Crying in the Car Every Time!!!

I had a daughter that cried every time we went somewhere and we never knew her problem until she was old enough to tell us! She was car sick! She still gets car sick and is 32 years old! If she is riding in the front seat she is fine, but not the back.

This won't help you much but this happened to us too. My son finally grew out of it around 4 - 4.5 months old. Now he sleeps in the car not matter how long the trip is.

I don't really have any other ideas, but just a little hope. My younger daughter was the same way - she SCREAMED every time we got in the car and she HATED the pacifier... But she's now 3 months old now and seems to have "outgrown" her hatred of the car already! Now the only time we have trouble is if we try to go somewhere at night. The big thing is getting him to and from where you are going safely, so don't get so caught up in trying to get him to calm down that you aren't paying attention to driving!

Both my boys did for the 1st 4 months of their life!! Right after that, it quit. My friends little girl did the same, I'm not sure when she stopped but it was older than my boys. Sorry to not have a fix-it solution;o( I'm just saying from everyone I know, it is pretty normal.

Just make sure he is comfortable, fed, clean diaper and that is about all you can do till ya'll get out of the car.

I know it can be VERY hard on your nerves but it will eventually end.

My daughter did this as well. I truly feel your pain. My older daughter (then 2 1/2) just put her hands over her ears. Poor thing. I just had to laugh about it or I'd go nutty. It did quit. Just hang in there!

We found, by accident, that one song...and only one song, at that age would stop the tears in their tracks! For some reason it was "Old MacDonald"...so my husband and I would sing many many verses of that song (Once for almost 6 hours from Western PA to Eastern MD)! It got to the point where we went thru the alphabet several times and ended up singing about armadillos, locusts, and wildebeasts LOL!
Now at 1 1/2, "I'm a little teapot" does the trick!

Try out a bunch of songs...and sing louder than than the crying and see what happens! Good luck!
(We also used a pacifier clip so it was easier for her to find her "Bink" if it fell out)

C.,

I normally would have no clue on this. My kids are well past that age/stage at 18 and 14! But just today, while have a "pre-holiday and pre-stress power lunch" with some friends one woman talked about her now 6th grader who didn't like to ride in the car. It was only after several other issues she and her husband somehow figured out that she had some tactile issues. Some touching/feeling issues. Something about riding in the car, strapped in the car seat made her feel uncomfortable. She said there was a book called the Out of Synch child (or something like that) that described it very well.

Just a thought, and it may not have anything to do with it, but thought I'd throw it in.

Lori K

Sounds familiar but that was 5 years ago...lol...do you have something to distract him like a toy bar above the carseat? Is he crying b/c he's in the carseat? Sometime just letting them nap at home will get them more used to it. Do you sing to him at home? If not, start doing it, and then use those same songs to sing to him in the car...although he can't see your face, hearing your voice will be soothing.

Unfortunately, sometimes you just have to stick it out. It's unnerving as hell. I KNOW!!! You might also want to ask the Dr. to check the little guys ears...my son went undiagnosed with fluid on his ears, so there is a very real possibility that there is a medical condition giving him such discomfort. You know is cries by now, is it a hurt cry or something else? Go with your gut on this one sweetie...he may be your first born but your mother's instinct is generally right on no matter what other's may say.

Oh, one more idea. Perhaps the motion is something that is causing him problems...Do you have a swing? Might be something you would want to invest in and see how he does in that? Perhaps, it could be training him to be used to motion? My daughter HATED the swing initially but soon came to love it. Unfortunately, she was 10.65lb at birth so by the time she grew to love it, she was outgrowing it too...lol.

Yup. One of mine did that. I really sympathize with you.
You can try getting a different car seat, do what you can to entertain, or make him more comfortable, etc. Maybe you'll get lucky.
Mine, however didn't stop until she was old enough for her car seat to face forward. Even then she fussed a lot until she was able to sit up higher and see out the windows.
Wish I had better news for you, but that was our experience.
She was an otherwise very laid back and easy goin' little girl, but the car was a nightmare no matter what we did.
You can imagine how much we enjoyed (NOT !) our every-other-week-end, three (plus) hour drives to Gramma's house !

