Baby hates being in the car!!! HELP

[[M]umma[M]ia]

DD is 3 months old. Shes never loved the car but did ok in there until about a month ago. We have just done a big stint in the car (18 hours all up, broken up). It was torture, the minute she was put in there. She screams blue murder to the point where she chokes and struggles to breath because she is so worked up. She point blank refuses to sleep in the car at all so being very overtired makes the screaming worse. I have tried toys, dvd player, sitting in the back, infants friend, stomach calm, colic releif, shhhing, rocking, patting, singing.. you name it, i feel like ive tried it. We live in the country, so we are in the car almost every day going to appointments etc. What can I do? Is there anything I can do?? I feel like a terrible mother and it makes me really upset when shes like that. HELP

[~ Mylitta ~]

It's heart-wrenching isn't it?! Both my kids went through a stage at about that age where they would just scream in the car and there was absolutely nothing that would calm them. I would sit in the back and stroke their heads and sing and do anything I could to try to calm them, and they would still just scream and look at me with that "Mummy why aren't you picking me up" face. It would have me in tears.

The good news is that they both grew out of it in about a month or two (longest month or two ever!). Now they are both happy and content in the car, so it hasn't scarred them or anything like that.

I hope your little girl grows out of it quickly!

[Eenee]

DD used to be like that in the car also. But now the car is the only place she goes to sleep.

Don't know hun it's horrible when they get so upset in the car.

[Heaven]

Oh it's so horrible. Both my DDs have been that way. DD1 was worse and didn't do well in the car until around 18 months. And they both haven't been babies who will fall asleep in the car either. It has been a nightmare at times. And I still have no idea what to do I'm sorry. I just avoid long trips as much as possible

[Butterfly Dawn]

have you tried pulling the car seat out and just having it round for her to sit in and play in, so she gets use to it and smells like home

[bubno.3]

Omg that would be awlful.....
Is the seat still backward or facing forward? I would turn it around faceward and see if that helpsshe can see out the same direction as the car is going..... Put the normal radio/music on up loud to drown her out ..... Ykwim .
Oh and if you have your car windows down don't forget that revolting noise one window can make could be aggrevating and hurting her ears hense the crying ..... But really apart from trying to ignore her I haven't a clue sorry.

[PumpkinZulu]

Is the seat still backward or facing forward? I would turn it around faceward and see if that helpsshe can see out the same direction as the car is going.....

I know MM would never do this, but I need to say it for anyone else reading that isn't aware. Turning a 3 month old baby forward facing is incredibly dangerous. Please never do it.

[HotI]

Is the seat still backward or facing forward? I would turn it around faceward and see if that helpsshe can see out the same direction as the car is going.....

The bub is only 3 months old, it is illegal and unsafe to turn the car seat around at this age.

My DD also hated the car when she was younger, i also live country and so most of my drives are longer ones. I knew all the safe pull over points between here and Melbourne too well! A mirror for bub to look into (and see the driver) helped a little. definitely worth trying if you don't have one. Is the sun in bub's eyes?

good luck

[[M]umma[M]ia]

Yep, have tried taking the carseat out and sitting it in the lounge room and playing with her. Shes happy but not for long but longer than being in the car.

Turning the carseat around is not an option and i would rather have a scream than put her life at risk.

We turn the music up but it makes no difference.

We have very dark tinted windows and there is a blind on her side aswell.. so no sun in her eyes.

Been talking to DF about it and we are wondering if she is getting motion sickness. Keeping in mind she has reflux and colic aswell. In the old car a put a blanket over the window (tucked into the door) so he couldnt see outside at all and she was fine then? Maybe worth another shot? I also held her yesterday in the posistion the car seat was in (if that makes sense) and within 20 seconds she was screaming. Maybe a trip to the chiropractor while we are on holidays? (We are leaving on saturday for the big drive home but this time we are only doing 7 hours at a time with an overnight stay in the middle).

[HotI]

My DD had colic too, and i think this made car trips uncomfortable. Good luck with the chiro.

[DANNIIM]

Chiro might help considering they do get pretty scrunched up in there seat.

[~ Mylitta ~]

I'm a supporter of baby chiro as well. Their little bodies go through a lot of contorting to get born so a bit of chiro can be really helpful.

Also, maybe you can take you car to a place that installs baby car seats and ask them if it is safe to have the seat raised a little at the head end to see if that helps with colic. I was surprised how different cars can make the seat sit at different angles and both times we've had car seats installed professionally we've been asked to bring towels along so that they could put them underneath to position the seats correctly. You might find that her seat can be safely tilted more so that her colic may improve.

[LuluHB]

Is your LO in a seat or a capsule? Both my girls screamed blue murder in capsules but were much happier when we put them in the Meridian.

[FarmGirl]

A couple of things spring to mind for me.

The first is the heat of the seat. My daughter hated being in her car seat if I had the shoulder pads and buckle pad in. She just got too hot and was so sweaty when we arrived at our destination.

The other thing is the padding under the babies head. Every bump and bounce along the road is felt through the baby seat which their tiny heads rest on. Are you able to put some more padding between the car seat cover and the hard shell. I just got some memory foam from Clark rubber and cut it to fit around the seat belt.

A dummy can help with colic, and it also helps with 'popping' their ears if you have to go up or down any mountains.

Last but not least, have you tried giving her a bottle in the carseat? My daughter is breastfed, but I expressed a small bottle for her and gave this to her as we started our journey. It was enough distraction to get going and soon had her feeling sleepy as well.

All the best, sounds like you have a tough road ahead.

[Butterfly Dawn]

A motion sickness band might help, or my grandma use to give me a lemon to smell that could help?