Like other dads, 25-year-old David Hulley wanted to spend more time with his newborn son, Karson Winter-Hulley. The baby was fed at 5:30 in the morning and he decided to sleep with him on the sofa. When he woke up, he could not believe that he will be experiencing every parent’s nightmare – SIDS.

“He went off to sleep and I fell asleep with him on the sofa…”

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) happens. And sadly, this young dad had one of these heartbreaking experiences. Now, he hopes to bring awareness from his story.

Recalling the events leading to the tragedy, he said, “We had him sleeping in the bedroom in a cot next to us. Beverley took him up to his cot and he went to bed okay. He woke up wanting to be picked up at about 5:30 am. If he wanted something he was good at letting you know he wanted it. I picked him up and went downstairs and he wanted a feed so I put him on the sofa amongst cushions so he was safe whilst I made him a bottle. I then went back in and picked him up and sat with him.”

He added, “He seemed to calm down and snuggled into me. I was comforting him whilst the bottle warmed up, I was just admiring him and amazed by him. He went off to sleep and I fell asleep with him on the sofa. I wasn’t fully lying down, I was right up against the back and he was on my arm. I just dozed off.”

When David woke up the Karson was unresponsive. He said, “I ran upstairs and said to Beverly I think something’s wrong with him. Beverly tried kissing his mouth but she couldn’t feel anything.”

They called for emergency assistance and the unresponsive baby was immediately brought to the hospital. Karson was pronounced dead later in the hospital despite the doctors’ efforts to revive him. The couple was told their baby passed away from SIDS.

David shared, “We both loved Karson very much. Beverley had a difficult pregnancy with Karson and was told his long bones were shorter than usual. We were worried because of the way it was handled, the midwife was like a bull in a china shop, but when we saw a doctor they put us at ease. They just said he was a small baby.” Even though Karson’s mom, Beverly Winter, 24, went through a difficult pregnancy with him, the doctors reported ‘no concerns following his birth.’

One of the medical staffs explained that Karson was quite a small baby for his age. He had no outside injuries or marks and was perfectly normal. He had signs of a common cold, but he was well.

New parents are sometimes unsure of what to do. Many of them are afraid that they might hurt their fragile and helpless newborn. Babies depend so much on their mom and dad. And sometimes, keeping them close gives them peace of mind that their baby is safely sleeping beside them. Even though co-sleeping is highly discouraged because of the dangers of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), many parents still think this will not happen to their baby.