When do you give toddler a pillow?

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Forum -> Parenting our children -> Toddlers

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Capitalchick

Sat, Aug 14 2010, 11:39 pm

At what age do you give your toddler a pillow? How do you know if they want one?

I'm part of this "Circle of Moms" website, and I get these newsletters from them with forum chats. I'm always shocked by what I read...the moms on the site seem to be doing things with their toddlers WAY before I would even think of it! Many wrote that they give their kids pillows around 11 months or so....

shabbatiscoming

Sat, Aug 14 2010, 11:47 pm

my daughter is 26 months. she found a little pillow that she liked maybe at a year and a few months. she waned to take it to her crib and likes to sleep with it. I dont really see the problem here. if they can roll over and move, they should be able to sleep safely however they want, I feel.

Rodent

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 12:06 am

When they start using all their other bedding as a pillow, bunching it up to put their head on it.

Our eldest was close to 18 months I think, our youngest about 11 months, second was somewhere in between.

It has always been a small, flat cot sized pillow, not a regular pillow until they're in a bed, after 2 some time.

flowerpower

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 12:07 am

You will call me crazy then. I give them as an infant a young hard pillow-like even 8 months or less. They sleep better on it.

Bliss

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 12:18 am

flowerpower wrote:

You will call me crazy then. I give them as an infant a young hard pillow-like even 8 months or less. They sleep better on it.

Same here. My little ones like a pillow. I see they are happy on my pillow so I let them have their own.

fiddle

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 1:01 am

Newborn. They sleep better.

5S5Sr7z3

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 1:04 am

When they start stealing mine Wink

. Usually around age 2.

Atali

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 1:04 am

I do it when they move to a bed.

2busy

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 1:11 am

10 11 mo ths as well

cubbie

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 2:10 am

IYamWhoIYam wrote:

When they start stealing mine Wink

. Usually around age 2.

Ditto, but usually about 1 1/2

chanchy123

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 2:17 am

When they ask for it. I guess around two and a half.
I would NEVER give a pillow to an 11 month old baby - that's seems so unsafe to me.

ewa-jo

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 2:24 am

My 18-month-old uses his teddy bear for a pillow... he's been doing it for months. (he's had the bear in his crib since he was 9 months old) Maybe he needs a real pillow....

Why it is unsafe? Is it the SIDS thing?

amother

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 2:24 am

My daughter of 2 and 3 months started liking her siblings' pillows so I realized "it's time". This was about 1 or 2 months ago, so she was about 2 and a month or 2. She still sleeps in a crib, and she has a regular size pillow. All my kids started around age 2-21/2.

mammele26

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 2:28 am

ewa-jo wrote:

I think so. I would be afraid to leave anything but a right-sized blanket in the crib until after the baby's a year old at least. I probably would wait until about 15 months.

Raizle

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 3:01 am

Doesn't the way the child sleeps factor in at all?
for example if a child sleeps on his stomach most of the time then does he really need a pillow?

Rodent

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 8:49 pm

Raizle wrote:

Doesn't the way the child sleeps factor in at all?
for example if a child sleeps on his stomach most of the time then does he really need a pillow?

My kids have all slept on their tummies as soon as they could put themselves there. Commonly they would pull their legs under their bodies and have their head on their blankets all bundled up. A flat pillow was actually less of a suffocation risk to be honest, didn't sink in around their mouth as much, fewer folds etc.

chaylizi

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 9:48 pm

I don't put pillows in the crib at all. My son doesn't seem to mind.

gold21

Sun, Aug 15 2010, 9:56 pm

I give pillows at around 8 months. I see absolutely no risk in doing this with a child who is 6 months or above. please show me a study comparing babies who are 6 months or above, who are all sleeping on their back or side, have no blanket with them, have no teddy bear or toy with them, where there is a difference in risk when using a pillow. ?? there is no such study. therefore, keep the baby comfortable.

curlyhead

Mon, Aug 16 2010, 1:19 am

When they ask - at around 2- 2 1/2.
Always wondered the crib sheet sets come with pillow case

AlwaysGrateful

Mon, Aug 16 2010, 11:00 am

gold21 wrote:

How is a teddy bear different from a blanket? The issue would be if a kid rolls over and rebreathes the air from the pillow...the same reason teddy bears, soft bumpers, crib mattress pads, etc aren't recommended because of SIDS. Air rebreathing is one of the main (the only?) reasons that they say can explain why some SIDS cases happen.

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