"Cry it out" in the car?

NicKL

Not every time, but occasionally my son decides he is absolutely furious that he has to be in his car seat. He screams like he is being killed, turns deep red, etc. I double check that he isn't being pinched or anything, and if I pick him up, he sobs for a bit but is fine. We have had to pull over several times now so I can get him out, calm him down, and get him back in. Today we tried to let him "cry it out", he lasted about 10 full minutes before I caved and we pulled over. We ended up being late for his pediatric pulmunology appointment which was really important. We can't just not go places we need to be, and I there are times when we just can't pull over. I am putting CIO in quotes because its not like i'm leaving in his crib when I could go get him, he's got to be in a carseat, obviously.  I can't even begin to imagine what will happen when I go somewhere alone, I've been lucky to have my husband with me so far. 

 

Anyone else have this issue? How long do you let them cry? Is it going to take me an hour to get anywhere forever?

elisbu

I sit in the backseat for this exact reason.

Don't know what I'll do when I'm alone with her. Probably pull over and pick her up as soon as I can?

fluffybuns

If we are going somewhere that isn't too far, I just have to let her cry. I have a 2 year old and she would be upset if we stopped. I just have to hope that she won't cry long. If she's fed/changed and should other wise be happy, I just go about my business. She screamed the entire 30 minute commute today! Sad, but it just had to be.

ZTAsunshine

DD#1 hated car rides for the first six months of her life.  The only time she would not cry is when one of us was back there with us.  Then we got smart- and started putting her white noise sound machine in the carseat with her.  Put her right to sleep.  We also made sure that she wasn't in heavy clothing- she sweat in the carseat if she was in there for more than 10 minutes. 

Hang in there momma, he will outgrow it.

heysupnatalie

This literally JUST happened to me. I went out to my moms which is a 45 minute drive and he was fine the way there then we went to the mall. Slept most of the time and then when we were headed back home he started screaming bloody murder. It was so sad. I was just going to let him CIO because we were halfway home already and there wasn't really anywhere to pull over. However my mom flipped out because his crying was making her sad, so she forced me to pull over and then she proceeded to take him out of his carseat and hold him til he fell asleep then put him back in. The problem with that was we were then late picking my sister up from school and she was pretty pissed but whatever. Usually I sit in the backseat with him but obviously with me driving that wasn't an option.
Then when we went to pick up my FI from work-since we are sharing 1 car at the moment, he was screaming on our way back so FI got out and gave him a pacifier and he was fine.

When I am driving alone however I have a feeling I am going to end up pulling over more often than not. I did talk to him loudly today and sang him songs on the radio to keep him calm on the way home from my moms though and that seemed to work, but he wasn't SUPER fussy. 

tokenhoser

When we went to visit my sister, we took a 4 hour road trip with her family. DH, my sister, and the 4 month old baby took one car and the rest of us were in another.

The baby cried the whole way, other than when we stopped. His mom was right beside him the whole time. It didn't matter.

He's a well adjusted 4 year old today. You have to do what you have to do. He won't remember it, and if you're otherwise able to attend his needs quickly... you have to do what you have to do. He will outgrow it, but it might not be for months.

luvnmysi21

I generally sit in the back with the baby, however when I'm driving and alone, I let her cry it out.  Hurts me to hear, but she generally cries herself to sleep.  In general she's been pretty calm, but it tends to be when I stop at a light that she starts to get fussy.  I also haven't gone anywhere farther than a 20-30 min drive and she generally cries for 10 or so minutes.  I don't know how long road trips would be tho.

Angel0423

I sit in the back with her, but once I go back to work it'll just be her and DH.  I hope she gets used to the car before then!!

cherokeemomma87

I let her cry. I do the same thing you do, check to make sure that she isnt being piched or anything. I make sure that she is fed, changed and burped before we go anywhere and she will still start screaming when I put her in the carseat. She hasnt lasted longer than 15-20 minutes, and most of the time the car ride will put her to sleep. I think that you just have to tough it out, HTH, GL!!!

nycteach

I'm alone with DD and DS a lot.  I have to take DD to and from nursery school everyday, which is about a 10 minute drive.  It's not practical for me to stop if he cries so unfortunately we keep going and DD and I just try to talk to him.  He doesn't really mind the car seat and it hasn't been too bad so far. 

If DH is with me, we're further away from home and it's safe to stop, we will pull over. 

ktusten

my kid is opposite! he loves his car seat and sleeps in it all the time....he fusses when we stop driving at a light or traffic jam..... he just wants to move

iris427

A lot of babies go through this phase.  My daughter used to scream her head off in the car every time for months.  No matter what I tried, she could not be consoled.  Eventually she just outgrew it.  Your baby will not be psychologically damaged from crying in the car.  I think you're better off just getting to where you're going instead of pulling over every time they cry.

AshBow171

This post has made me feel so much better. Elsie and I took our first long distance road trip to visit family. I stopped 5 times in 3 hours and then I just thought "OMG we are never going to get there if we keep stopping." So I let her cry and it seriously broke my heart. Eventually (like 20 minutes later) she fell asleep and stayed asleep for over 2 hours. I felt terrible but she survived and I survived and we made it to our destination.

NeverEnoughTime

My friend has these seatbelt covers that have little teddy bears on them... (similar to link)

https://cgi.ebay.co.uk/GIRAFFE-BABY-INFANT-CHILD-CAR-SEAT-BELT-STRAP-COVER-BN-/310262862244?pt=UK_Baby_BabyCarSeatAccessories_SM&hash=item483d1b91a4

 

and she said when her son starts to flip out, he eventually finds the teddy bear and sucks on it and self soothes.

I bought them at walmart for $4 but havent installed them yet.

Lisa Frank

Just because your child cries, doesn't make it "cry it out." I hate that people use this phrase when talking about a crying child that is not being sleep trained. 

And like others have said, it's going to happen. Shoot, your kid is going to cry. It's okay to let them to do that, considering it's their only form of communication right now.  You aren't a bad mom because you need to get where you are going and your baby isn't enjoying the ride.