A mother has launched a campaign to raise awareness of the risk posed by soft toys in toddlers’ beds after her 18-month-old daughter suffocated and died.
Dexy Leigh Walsh, 23, from Dundee, had packed teddies down the side of her daughter Connie’s bed to stop her falling down a gap. She had placed one big teddy on top of the smaller ones when she put her daughter to bed on 5 March 2018.
“She went under the massive teddy and fell asleep with the angels,” Walsh wrote on her Facebook campaign page. “All I think about now is what if I had just left it empty? She would still be here, maybe with just a small bump on her head. I want every parent to see and be aware of this.”
Walsh urged parents to move everything off their toddler’s beds and away from the sides. “I really hope my little princess’ tragic story can save someone else baby’s life,” she wrote. “She had a bed guard at one side and the smallest gap from her wall to her bed and that’s where I had put all her teddies – my biggest regret in life.”
National charity The Lullaby Trust, which works to prevent unexpected infant deaths, has supported Walsh’s warning to parents urging that young children’s sleep spaces should always be free of additional sleep products.
“The Lullaby Trust would like to extend its condolences to the family at this difficult time,” a spokesperson told HuffPost UK. “We advise that a baby’s sleeping space is kept as clear as possible, with no pillows, duvets, soft toys or cot bumpers. Unnecessary items in a cot can increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) if a baby’s head becomes covered. Items such as soft toys and cot bumpers can also increase the risk of accidents.
“Our safer sleep advice relating to reducing the risk of SIDS is relevant for babies under 12 months, after this age it is down to parental choice, but we are aware that some parents continue to follow safer sleep guidance after 12 months.”
To see Walsh’s Facebook awareness campaign, visit Connie Rose Awareness.
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