There was an article recently on the local news about a 6 year old boy drowning in a bathtub. The latest update mentioned that there may have been an health problem or something that the parents had been unaware of. It just breaks my heart. My question tho' - could it have been prevented? Do any of you that have children that age actually sit in the bathroom with them the whole time while they're bathing? Am I negligent in the fact that I let my 6 year bathe alone? I mean, I stay reasonably close...I can certainly hear him quite well...I check on him...the water isn't real high. At what point do you think it is safe to let a child in the bathtub without you being right there? I know there is always the possibility that a child could have a seizure or something...are there things parents could do to minimize the risks during bathtime when it comes to a child of that age?
* My 4 and 6 year old are totally loud too...I like it...I figure if they're singing or talking to themselves...they must be fine!
** Thank you for your thoughts and insights. I know it's always the horrible stuff that makes the news (for the most part)...but there are some days when I wonder how on earth my kids have survived this long! I don't think I will go overboard with my 6 year old...I really do feel comfortable with him bathing on his own. He does baths and showers...probably takes a bath twice a week or so. I think I will be a bit more cautious with my 4 year old. I'm generally right there - but I'll walk away for this or that...and it is easy for 5 minutes to feel like 1 or 2. My thoughts and prayers definitely go out to that family...and all the others that lose their precious little ones!
My LO is 4 1/2 and I have NO problem leaving her in the bath for any amount of time! She's so loud that I can hear her wherever. The moment she gets quiet, I yell, "You ok in there?" she yells back, "What???" Lol. Tragic accidents happen but 6 year olds are perfectly capable of taking a lone shower/bath.
I stay in earshot, and the noise has to be in the "Goldilocks zone" -- to loud with to much splashing and it's time to get out; too quiet so I think that either somethings wrong or that you're up to no good and it's time to get out....
My 3 1/2 year old drowned in the bathtub 4 years ago. He was at his grandmothers house and she left him alone. She says that she was 8 steps away, but I know she wasn't. She said she was only gone for a few minutes, but if that were true, he wouldn't have brain dead by the time she got to him. He had had a history of febrile seizures. He hadn't had one in about a year, so we thought he had grown out of them. We don't know and will never know if he has a seizure in the tub that night. One thing people don't realize is that drowning is silent. It's not splashing around and screaming. It's completely silent. I don't know at what age is a good age to let them be alone, but I ran across a few articles that say that a kid under the age of five should not be left alone in the tub.
At 6 they should be safe enough not to drown.
This has to be a terrible accident , the alternative would be too awful.
I am chalking this up to tragic accident - but I will admit that I was one of those parents who freaked about the bath tub possibilities, daddy is the one who made me relax about it all.
oh, so sad.
whenever we hear something like this, it's natural to go 'i'll never let that happen to my kids! i'll watch them ALL THE TIME!!!'
but the truth is, bad stuff just happens some times.
from probably 4 on i'd leave my boys for short periods. like you, i'd be nearby, and popping in and out frequently, but i myself love baths and if they wanted to play in the water i was happy to let them.
khairete
S.
My son is almost 6 and he has been taking a bath alone for about 3 years.
How absolutely devastating.
I remember checking on them if it got too quiet, especially the boys. Plus I still had to wash their hair then. I was usually near the bathroom.
The poor family.
My 9 year old and 3 year old bathe together and I am 1 room away usually. No you aren't being negligent. Accidents happen, and we can't live on our toes.
I think like so many things, you need to weigh the risks with the kid and make the right choices for your family. We step out of the bathroom when our 3.5 yr old is playing, but we are nearby or not gone long. I suspect in the next year we won't be in there long at all, mostly just hair and getting the water run for her. I'm pretty sure SD was bathing by herself at 6 with the door open so we could hear her call for her hair to be washed.
That is terrible! I have a 6 yr old. I am soooo sad for that family. How incredibly heartbreaking.
My son takes mostly showers but I am going to have to start keeping an eye on him when he's taking a bath.
