In Memory of Journi: West Point Family Joins Effort to Boost Safe Sleep Practices

WEST POINT, Mississippi — During her short life, Journi Price was a blessing to her family.

Her parents, Justina and Joshua Price, hope that Journi’s life and the family’s grief over her death can bring more attention to safe sleep practices for infants and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, commonly known as SIDS.

“When you go through certain things, you’re supposed to use that experience to help others,” Justina said.

Journi was just over 2 months when she didn’t wake up on the morning of July 24, 2021. The family does not yet have an official cause of death, but they expect it will be classified as SIDS.

Reducing risks

There are still many unanswered questions about sleep-related infant death. Current research suggests that SIDS deaths are a confluence of unseen brain abnormalities, critical development periods that interrupt the infant’s ability to regulate breathing, heart rate and body temperature and outside stressors like stomach sleep position, overheating, secondhand smoke or an upper respiratory tract infection, according to the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. By removing the outside stressors, the risk of SIDS and sleep-related deaths decreases.

Parents can take specific steps to ensure their baby has the safest possible sleep environment, says Keith Krist, M.D., a pediatrician with West Point Children’s Clinic, who is leading an initiative with North Mississippi Health Services to emphasize safe sleep practices for newborns.

“The first one is well-known,” Dr. Krist said. “Back to sleep for every sleep, day or night, every time.”

Placing babies on their backs to sleep helps keep their airways open, especially for infants too young to roll over on their own.

Room sharing without bed sharing is another step that parents can take, Dr. Krist said. Room sharing can allow parents to pick up on signs of distress and know what is normal for their baby.

Bed sharing with their parents puts babies in an environment that is potentially risky, Dr. Krist said. Pillows, blankets and comforters pose a risk of suffocation. Parents can inadvertently roll over, and babies can get knocked off the bed or trapped between the bed and the wall.

“There are too many opportunities for bad things to happen when babies share adult beds,” Dr. Krist said.  

All that babies need in their cribs is a firm, tight-fitting mattress and a fitted sheet. Overstuffed linens, pillows, bumper pads and stuffed animals increase the risk of accidental suffocation.

Babies also don’t need lots of extra layers to be comfortable at night. A sleeper and a light swaddle are fine. Babies who are rolling over should have their arms free for bedtime.

“You want to keep them comfortable, not overheated,” Krist says. “Overheating because of layers of blankets and clothing can led to stress, which can contribute to crib death.”

Even though parents want to do everything they can to protect their children, sleep monitors and other technology do not appear to help reduce the incidence of sleep-related deaths.

“They just aren’t reliable and give a false sense of security,” Dr. Krist said.

Journi’s story

Journi and her twin brother, Jermoni, were born May 23, 2021, weighing in at 4 pounds each. Journi was a happy baby, her mother remembered.

“I would sit up with her,” Justina said. “She would coo and smile.”

On the night of July 23, everything had been normal when Justina gave the twins their late-night feeding, Justina said. The twins slept on their backs in a twin bassinet, with a divider giving each baby its own space. Jermoni woke up about 5 a.m. Justina took care of him and prepped bottles and clothing, anticipating Journi would wake up soon. After changing Jermoni, she checked on Journi and found her unresponsive. Joshua responded to Justina’s distress. They called 911 and followed the ambulance to the hospital.

“I remember screaming and crying,” Justina said. “It took God to get us through it.”

On the twins’ birthday this year, the family held a balloon release to remember Journi.

Justina, who is a childcare professional, has long been an advocate for Back to Sleep and other safe sleep practices.  While it didn’t change the story for Journi, they hope sharing their experience will change the story for someone else.

“We lost Journi and we didn’t even know the cause,” Justina said. “We just want to help. We know how much it hurts.”

Safe sleep practices can reduce the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related infant death in the first year of life. Here are some tips parents, grandparents and caregivers can use to reduce the risk to babies.

• Always place babies on their back to sleep, for naps and at night.

• Use a firm sleep surface, covered by a fitted sheet.

• Skip crib bumpers, toys, soft objects or loose bedding.

• Babies should sleep alone in their own crib.

• Do not smoke or allow smoking around the baby.

• Breastfeed your baby if possible.

• Give your baby a dry pacifier that is not attached to a string for naps and at night.

• Give babies plenty of Tummy Time when they are awake and someone is watching.

For videos and other resources, visit nmhs.net/safe-sleep/