‘Pregnant Warrior’ Courtesy of https://www.flickr.com/photos/justbecause/323286270/in/photostream (Flickr Creative Commons)

By KIMBERLY GRIMM

Your home is a haven for you and your family, but once it has been tampered with by burglars, you may feel unsafe and wary of what’s going to happen next. Being pregnant can intensify this feeling.

Here are some home security measures to keep you and your home safe from harm:

Install Home Security Devices

Installing home security devices might be the best move you’ve done for your family. Being pregnant and home alone is a big risk for most at risk of having burglars at home. Home security systems include technology such as CCTV camera systems, surveillance cameras, iris scanners, lasers, motion detectors, complete with intercoms among others, which are for the sole purpose of safeguarding properties to keep up with the rising rate of violence.

Through surveillance cameras, you will be able to monitor every corner of your house even when you are sitting on the sofa and resting with your baby. Since pregnant women are almost always sleepy, keeping burglar alarm systems complete with entry alarms that automatically alert police or trigger a wailing siren to scare thieves away is important. Moreover, the sound will wake up or get the attention of neighbors who could check up on your house for intruders.

Installing security cameras is a deterrent to burglars because of their fear of having their crime captured on film. Condominium security also sees CCTV cameras as a necessity because this alerts the guards in cases of an attack.

If you are pregnant and living in a condominium, then you are in luck. Condominiums sometimes come with security personnel and built-in security and safety devices to keep the homeowners at peace. Intercoms also are installed to allow ease of communication between homeowners and the security guards in cases of emergency.

Always keep emergency hotlines handy

Have your intercom, telephone or cellular phone by your side always. Be sure to program in the numbers of your husband, close relative, neighbor, fire, police and hospital hotlines for ease of communication. Keep them on speed dial and teach your children how to use your phone as well. Have them practice this since this is helpful in every type of situation that involves security and safety.

Cutting communication lines is usually the first thing burglars when intending to rob a home and as such, cellular phones are really necessary in every household.

If you notice something unusual happening such as strange men lingering across the street or telephone lines not working – do not think twice – notify the police immediately. The next thing you need to do is secure yourself in a safe place until help arrives.

Indoor Playgrounds

Being home alone is a huge responsibility, but being pregnant with children to take care of while alone at home, doubles, even triples the responsibility that you are tasked with. You might rather keep them inside your house and rob them of the outdoor playtime. Keeping them safe is one thing, but taking away their playtime fun is over the top. The emergence of indoor playgrounds relieves parents of this worry. Make sure though that the proper safety standards are met by your indoor playground equipment.

Keep your doors and gates locked

Lock all your doors, gates and windows. Install a peephole on the door to see the people ringing the doorbell outside your house. Have your main door installed with a second lock. According to California State University Chico Police, you should not be too trusting of your neighbors especially when you are home alone. Sometimes, even your neighbors could be thieves.

Regularly check the locks, if you have kids, then have them help in checking the locks, too, but be sure to double check. Teach the kids to not open the doors to strangers.

Have a pet dog at home

Instinctively, dogs see strangers as a threat to their owners. Having a pet dog at home is a form of alarm system that requires no electricity or switch. MSN.com advises that having a “beware of dog” sign even if you don’t have an actual pooch, will make intruders think twice about entering your home

Guns?

Defending your home does not require you to have a gun inside the house, even when in some cases it may be a good weapon for defense. If you have children, a loaded gun can pose a danger to them. Try the low-risk safety methods listed above instead.