If you are the proud parent of a baby boy or girl, one of the first and most important things you may have bought – or be about to buy – is a baby monitor.
But at some point in the future that baby monitor will cease to be needed, and it will be taken out of the child’s room. The big question is this – when does that moment come? And how do you know when it arrives?
In reality different people have different ideas about when it is appropriate to stop using it. Some parents continue to use it long after they have stopped feeding the baby at night. Others like to keep it for as short a time as possible.
It goes without saying that when your newborn first comes home, you will want to keep an eye on them by using the monitor at every available opportunity. If the baby is asleep in the front room and you are heading into the kitchen to catch up on the washing up, you will need to take the listening unit with you. And when they go to bed you will make sure the appropriate part of the baby monitor stays close to baby there as well.
The situation you use the monitor in will also be relevant. For example if you have baby sleeping in your bedroom with you, the need for a baby monitor may not be so essential. You are far more likely to hear your baby wake up if you are in the same room as them. Even if dad doesn’t hear them, mum certainly will!
Some experts believe that six months is an adequate cut off point, but many parents differ in their opinions. Some carry on using it as long as they feel they should, and that there is a need for it. This varies between parents, but it should also depend on your child. Some parents know their children will go back to sleep nine times out of ten if they start crying, provided they are left. Other children are exactly the opposite.
The idea of withdrawing the monitor and not disturbing your child is to allow them to get used to the fact that they should be sleeping through the night. If they expect you to come in all the time, they will start to play on it and the baby monitor could be more of a hindrance than a help.
In the end each parent will have their own ideas about when to get rid of the baby monitor. Sticking to expert advice may be relevant in many situations, but it won’t work for every parent. Common sense and practical needs and requirements are the most important things to bear in mind.
In any event be sure to keep an eye on the situation when you do eventually take the baby monitor away for the first time. If things go well then you will know you have made the right decision at the right time.