Snuggling with your newborn in bed feels sweet, but it can put your baby at risk. A Sky Lakes nurse shares easy habits that make every nap and night safer.
Newborns sleep most of the day, which is why safe sleep matters so much.
Each year, about 3,400 babies in the U.S. die suddenly and unexpectedly. Experts call these sudden unexpected infant deaths, or SUID. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is one type; accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed is another.
Many of these deaths happen in unsafe sleep spaces, says Paul Ocon, RN, director of Maternal Child Health at Sky Lakes Medical Center. The good news is you can remove many of those risks.
Share a Room, Not a Bed
Ocon says many parents love to cuddle with their newborn in bed. But adults can roll over in their sleep, and blankets can slide over a baby’s face.
Young babies can’t roll over or crawl away from danger. If something covers their face, they can’t push it away. “It’s like a cup of coffee,” Ocon says. “You’re going to find them exactly where you put them down.”
Instead, keep your baby close — in your room, but in their own crib, bassinet, or portable play yard. Experts recommend sharing a room with your baby for at least the first six months. If you fall asleep while feeding your baby in your bed, move them back to their own sleep space as soon as you wake up.
Keep the Crib Clear
Stuffed animals and fluffy blankets look cozy, but they don’t belong in the crib at sleep time. “You can have them in the crib, but if the baby’s asleep, take them out,” Ocon says.
Instead of a loose blanket, try a sleep swaddle. Sky Lakes gives every newborn a brand-new one to take home. “It’s like a blanket, but it’s sort of tailored,” Ocon says. Your baby’s arms fit into little sleeves, and then “you just wrap them up like a burrito.” Stop swaddling once your baby shows signs of rolling over.
Get the Whole Family on Board
Grandparents, aunts, and older siblings need to know the rules, too. Ocon has watched young dads try to teach safe sleep to their mothers-in-law, and things can get tense.
“This is Switzerland. This is not a bone of contention,” he says. “We’re just trying to make sure that your child, your grandchild, is safe.”
What Gold Certification Means for Your Family
Sky Lakes is a Cribs for Kids Gold Certified Safe Sleep Hospital, one of only two in Oregon. To keep that title, the hospital renews its certification every five years and reports on its work every year. “It was our ability to prove to an external group that we are doing exactly what we’re supposed to do,” Ocon says.
That means safe sleep support at every step. You’ll learn the basics in Sky Lakes childbirth classes, and your nurse reviews them before you head home. Even emergency department staff and social workers get safe sleep training. If you don’t have a safe crib, the hospital provides a portable one. Later, local pediatricians check in on safe sleep at your baby’s visits.
When Ocon visits new families, he checks that the baby is swaddled, on their back, and in a cleared-out crib. Most families get it right. If he spots a crib full of Beanie Babies, he asks the nurse to review safe sleep again. “If you take care of moms, then you take care of the whole family,” Ocon says. “Sometimes it’s one baby at a time.”
Remember the ABCs
If you remember just one thing, Ocon says, remember “back to sleep.” Sky Lakes teaches it as the ABCs: Your baby should sleep Alone, on their Back, in a safe Crib. Every nap, every night.
Karen Cristello, MBA
Author
October 7, 2026
Education | Health Observation | Kids | Public Health
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