escapeing child! how to keep him in at night

Rose - posted on 04/11/2013

Amanda-if you even think that THE SAFETY SLEEPER might work for you, call or email. The business is set up to help families. My team has gotten many families help getting the bed covered. - my email is on the website, mention this post and ill remember you- I'll send you my phone number- I can help walk you through some ways to get the bed paid for. -Sincerely, Rose Morris-Abrams mom

Meagan - posted on 02/22/2013

The tent idea is fantastic, except my son is terrified of being confined in small places. And the price is just .... CRAZY!! I like the cut the door in half idea. I rent, but I am willing to pay for the door when I leave if it means keeping my child safe!! I am going to try that and the double sided key locks on front and back doors. Meaning you need a key to get in or out, that way he can't just "unlock" the doors. He hasn't figured out keys yet. And if your son is like mine and has a thing for kitchen cupboards... I have found locking the pantry and kitchen cupboards is good. I leave one shelf low for "his snacks" and the rest I use bike locks for food he can't get into and for sharp items like knives, scissors, etc... He can't break the bike locks and they are easy to unlock :) I Have also found that being my son loves video games, making his games accessible, helps distract him from wanting to go outside. But, once the warm weather is here, he isn't going to want his games as much.

Meagan - posted on 02/22/2013

I have a child with autism who is also an escape artist. He climbs over baby gates, unlocks locks with brooms, mops, stands on chairs, laundry baskets, etc... I was told that it is illegal to have locks on any bedroom doors and on front and back doors that aren't key locks. I am wondering if there is an exception to this when you have an autistic child who is a runner or likes to go in rooms and destroy them/or can get hurt going into them??
I don't want to get some kind of fine or have children's aid at my door because I am keeping my child OUT of rooms, not in and keeping him safe. What can I do that will keep doors locked if we aren't "allowed" to lock them?

Zee - posted on 10/28/2011

We got a double keyed lock for our front door. Basically you need the key to unlock the door to get out. It worked for us. This way I can take a shower and not worry about the 4 year old escaping. Just make sure you put the keys up high or hide them if they are able to use the keys.

Nyar Mur - posted on 10/27/2011

wow, was just talking about this and started blogging :)- did you find the best solution? Let me know ~
http://nancyogengayouree.wordpress.com/2...

Jennifer - posted on 09/13/2011

We used door alarms for my son. Put it on his bedroom door, it was the only thing that worked! This kid got out of his crib at barely 7 months, and figured out EVERYTHING! I know how ya feel, luckily this only lasted a few months for me, but it was tough! BTW, he would get in my cabinets and eat stuff(scary as hell, could not lock him out!) but I left dry unsweetened kool-aid in there, and that broke it! I didn't mean it that way, and it didn't hurt him, but that's some bitter crap! Good luck

Alice - posted on 09/13/2011

To Jamie S.--for a long time backwards pajamas worked, but one twins figured out how to wiggle out of them.
But I found the answer!! It's called Little Keeper Sleeper, and there are three snaps over the zipper, long sleeves and a no-stretch neck. sounds weird until you've been there, believe me! Now I don't have to clean up horrible messes every night.

Michelle - posted on 09/13/2011

i put hook and eye latches on every door in the house. My son is two and up until about 3 or 4 months ago i even put them on the outside of his bedroom door because he wouldn't stay in his bed to go to sleep, i would literally lock him in there until he fell asleep and then open it when he did. But hes gotten bigger older and smarter so hes started pounding and screaming so i got chain locks for the insides of the front and back door. The metal chain that slides across, i had to get heavy duty ones because he can yank and almost pull the darn thing out of the wall, but it worked, and cps came and liked my solution they didn't like the fact i was locking him in but i was like i had no other choice, i only live in a two bedroom apartment too so its not as hard as it might be if i had a house... Good luck!

Jamie - posted on 09/13/2011

To Alice M - and your strippers... I have an autistic step-son, who is 9 and not fully potty trained. He also likes to strip. We have the zip up jammies and put them on him backwards. He can't reach the zipper to get them undone. To everyone - we have the loud door chime on the exterior doors, large and latches at the top. We have to lock the bathrooms and pantry doors and run around with the punch keys in our pockets...

Mary - posted on 09/08/2011

put a bell on the door , put a lock up high on the outside door A slide lock . And on the kitchen door you can't have children wondering around at night open your bed room door . and you will hear the bell . One child was killed here a few years ago on the road in the middle of the day , the mother did not care enough to do what it took to keep the child safe .

Bj - posted on 08/21/2011

how you ever thought about putting a door chimes? how you considered a bed alarm. This is used in many hospital settings to notify the nurse that a patient is attempting to get out of bed This alarm a safety intervention to prevent falls and wondering. See, when we say lock a room door, it has a negative connotation. it sounds better when we say that we have reduced the area. It is considered child abuse because the child is able to open the door, but it is locked; the age of the child and it compromises the safety of the child.

