once they've reached the bottom, they'll need to find out a way to safely descend without falling over. Despite the fact that it's first irritating, the end result is remarkable.

Developmental.

We're going to guess that your tot would like to be in charge of getting dressed, packing a lunch, and deciding when it's time to exit the park. You may see your child developing an independent streak between the ages of 18 and 24 months.

Ultimately, this will be beneficial. They are in the process of discovering themselves, their goals, and the means to achieve them. They aren't sane, logical, or concerned with survival, so the short-term effects are disastrous.

When you put your toddler to bed at night, the two of these together are probably what motivates them to climb out of bed and find what they think they've been missing.

The fact the you prefer they not emerge from their bedroom only encourages them to do so.

Could It Be Time for a Separate Bed?

How do you know when it's time for making the change? There is no hard and fast rule, but generally speaking, it's recommended that you wait until your child is at least 2, and ideally closer to 3, before upgrading them to a big kid bed.

Early attempts to climb out of crib are common among children, and many children make this attempt. While most children are ready for a toddler bed by the time they reach this age, some as young as 15 or months from the date give it a try. You're saying, "I'm just going to offer you a tonne of additional flexibility that you don't understand how to deal with if you upgrade to a bed now. That just leads to worse issues down the road.

At the age of three, many children are ready to transition to a "big kid bed" and enjoy the increased independence that comes with it.

They are learning to grasp the idea of time, which will be very helpful if you child is just an early riser; they can understand the connection between actions and their consequences; they can solve problems; and they can demonstrate the ability to think critically.

Still, there's no hard and fast rule on when it's time to upgrade your child's sleeping arrangements from the a crib to a regular bed. So, hold off on buying a bed until your kid specifically requests one.

It's not necessary to remark, "Well, we're going to want you to get a bed today," if the child is content where they are; removing the spot where they have slept for so long might be upsetting for some children.

As far as your kid is content, there's no need to spring for a bed all of a sudden.

It's best not to make the shift to a real bed all at once, but rather to ease into it gradually. Problems arise, though, if your youngster is already attempting to escape their crib.

Ways To Keep A Toddler In A Crib

Parents' first priority should be their child's safety, and there are methods for ensuring that he or she stays in the crib. You should give some of these methods a try before making the move to a regular bed.

A Calm Response Is Required.

Don't make a big deal out of it if they escape the crib  Your child may continue to repeat their new trick even if you have a negative reaction to it because strong reactions are now more likely to foster recurrence.

Clarify Roles and Expectations

If you find your toddler there in act of attempting to climb from the crib, a firm "no" might be enough to halt them in their tracks.

Take Baby's Crib Items Away

Try to cut out any potential boosters for your youngster. It's not uncommon for toddlers to use whatever they can get their hands on as a "step" to climb out of their cribs, including stuffed animals, magazines, toys, blankets, crib covers, and pillows.

Put Down The Mattress

The AP suggests putting the crib mattress on its lowest setting before your kid can sit up straight and before he or she can stand up on their own.

If you lower your baby's crib mattress before he or she reaches certain developmental milestones, you can help assure their safety and discourage climbing, at least temporarily.

You should also remove any furniture from around the crib that your child could use as a footstool to escape.

Shift the Baby's Crib Around

If your child's crib has one higher side, you should turn it so that the lower side is now against the wall.

Test Out A Wake-Up Clock

The alarm on a sleep-training clock for children might serve as a visual wake-up call. The clock's colour can be programmed to change at a certain time, giving your child a cue that it's time to get up and about. You might also use a digital clock and show your child the number that corresponds to wake time.

Slumber Sacks

You can save space on your bed by using a sleepsack, which are wearable blankets. As an added bonus, they prevent your toddler from ever being able to hang their legs out over edge of the crib, making the bed even safer for your infant.

Putting the sleep sack on backwards will stop curious little palms and escape artists if your toddler have discovered zippers and is trying to get out of their sleep sack.

Put Down The Mattress

It's likely that when you initially brought your baby back from the hospital, you positioned the crib mattress on its highest setting so that you could reach in and pick up your infant with ease.

If you've been too busy watching your child expand to remember to lower the mattress, you might give yourselves some time by doing so now. As a result, your toddler may be unable to climb over the railing.

You can also take away the child's comfort items, such as stuffed animals, blankets, and beds.

Turning the crib over so the shorter, front side is flush with the a wall is another secure way to utilise it against your child. If your cot has flat sides all the way around, this won't work, although many have a taller back than front.