My son did the same thing! We figured out that it's not the vehicle that he didnt like. He just hated being in his carseat. That eventually ended, thankfully. There is hope in your future! lol. But what we did is one of us would sit in the backseat with him and entertain him with toys or hold his bottle. Sometimes when it was just me driving I would prop a bottle up for him (I know it's a no-no but I was desperate) and just check on him every couple mins. He would usually fall asleep like that anyway. Also I got a toy that straps to the carseat handle that he could touch and play with that also made noise/music. That was helpful. He still dislikes his carseat but he tolerates it more now.

my daughter had colic and cried in the car too. She just hated it and a lot of times would throw up on even small trips and figured it made her stomach feel worse and she did get car sick a lot until she was 5. I just had to carry extra clothes in the car at all times and dealt with the crying and really didn't get out too much those first 6 months because it was just too hard. Her colic lasted for 5 1/2 months. She cried daily from 3:00 until 8:00 and fussed in the car almost every trip so was easier to stay home but we did go to church every week and managed to go grocery shopping but that was about it.

I have SO been there! My son did the exact same thing at about that age, and it lasted for about a month. It was awful. There were only two things that ever seemed to help (and I tried all the things you said you tried, too). #1 was rocking/walking him to sleep and carefully putting him in the carseat while asleep (yes, I could be seen putting my son to sleep in the parking garage some days!). #2 was covering him, seat and all, with a thin receiving blanket. For some reason, not being able to see and/or thinking it was dark soothed him. If he pulled it down, he could suck on it more easily than his pacifier, too.

Good luck, mama. If your kiddo is like mine, one day he will quietly ride in his seat, and you will wonder what all that fuss was about!!

I know EXACTLY what you men. My son did the same thing for about the first 3 and half months.(Now almost 5 mo) About that time we went to one of those car seat check places and they told us our car seat was too old. I guess they are supposed to be replaced every 5-6 years for safety. They offered us a new car seat at a reduced rate. We got one and now he really only cries when he is overly tired/hungry.
We live at least 20 minutes from town, so going shopping wasn't any fun. I know I wanted to try anything to get him to stop crying when we got in the car. I just had no idea that it could have been as simple as getting a new car seat.
I hope you can find something that works, hopefully these posts will help. Remember you aren't alone.

My son went through a stage like this is it possible to arrange your doctors appointments so that someone is in the back seat? What about the sun is he sensitive to it? Maybe the busy outside is intimidating? Maybe try putting him to sleep before getting in and having the car already running? It might be the car seat... maybe try putting him in the seat occasionally while at home so that he has a chance to get used to it.
Hope things work out!

Are you sure there is nothing in the carseat that is hurting him? Does he have anything to look at while you are driving? Try distractions that aren't distracting to you. It is just a phase but please don't think he can't breathe because he can. It is a natural human instinct to breathe, he may catch his breathe while crying but he will overcome it.

Good luck,
D.

Good Morning C.. Does your little guy enjoy music in his room? If so and if you have a CD player in the car get a baby Einstein lullaby CD. Has very soothing music on it. Or the Baby Classical CD. Turn it UP...lol

I do this with our two youngest gr son's they stay quiet a long time. I also have a Story Time CD with Maggielocks and the 3 bears, Princess and the Pea. I think there are 10-12 childrens storys with fun voices, and characters.

Anyway C. you might give the CD of Lullabys a try. It sure can't hurt, and it might even help.

God Bless
K. Nana of 5
ps all else fails wear earplugs :)

My son did the same thing when he was little. I tried driving home from my parents who lived 5 hours away and it was miserable. The good thing is that he outgrew it. He is now 5 years old and when he was smaller slept a lot of the time when we drove. Just make sure he's not too hot/cold and not a wet diaper. If you are using a pacifer - try to give that to him before you pull out. Other than that - turn up the music! :)

C., Kooper is perfectly normal. My oldest daughter Leila did the exact same thing, even the crying until she couldn't breathe. In fact, I know a lot of moms who went through that too. If you and Jacob are in the car, have you tried sitting back there with Kooper? I used to have to do that with Leila! There really isn't too much you can do, but wait for him to get a little older. I don't want to scare you but Leila didn't grow out of that until we were able to turn her carseat around to face forward...so that made her 1 by the time she actually enjoyed being in the car! hahaha. I know it's hard to hear your baby crying, but just remember that it's normal and that he'll soon enjoy the car...and most important, always remember that other moms have went through it too, you're not alone!!! :)

He may be getting carsick, without the vomiting. My son did the same thing, as as he got older, the vomiting began when we went for a drive. We had to get him some wristbands for carsickness (Walgreens). Talk to your pediatrician.

