A mother whose baby died after falling asleep with her on a sofa is urging other parents to be aware of the risks. Dawn Barclay, from Forfar, fell asleep with her eight-week-old daughter Fern on a couch in 2014. She woke to find Fern had stopped breathing.
Dawn had co-slept with Fern in bed safely, removing pillows and ensuring the baby was on her back. However, the nap on the sofa proved fatal. She said: 'The fear that I had done something to her was one of the first things to go through my mind.'
A coroner later found Fern had brain damage from birth that may have contributed to her death. The death certificate was changed to 'sudden unexpected death in infancy associated with co-sleeping', a ruling Dawn disputes.
Official advice warns against co-sleeping on sofas or armchairs, as it increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (Sids). The Department of Health recommends babies sleep in a cot in the same room as parents for the first six months.
Many parents co-sleep but fear judgment, leading them to hide it from health visitors. Experts say this prevents them from receiving guidance on minimising risks, such as using sheets instead of duvets and keeping pillows away from babies.