Subvert Their Pajamas

Though you may have thought you'd outgrown sleep sacks long ago, you'll need to splurge on the largest size available for your toddler so you can once again keep your little thief from getting out.

A sleep sack designed for toddlers is a secure way to prevent your child from moving about too much in their sleep. You may recall using one with your infant to keep them from accidentally waking up.

Wrapping your child's legs in a sack makes it more difficult for them to use their legs as a lever to climb and over crib railing. Look for a sleeping bag with only a zipper hide if your child is an expert zipper user.

It's not always easy to find a 2T sleeping sack in a big box store, so you might have to go online to find one that's the right size for your child. However, they really exist, and you should seek them out.

Use A Visual Cue

Your chances of success with this one are roughly even if:

• have a child who is getting to the age when they can safely slide out of their crib and you don't want them to do it

You can acquire one of those "sleep to rouse" toddler clocks that warn your youngster when it's OK to get up if your child's acrobatics aren't harmful but nonetheless unpleasant. This style of clock is commonly used for teaching kids how to enter sleep on their own.

To the contrary, it may signal when it is safe for a somewhat older child who has learned to climb out of bed on their own to do so.

Catch Them In The Act

Since we've never met a toddler whose listened to their parents' warnings, we can't take this as a serious tactic.

However, this might be effective if your kid is a "magical unicorn" and always does what they're told.

The opportunity to say "no" to your child is passed once they have broken free from the restrictions of their bed.

But if you catch them in the act, you can give them one calm though firm no and put them back in the crib.

Your youngster may repeat the behaviour if you react too harshly. Saying something as straightforward as "No, you really have to stay on your crib" is more suitable.

It should tell you that even if you have the kind of toddler this might operate on, you will have to repeat the procedure a lot before they understand the lesson. This form of discipline is not intended to be temporary. If your kid is more laid-back, though, you might be better off staying the course for a few of weeks until they get the hang of things.

Get A Sleep Sack

If your baby is always trying to climb out of their crib, this may be a suitable solution for you. Although this does happen occasionally, most kids don't try to escape their cribs until well beyond their first birthday. However, it is not unheard of for 8- or 9-month-olds to launch themselves out of their cribs.

That's especially true whenever a baby begins to reach important developmental milestones associated with movement. Some kids just are born to scale walls.

If that's the case, you could want to put the infant in a sleep sack. An infant's legs and feet are enclosed in a sleep sack, providing freedom of movement without allowing the infant to crawl out. A minor limitation such as that can be enough to prevent your infant from climbing in the middle of the night.

Don't Get A Crib Tent.

It seems counterintuitive to begin a list with a "don't," but this warning is important enough to reiterate. Once upon a time, "crib tents" were sold as a means of restraining restless infants and toddlers in their sleeping quarters. The tents, which are made of mesh and zip right on top of the crib, prevent toddlers from escaping through the opening in the top of the bed.

The issue was that these tents for infants' cribs weren't secure in any way. They posed the greatest danger of entanglement and strangulation to young children. In 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Commission began looking into the reliability of crib tents.

In the spring of 2012, they issued a big recall in conjunction with five major merchants. The bottom line is that crib tents are not at all safe and won't prevent your youngster from escaping. As with the old adage that you should switch to a toddler bed as soon as a child learns to climb, the rules for using crib tents have evolved.

Crib tents have been deemed dangerous due to the risk of suffocation and trapping by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

Is the issue of toddlers climbing out of their cribs a standalone one, or does it reflect a wider social issue?

Before we wind up, one last item to consider: are your toddler's crib adventures an isolated incidence or symptom of a larger problem? If your child was always a good sleeper, but recently started climbing out of the crib, your first concern should be stopping the climbing.

On the other hand, if your child has never had good sleep and this incident is simply one of many bad patterns, you might want to reevaluate your approach. Yes, you should prevent your child from climbing out of the crib, but you should also work on your toddler's sleep patterns as a whole.

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Preventing Dangerous Outcomes 

The best course of action is to presume your child may and will eventually get out of the crib again, and then prepare for that eventuality.

If you lower the bed or wear a sleep sack and it helps you sleep for six weeks, it won't work forever, and you might not be able to predict when the next jailbreak will occur. Childproof the space in case you haven't already. As opposed to infants, toddlers can get into much more trouble if left unattended in a room, hence it is not necessary to "babyproof" it.