How about turning on the radio and singing to him? Or if you don't like that type of music for him get some baby tapes with nursery rhymes and do that. good luck

My suggestion is to check how tight the belt is on your carseat. It sounds like he's uncomfortable. Maybe he's too hot or cold. I've had to stop the car and just hold mine for a little while, too, before I start driving again. Good luck

Our son is now 16 months old and until he was about six months old he would scream at the top of his lungs for the entire 70 mile commute we made several times a week. He also would not EVER fall asleep. Unfortunately, nothing made him an easier traveller. We even avoided holidays because we couldn't handle the screaming for the four hour drive to my in-laws. (It took us 11 hours to make a 4 hour drive the first time.) I know exactly what you are going through though. Hang in there. He was very difficult when he was smaller but now he rarely stops smiling and is such a joy. It gets better!! Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

I wasn't able to read everyone's response, so this may be a repeat. My son is (was) the same way. He is now 15 months & does much better. But he still doesn't like being in the car any longer than an hour or so before he starts to want out. What works for him is we downloaded a few kid albums on my ipod & found what he liked. This helps A LOT!!! My son likes music and so this works for him. When he was younger singing to him worked better, maybe because it was my voice?

I also have heard that some babies just don't like being in the car or the car seat so he may just be uncomfortable, which is something you can't do much about! I think you are on the right track with making sure he is fed, fresh diaper, and also making sure he isn't too hot or too cold.

As far as the pacifier, I know this isn't too safe, but I used to have his pacifier with the clip & clip it to his carseat so I would lean back and put it back in his mouth. You somehow become good at this after awhile!! Good luck & it does get better!

I spent many car rides singing Bingo nonstop....I can still sing it in my sleep. It just happened to be what my daughter liked to hear. Other than finding your son's song, you might try turning the radio to static. That sometimes helps. I feel your pain and I hope things improve for you soon.

Is the sun getting into his eyes? It could be that he hates his carseat. My son who is now 4 hated his infant seat and cried if he was in it. Luckily we lived close to everythingso it was not so horrible after I got used to it. Try some soothing music in the car for him maybe. Unfortunantly that is all I have to offer on this subject. I hope you figure out what is causing the crying but until then stay sane. :-)

I guess by this reading you have checked his "comfort zone" so if he is sitting comfortable and is not too hot or cold, and you have tried feeding/not feeding and made sure he does not have colic, then nothing is left but to have qa talk with him-first turn your "tunes" off or down where they are not heard, then ask him what makes him so sad? He is hearing your voice and most kids love that. Maybe sing him a song or play some of his tunes with a CD player-Raffi or other childrens songs are quite fun and easy for us Moms to listen to and sing along with also. The hardest thing here is that it is driving you crazy! Ok I have a feeling you will survive-then something else will come your way so hang in there and sing to yourself and if it is childrens music well it might just work for him-at least it will take your mind off it. Have you taken him anywhere else? That may be a trigger also-if all he knows is the Dr. and he gets shots and stuff I can understand where his thinking is. He may be somewhat possesive of you and let him know he is part of the "game" and will not be left out when you do things like the grocery-relax Mom he is testing you too. They start early and play you hard! Be tough but gentle and all will fall in place very soon. good luck to ya.

I understand comepletely! My 4 month old was the same way for quite awhile. Two suggestions that might work: get some classical music to play and/or crack the car window. The noise is similar to a white noise and soothes my son. We recently spent a six hour drive doing just that to help soothe him. Good luck! It will get better with age and as his ability to engage with toys increases