Amanda - posted on 07/21/2011

unfortunetly, where as cutting dors in half would be a good idea... it;s my moms house, not mine. also we have floor to ceiling doors with are crazy expensive to replace!

I talked to my worker and she said she would never suggest a locking door handle (like bathroom ones) on paper.. but.. *enter meaningful look* so for now we're trying that until we can come up with something else.

the tents would be a FANTASTIC idea.. but.. I'm a single mom, I don't even get that much in two months.. no way i could afford one..

Karen - posted on 07/20/2011

for exterior doors, we used sliding bolts at night that were near the very top of the door, he kept figuring out deadbolts, chain locks etc, never looked high enough or could reach that top sliding bolt. a simple solution for doors is to bungee two doors across from each other very tightly so the doors can't open in at all--looks funny but works during the daytime/naptime and bedtime, too.
they have moving sensor alarms we put in the hallway where he couldn't reach,and that woke us up...good luck!

Heather - posted on 07/19/2011

here's a good question, do you rent or own? that would affect what you can do within the house. if you rent you have to get approval from the landlord about everything. except for baby gates. if you own then you can go crazy and saw doors in half. i see no one's mentioned this in any of their responses. try to do as much by the book that you can get away with and have no problems. We've been renting for the past 7 years in 4 different places. we couldn't have any of the door alarms because their loud enough to disturb the upstairs or downstairs neighbours. and we've had to get approval for hook and eye locks, putting up a fence, and making everything childproofed on the outside of the houses. just thought i'd throw this out there for you as well

Darcy - posted on 07/19/2011

I agree with the "saw the door in half" suggestion... but cut high! He can see over, but not get over... also alarms on doors will help. If you cut your door so he can't get out, or use a screen door on the inside door, it could work. I'd use alarms everywhere and anywhere you can get a headstart on him. You, as the parent, have a right to do whatever it takes to make sure he is safe...if he gets out on to a street or around strangers, it will be much worse! Have you looked in to a kind of GPS through your local police department? They have ankle bracelets that will help you find him if he does get away.

Alice - posted on 07/19/2011

Here's a link for the website of the special needs bed tent:
http://thesafetysleeper.com/
Now if someone could find some pajamas that my boys couldn't escape from, we'd be all set at night. They are not fully toilet-trained, but they like to strip!

Alice - posted on 07/19/2011

We have twins with autism and they sleep in special tents called "Safety Sleepers". They are designed for kids with special needs. So far, no escapes. They are not cheap, but they can save lives.

Danelle - posted on 07/19/2011

Hello - Experiencing the same problem for the past 2 years. I have sawed the door in half and put a door knob lock on the outside, plus child door knob protectors so she can't unlock the door. This works. Did the office door that way too so I can work but see her running around. Now, I am at the stage that I am going to have to hire an iron man to make a custom gate that separates the main part of the house. After that it will Alarms from the alarm company. All the door have Christmas bells on them know so I can hear her. Good Luck.

Lillian - posted on 07/19/2011

doorway alarms- Our son could not 'unset' the alarm. It was mounted above the door. The alarm would let us know if he is coming out of his room without 'locking him in".

Heather - posted on 07/19/2011

I'm not sure if this helps bc you said you can't put a lock on his door, but I had the same problem with my son at night, & we ended up putting a locking door knob backwards (so that it locks on the outside, not inside so he can't accidentally lock himself in). You may want to see if they'll allow that, bc it's the only thing that worked for us. Also, so he doesn't get outside without you knowing, they make individual door alarms that buzz really loud you can put on any doors that lead outside. They use one on my son's classroom door since there are several escape artists in his class. Hope this helps, & good luck!

Maureen - posted on 07/19/2011

We have door chimes/alarms on my daughter's bedroom door. If she opens the door, it will go off and I'll know she's out and about. She HATES the sound, so she doesn't even try to open the door when she knows it's on.

Paula - posted on 07/16/2011

I sawed a door in half and used a sliding latch, the kind usually in bathrooms. I put a door bell on the inside so he could just ring to get out instead of trying to climb. Also put a curtin on the top half of his door way to block light and some sound. Children's Aid seen my child's room and thought it was a creative solution. I showed them the old gates that he climbed and well ...

Heather - posted on 07/15/2011

hook and eye locks on all main doors, i've had this problem all last year with my son, he wouldn't stop trying to escape so we bought the most durable, unbreakable ones at Rona drilled them in and it worked, and baby gates give up on that, build a gate or have someone do it for you one in the front yard if it's fully fenced in and one for the back as well to the driveway or carport wherever there are openings to the world outside on your property fence them in even if it means putting up a 5 foot fence. do it, that way you'll feel safer knowing he's secured in the property, good luck i hope this info helps you out.