Mom Shares Sports Bra Hack to Keep Son’s Head up While Sleeping in Car Seat. She Didn’t Know It’s Dangerous

Adele Barbaro thought she’d found a brilliant way to keep her son from slumping over in his car seat.

As Kidspot reports, the mom-of-two from Melbourne was on a road trip with her 3-year-old son, Harvey, whose head kept tipping forward as he slept. So Adele would reach back to prop his head back up — something that left her feeling carsick and only worked for a few minutes.

Finally, the mom had a brainstorm. She hooked her sports bra around the top of Harvey’s seat, creating a harness that kept his head from tipping over. Proud of her ingenuity, Adele shared the “genius hack” to her Instagram page.

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I did a post on the weekend when I was frustrated with my little ones head falling forward while he slept in the car. I kept turning around to pop his head back and it was making me fill ill so, I took off my sports bra and popped it across his forehead and shared what I thought was a funny and clever little mum hack. But I was wrong. DO NOT DO THIS. . I pride myself in sharing helpful and honest content but I was mortified to learn that I had shared something that was extremely unsafe, I took it straight down. . After speaking to a few people, including some paramedics and other trained professionals, I have learnt that the most important thing is that you have a car seat that is professionally installed and has its incline correct. There are a lot of devices on eBay etc that are also unsafe, so just be careful and get the right info. I have had my car seats all professionally installed buy a certified installer, on its full recline so it has made me question the car seat more than anything. . Anyway, the point of this post is that I am not perfect. I don’t always get it right, just like every mum. And although it was a funny post, I would would never share anything that I thought was unsafe for children. X

A post shared by ADELE BARBARO (@real_mumma) on Jan 28, 2019 at 6:16pm PST

That’s when she learned that her clever tip was, in fact, very dangerous.

According to Car Seats for the Littles (CSFTL), a consumer safety group, using any third-party product that didn’t come with the seat can be dangerous — that goes for aftermarket car seat accessories as well as sports bras.

As CSFTL explains, even small additions can affect the way a seat performs in a crash, resulting in serious injury or death. For example, pillows and headrests meant to support children and make them more comfortable can affect the placement of the harness or push the child out of the safe position in the seat. This could affect how the child’s head and chest move in a crash.

When readers informed Adele that her hack could put children in danger, she removed the photo immediately. She then re-posted it on Instagram with a prominent warning that declared, “Don’t do this. I was wrong.” She wrote:

I […] shared what I thought was a funny and clever little mum hack. But I was wrong. DO NOT DO THIS.

Adele went on to say, “I pride myself in sharing helpful and honest content,” and she was, “mortified,” to learn that she had shared something unsafe.

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GOING BACK TO WORK AFTER MATERNITY LEAVE – My tips . There will be so many mother’s returning to the work force this year. Whether you have a short or long maternity leave, the transition of going from being a mum 24/7 to all of a sudden, returning to the work force can be hard for some. There are a lot of decisions to make, life gets busy and all of a sudden, your time with your little one is reduced dramatically. . The idea of starting Harvey in daycare felt like I was agreeing to lose a limb. I remember how hard it was when I started taking him. Mainly on me. He wasn't really phased. He was only 7 months old and while I left him, laying on his back on a play mat, I would cry on the way to work. But, whether you are pregnant now, enjoying your mat leave or going back shortly, let me assure you, the hard times are short lived and it does get easier. . While at work, I had moments during the day where I would forget I was even a mum! When I was deep in a meeting, enthusiastically writing an email or chatting to a colleague. Then there were other times, mainly waiting by a photocopier or on lunch break, where I would think of him and miss him dearly. The nice change was to be able to pee and eat when I wanted! . With Chloe it was a little easier, mainly because I was ready for the emotions but I still missed her and it came with different challenges, especially now that I was even busier and I was leaving two children. But it became normality very quickly. FOR MOTHER’S WHO PLAN TO RETURN TO WORK.. . -First, have the conversation with your partner about how much time you are having off BEFORE they are born. It is very difficult to talk about once they are in your arms. A mistake I made. -Think about what capacity you would like to return to work and try and have that convo with them, again, before the bub is born. Most good companies will allow a flexible return to work and having that comfort will make the transition easier. Do this early. It takes the emotion out of it. -Know your rights with parental leave and a flexible return to work…. . Continued in comments…..

A post shared by ADELE BARBARO (@real_mumma) on Jan 5, 2019 at 12:07am PST

After posting her photo, Adele learned that the most important thing when it comes to car seat safety is to have the seat installed correctly — with the right level of incline. Given that she had the seat professionally installed and on full incline, she’s now questioning the seat itself.

Adele concluded with an apology to her readers for accidentally sharing an ill-advised tip:

“I am not perfect. I don’t always get it right, just like every mum. And although it was a funny post, I would never share anything that I thought was unsafe for children.”