My son is only one but I can relate with walking away while he's in the tub, especially by age 6. Even now, I may step away for literally less than 30 seconds and I keep my ears on him. I know I can easily get distracted so if I leave the bathroom, it is to get something and come right back. While he plays I take it as a good chance to clean up the bathroom. That is certainly a devastating story no doubt! But you need to do what feels right for your situation.
I do let my daughter, 4 yrs old, take baths and I am guilty of walking away if I am doing something which I usually am. However, I am always checking on her. And if she gets quiet, I check immediately. My husband however, he does not get it sometimes. He will put her in the tub and leave her. One time she was in there over an hour. First that is way too long and most important he is not checking on her. Drives me nuts and I only let her take a bath when I am home. I don't ask him to give her one during the day anymore.
As for things happening, a guy I worked with a long time ago--26 yrs old--once fell in the tub and hit his head. His son found him and called 911. It must have just happened because there was water in the tub but luckily he only missed a couple days of work. The wash cloth had blocked the drain. It could have been worse. There is no age limit to accidents.
As for swimming, oh yeah, no one goes in the pool without a partner. You never really know what can happen.
I have to say that I am shocked how many mom's are saying they let their 3 & 4 year olds bath alone. I have an almost 4 year old and I don't leave her alone for a second when she's in the tub. If my phone rings or the doorbell rings, too bad, it can wait.
These are our precious children. How can a parent even take that risk? If something were to happen, you would NEVER forgive yourself! What could honestly be so important that you woud risk your childs life by leaving them alone in a tub??
How sad.
My 3 and 4yr old ( almost 4 and 5) have been taking a bath alone for a good 6 months. One of us is always in ear shot and we check on them but they are in there alone with the door open. Usually they are together but not always.
No your not being negligent, this was an accident... we would go crazy if we always worried about the what if.. what could/ should I have do differently when we hear about these sad tragedies. But it is a good reminder for us to be more observant with out own little ones.
Drowning is a quiet death, you don't make noise when you are drowning, so no one should assume they would "hear" their child. It takes less than a minute to drown in shallow water. The could slip, it their head, slip under water and drown. Sorry to be so blunt, but of course this could easily happen to any of us. I believe my kids were showering by age 6, otherwise, yes, I was in the bathroom with them the whole time. I took a book in with me and read while I sat on top of the toilet seat, or we just chatted until they were done. I also sit outside when the kids are swimming, and they are older now, 16, 12 and 9. They are more than excellent swimmers, but for the same reasons listed above, it is not worth risking it to me. Just my opinion, good luck!
My son is 6, and we do not supervise him in the bathtub. We have not for at least a year. He likes to 'swim' in the tub, put his head under water, and who knows what else. He will sometimes be in the tub for 30-40 mins until I holler at him to get out. He has recently become an excellent swimmer though through regular swim lessons. That means he's around a pool a LOT!
Roughly 500 children under that age of 5 die each year from drowning in a bath tub. There are 300 MILLION people in the US! If people are really that concerned, then they should not even step foot near a car (800 THOUSAND die each year under age 18) or go anywhere near a swimming pool (700-800 per yr) - oh, and if you're potty training, be sure to sit next to them, so they don't drown in the toilet (15-20 per year). Then there was the toddler who drown in the wash machine recently. That might even be a first!
I'm not saying be stupid and let your 2 year old bath while you go out for a jog, but I am saying many people are being overly paranoid. Our children need to live a little or they will grow up not knowing how to make decisions for themselves (like many teenagers right now). No, I don't think there is anything those parents could/should have done.
Just my $.02.
Well, my kids haven't taken a bath since they were 2 or 3 years old. They like taking showers instead. So, I am with them becuase I am the one washing them up. If they want a few minutes to play, then I just sit right outside and wait for them to call for me when they are done. My daughter is 7 and she can wash herself now, but she just needs help getting all the shampoo out, so I do that. My 4 year old, I still need to wash him. If they are ever really quiet, then I peek in and check on them, but I am always no more than 5 feet away.
We let our kids bath alone with us being right there in the hallway or the family room. However, most of the time we have our kids take a shower.
