Video Monitor

What? No...there is no proper time to wean yourself. What ever helps you sleep at night! I have a 3 yo and a 16 mo old that share a room, with a third coming this summer. I plan on upgradeing my video monitor so I can keep track of what goes on! It's handy to know my oldest is staying in bed...and not throwing or hitting his little brother! I don't use it everyday...but when I upgrade it will certainly help me keep tabs on what they are doing without stopping what Im working on! They don't need privacy yet...and they think I'm SUPER MOM for knowing what they are doing wrong without actually being in the room...lol, it's hilarious! Do what you feel comfortable with! Better safe than sorry.

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No, you are not being paranoid. I know of a child (friend of a friend) 4 years old who died as a result of a fire caused by a baby monitor. If your baby can sleep with the door open, open it after she falls asleep, so you can hear her if anything comes up. My house is small, so we shut the kids doors, but leave ours open. Also, think about the exit route from kids rooms to the most likely source of a home fire (furnace, AC unit gas water heater, etc.) , how would you get to your kids, then how would you get out? Who would go for which kids? Where will you meet outside? When the kdis are old enough (4), I even included them in the thought process, and held monthly fire drills (setting off the smoke alarm on purpose) and practiced our escape routes. I even taught my older one to think through what he would do if he were trapped in a room with a fire outside the door, and you couldn't get the window open (break the window by trowing this chair at it). The child who died, the mom grabbed the nearest child, ran outside, and tried to get to the other child through the window, but she couldn't get in in time, He was hiding under the bed, and died of smoke inhalation. Scary, but kids need to learn these things. So get rid of the monitor when you feel you safely can. God bless.

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Hi D., I heard the cell phones can cause brain tumors, but evdery one on planet just about has a cell phone, and every one who lives in the city is around power lines, and almost every one has at least one cordless phone. I think if having the monitor on worry's you about childhood leukemia then why not move her into a room closer to yours, it sounds like you have a big house, is that a possibility? I never used monitors with my children, so i don't know if that causes anything or not, I highly doubt it, but you never know. I would ask her pedeatrician also and see what he/she thinks. You sound like a very good mom. J. L.

Hi D.,

i feel you, my son is 2 1/2 and im still using the monitor! Like you said is not proven yet that will cause any health issues!
I feel more close to him this way!

Do what make you feel better!

Good luck!

I didn't get a video monitor becuase I thought it was a waste for such an expensive gadget. but I love the sound monitor. My son is 20 months old now, but I think it is still great to hear when he wakes up and I can tell if he is upstairs playing with toys (since I have a recever in my bedroom and the kitchen)

My son is two and I still love my video monitor! We don't need to use it much anymore, but I like knowing what he is doing and not having to imagine it based on what sounds I am hearing. Unlike you, however, I couldn't use it at night because it kept me awake. BUT, I echo the previous post...whatever helps you sleep better! Use it until you no longer find it useful. Like you said, there is no proven link between video monitors and childhood leukemia, and anyone seriously concerned about these types of things, would have to remove any cordless phones, cell phones, not to mention their computer. And if one lived in an apartment, what do the neighbors have on the other side of the wall? By the way, I read something about the incidence of leukemia near power lines possibly being related to the pesticides sprayed under the towers and not to the actual lines themselves. For me, unless there is a proven link or a super compelling theoretical argument, I'm continuing to use my electronic and wireless devices. I hope this helps! I know you are just trying to be as safe as can be when it comes to your daughter!

Hi!

My kids are 10, 7, & 5 and we still monitor them. It gives us a sense of security knowing we'd hear anything from one of them getting sick, nightmares or even, heaven forbid, and intruder coming in through that side of the house. So I say do what makes you comfortable. You can always move the monitor as far away as possible from your daughter if you are concerned about exposure.

uhm I'd say 16... years old. We have one mounted on the ceiling of our 2 year olds room and I don't think I'll ever take it down. This one's gonna be a bad one ladies... hopefully some of you will be around to help out through the dreaded "pre-teen" and beyond years... if I make it.

Our daughter is 13 months and we still use it. Since your house is set up where she is nowhere near, it would be bad parenting to not use one, so you are right in wanting to keep it. Why not keep her bedroom door open at night and put the monitor out in the hall outside her bedroom. That way, it will still pick up on her cries, but be far enough away to be safe. You will not get to use the video part, but the sound will be reassuring.

my daughter is 2 and i still use a sound monitor. i wanted the video one but could afford it. the reason i use our monitor still is 1. to tell when she wakes up in the morning because her door and my door is shut all night. 2. to tell if shes actually napping or playing. other then those to reasons its not really needed. i will continue to use the monitor untill shes fully potty trained and learns to open the door to her room and come straight to mine (we live with in laws and i dont like her in their room). i think by 3 i will completely stop using it.

We hardly used ours. I thought it was something I really had to have and once I had it, I rarely turned it on. We use a baby gate to block off the stairs and then another one to block the other part of the house so she can go from her room to ours. She is three now, but we have done the gates since we got rid of her crib. It works out well and I you just adjust to the changes. Really a personal choice.

No need to get rid of it unless you want to. There is no reason to "wean" yourself off of a monitor. My son is almost 18 months old and I love my video monitor more and more the older he gets. I like always being able to see what he's up to in his crib. My son's room is also a ways away from mine so it makes me feel better to know that I will always hear him. I know some women who use it to watch their toddlers play in their room too. I never thought a video monitor was necessary but now that I have one, I love it.