When did you stop using your baby monitor?

[Anonymous]

Bought it. Never used.

[Anonymous]

Another issue here is whether we're talking about a video & sound monitor or just sound?

I never wanted and am not a fan of video monitors. In my mind, they can lead to being overly obsessed with keeping an eye out on your child. Don't get me wrong, once we transitioned DD to her own room at about 3 months, I was constantly peeking in, but I think a video monitor would have only prolonged this habit.

As for a sound monitor, we used one from the get go and still do with DD who is just turning two. We always use it when DD is napping because we're not usually on the same floor and can't hear her well when her door is closed. We also use it when we first put DD to bed for the same reasons. That said, once we stop hearing her we turn it off and we don't use it during the night as we're right across the hall and can hear her if she's crying.

Finally, it took my husband to convince me we needed to turn the monitor off during the night when DD was about five or six months. As mentioned in pps, we were hearing every little sigh and hint of movement and really weren't sleeping soundly. It really does make an impact on your own sleep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You don't need the monitor unless your baby's room is clearly out of earshot. Just open both doors a crack and you will hear anything important enough to get up for.

Don't get rid of the monitor-plug it back in when your child starts talking and get ready to hear some really funny stuff!

[Anonymous]

My DS is 1.5 yrs and I still use a monitor. Our house isn't huge but my bedroom is in a new the part of the house that is an addition so the walls between my room and DS's room are VERY thick. I can't really hear him if he cries unless he's screaming! That said, if I lived in a different house and I was certain I could hear him if he cried at night I wouldn't use one.

[Anonymous]

Our room and the baby's room are on opposite sides of the house, so you can't hear the baby cry without it. DS is 7 1/2 months and we still use it because he gets up about once a night. But like you he wakes up here and there and puts himself back to sleep. I have to keep the monitor up load because I am afraid I won't hear it if it is low both DH and I are really sound sleepers so I want to make sure I hear when he cries. Once he can sleep through the night I will stop using it...but then I am unsure just because I can't hear anything in his room from ours.

[Anonymous]

I'm definitely in the minority here.

Our bedroom is on the first floor and we would never hear our 5 year old son unless he was screaming. So we have a monitor. New baby is on the way, and we'll use the monitor in his room once he starts sleeping in there.

To us, it's just nice to hear if he calls out for us -- happens very rarely -- and we are used to sleeping with it on, so it doesn't really keep us up.

[Anonymous]

I am definitely in the minortiy also!
I have a 4 1/2 year old and a 4 month old, and I use a monitor for both of them still. My husband makes total fun of me. But alot of times we are on totally different floors, even in the basement, while they are sleeping upstairs. And I like the security of knowing I will hear them if either one needs me.

[Anonymous]

I'm in the minority here -- my son is 4 and we still have a monitor in his room. All our bedroom walls are insulated though, so it really is hard to hear from one room to the next. Last year DS woke up with what is called sudden onset croup -- where he went from sleeping and just one or two coughs directly to having stridor. DH and I heard him barely through the monitor saying "I cannot breath". I am so thankful we had the monitor! Anyway, we just turn the monitors down enough so that we do not hear the kids turning in their beds, but just if they are crying or are trying to call to us. When they were babies and I needed a good night's sleep, I'd put in earplugs and tell DH that he was responsible for listening for the baby.

[Anonymous]

My son is 2.5 and we use it every night. I can hear him when he gets really upset without the monitor of course but that isn't good enough for me, I want to hear him before he gets worked up. Our house is average size and we keep the bedroom doors closed. We keep the setting low and we have a good monitor so static isn't a problem. I would never feel comfortable without a monitor. I'm surprised at all the posts about people not using them here. That seems odd to me as everyone I know with kids even older then mine uses a monitor. I'm not sure these responses which seem to slant strongly in favor of not using a monitor are representative of the more common practice.

[Anonymous]

It actually seems that monitor use is the majority, not minority!

Either way, I don't use one. I think it's partly a parenting style thing. I'm sure people around the world manage to parent well without these types of devices (of course, many others don't live in homes nearly as large as ours!). American society seems to create a lot of stuff and then makes parents feel like they need them to do a good job.

Interesting to read the responses here.

I wonder what other products parents differ on. For example, I never used an swing, exersaucer, etc. and I know some people who say they can't imagine surviving without one. Again, I think it's very much about personal preferences and parenting styles. I tend to think we only need the basics and that a lot of marketing makes parents feel they need the other stuff.

[Anonymous]

My daughter is 4.5 year and we still use one, it's a monitor through our cordless phones. She rarely ever wakes up during the night, just the occasional bad dream in which case we would not hear her from our bedroom should she cry. I don't know when I'll stop, but right now, it never bothers us.