Thus, to achieve this:

• Attach everything to the wall!
• Closed and locked window coverings.
• In other words, plug up the outlets.
• Shorten any long drapes or blind cables to eliminate potential choking or strangulation concerns.
• Get rid of or secure away anything your kid could use to hurt themselves or poison themselves.
• A safe zone around the baby's crib is also a good idea.

Pillows and blankets on the floor are not required and may or may not be helpful.

More crucial is ensuring that there is nothing they might potentially knock his head upon if they to fall over the railing of the crib.

Why You Shouldn't Rush To Buy A Toddler Bed 

When their child first outgrows the crib, many parents make the mistake of immediately replacing it with a toddler bed.

When you let your child roam freely in their bedroom at night, you invite all sorts of trouble.  For reasons that should be self-evident, this frequently ranks among the first real struggles parents confront with their toddler concerning sleep. Is your child's occasional crib escape an acceptable risk?

Wait till you kiss your child goodnight as you put him or her in bed, walk out of the room, then return 5 seconds later to find him or her grinning at you.

Continuously, till it's late and you're both sobbing Behavioural boundaries at night are considerably easier to negotiate when a child is at about three years old, as breaking the habit is difficult and requires a lot of patience.

Meanwhile, it's not healthy to have an unreasonable young child wreaking havoc in the wee hours of the night while everybody else sleeps. Hold off on making the change unless absolutely necessary.

Conclusion

If your child has been climbing out of their crib, you need to implement some preventative measures immediately. It's best to put off getting a genuine bed for as long as you can. There are a number of measures you may take to ensure the safety of your small kid while they sleep. When a baby or toddler frequently climbs out of his or her crib, it poses dangers. Your youngster may not have been able to successfully climb out of bed due to a lack of coordination.

Between the ages of 18 and 24 months, your kid may begin to show signs of independence. Many youngsters are mature enough to move up to a "big kid bed" by the time they are three. There is no set age at which a kid must be transitioned from a crib to a standard bed. Put off buying a bed until your child requests one. There are strategies you can employ to keep your child confined to the crib for the time being.

If your toddler has found zippers, you can prevent escape artists and curious tiny palms by putting the sleep sack on backwards. You might also remove the child's bed, blankets, and stuffed animals if that doesn't work. Another foolproof method involves flipping the crib over so that its front is flush with a wall. This could be the answer if your youngster is constantly trying to escape their cot. Unlike other forms of punishment, this one is meant to stick around for good.

However, if your child is on the laid-back side, it may be best to wait until they master the technique. The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a warning against the use of crib tents due to the increased risk of asphyxia and entrapment (AAP). You should take measures to prevent your toddler from escaping the crib, but you should also work on improving his or her overall sleeping habits. While a lower bed or sleep sack may aid with sleep for up to six weeks, neither solution is permanent. In case you haven't done so before, please babyproof the room. Toddlers, as opposed to newborns, present a far greater danger if left alone in a room.

Content Summary

• If your child has been climbing out of their crib, you need to implement some preventative measures immediately.
• When a baby or toddler frequently climbs out of his or her crib, it poses dangers.
• A baby who rolls out of their cot runs the danger of serious injury.
• Your kid might not have been able to escape due to poor coordination.
• While there is no set age at which a child must be to transition to a big kid bed, most experts advocate waiting until your child is at least 2 years old and preferably closer to 3 before making the transition.
• Many three-year-olds are prepared for and excited by the prospect of moving to a "big kid bed" and the subsequent rise in autonomy that comes with it.
• Though there is no set age at which a kid must be moved from a crib to a standard bed, many parents make the transition around this time.
• A child's sleep-training clock with an alarm could be used as a visual alarm.
• If your kid is a pro at using zippers, you should look for a sleeping bag with just a zipper hidden.
• Finding a sleeping bag in the correct size for your child can be difficult if you shop at a big box retailer.
• This could be a good option if your infant is always attempting to escape their cot.
• Do not buy a playard for the baby.
• Like the old cliché that says you should move your child to a toddler bed once they learn to climb, the guidelines for utilising crib tents have changed throughout time.
• Do children who escape their cribs represent a lone problem or a larger social problem?
• One last thing to think about before we wrap up: is your toddler's escape from the crib an isolated incident or sign of a wider problem?
• In case you haven't done so before, please babyproof the room.
• It's also smart to create a no-touch zone surrounding the baby's crib.