car sickness - what do you do?

[M1SSUNDERSTOOD]

Hi
My youngest Ds has always been a bad traveller and is frequently sick on long(ish) journeys. Short of carrying spare clothes how do you deal with this?

I have suffered from travel sickness for most of my life. My Mum just thought I was really grumpy as a child until I started being sick every car journey.

Never let you ds read anything in the car. Encourage him to look out of the front window and keep and eye on the road ahead. Avoid twisty roads!
Make sure he has eaten enough and stop for regularly for snacks and fresh air.

Hope that helps - I am better in the front seat when I can see the road ahead so my brain is ready for what is coming - so when I was a child in the back I would watch out the front and it did help.

That's great thanks. He's only just turned 3 though and doesn't tell us how he feels until it's too late. But will try to remind him to do this.

joy rides travel sickness pills are great and canm be used in young children. you can get them in any chemist.

if you own your own car then you can get a chain type thing that goes from your car to the road grounding the car. my dad got one and it worked wonders for my sister.

I also am very travel sick, and my DDs are too. Heat seems to aggravate it, so i would recommend anything that will keep him cool...sun reflectors, small battery/plug-in fan, water spray, windows open, etc.

We also find sleeping really helps, so any drowsiness inducing medication (within reason)!

I didn't know you could have an anti sickness device on a car! That's fantastic. Pity can't have it on buses as we have trouble on those too.

I still get terribly car sick at 34! travel bands from boots work. My mum always had a lego bucket with lid for me on long journeys

My ds (6yrs) started suffering from travel sickness last year. We have now resorted to 'joy rides' travel sickness medication for longer journeys and they seemed to work a treat. Here are some of the other things we do:

drive smoothly! try not to break/accelerate to fast or corner too fast. Difficlult sometimes I know, but it makes a difference to ds.

Have plastic bags in back pocket to be sick in. Not sure if your ds too young to do this yet.

Have cold water to drink at all times. Also useful if they are sick!

Travel bands. You can get child sized ones in chemists.

Play games that distract and get him to look out of the window. Or sing songs loudly.

Drive with ds' window open as much as possible.

Put ds' car seat in middle of back seat so he can look out of the front window more easily.

Hope some of these help. I get car sick too (unless I am driving) so I can sympathise.

Both dd1 and myself suffer from travel sickness - mine started at 10 months!

Def no reading, helps to distract eg singing, playing games eg spot a red car etc. I also echo fresh air and looking out of the front - could he sit in the middle of the back seat? DD1 does in our Picasso.

This might sound yucky, but believe me it's better than sick everywhere! We have a large plastic tub with a very well fitting lid for when it eventually happens - it always does on long or twisty journeys! Sounds gross, but the wide 'neck' means that from age 2, she could be sick in it without it going everywhere. Especially useful when there is virtually no notice and you can't stop! Lid then gets put tightly on and it can be emptied and washed out at next toilet stop!

massive x post there lol!!

Has anyone else ever had a bad reaction to the travel sickness bands? Put them on DD2 at one point and she threw up before she even got into the bus!

the funny thing is when we went on a cruise DS was fine and I was the one who was sick as a dog but fine after I took anti sickness pills

hi i heard ginger is good for sickness don't know what form you could get it in tho for a little one maybe you could research it on the net....

Ginger snap biscuits do you think? I like the idea of the sick box though it would be gross to empty. I also saw a liner in Mothecare which goes on car seat for just such an eventuality and can then be washed. Better to be safe than sorry (or should that be sick?)

Great minds, madamy

I find when someone is driving me, especially in a mnaual car, it is the very slight chnages in speed when the driver puts their foot on clutch (even without changing gear) that makes my stomach churn.

Maybe the boat was smoother so ds did not feel it.

Now that ds is older, it is much easier as he can wan us of an impending upchuck. We frequently drop him and dh a couple of miles before we get home for them to walk the rest of the way as he is feeling as though he is going to be sick.

The worst though is if there is no-where to stop

Never travel backwards (on a coach or whatever). Never take your eyes from looking out the window. Don't read anything or look at DVD etc.

Travel bands work with dd, not me.

Sipping on a lime makes you feel better, dunno why!

just read on another site from a lady suffering same with her 3 year old she was told by a pediatrician ginger snap cookies triple ginger ones from trader Joes whom ever he may be helps..

Bleurgh I get shocking travel sickness ,I find sweets like sherbet lemons help but at three he is too young for those .
Don't travel backwards and don't read.

Fold a piece of kitchen roll up and pop it on your childs tummy under their clothes. tell them it stops them feeling sick.

Sit them on a piece of newspaper. tell them that will stop them feeling sick too.

Not sure if this would work with very young children, but it has proven effects with slightly older ones, 4+

I sometimes am obliged to get in the car with my 2 year old, and always dread it as DD often gets car sick and hates getting in the car.
But once we are on the road we are distracted by a pleasant nursery tunes CD.
If DD is dozing off, I turn it down to encourage sleep.

Here are some tips that work for us:
-Travel on a not very full stomach. NEVER let DD drink a whole carton of Innocent Smoothie (?The Exorcist? meets ?Speed?) or too much acidic fruit like blueberries (ditto).
-Try to drive smoothly.
-Best vomit catcher: a large round Tupperware pot, with a sealable freezer bag as a liner. EXCELLENT.
-Wristbands seem to work generally.
-Choose a sleepy time, DD is not sick when asleep.
-Opening the windows on quieter roads helps.
-After the sickness, offer sips of water and perhaps nibbles of rice cake or cracker.
-Don?t forget wipes, kitchen roll, easy change of clothes.

this is what works for my DS:

• COLD car, use AC and take all outer layers of clothes off
• avoid any acidy food/drink, apple juice is a sure way to induce vomit
• avoid milk just before travelling
• ignore idiots behind you and take corners and bumps very, very carefully
• alter route to avoid speed bumps
• drive at bed time for long journeys if possible
• no toys or books in car although in car DVD is fine as I think he just needs to look ahead of him for that

good luck

I find Joy Rides do the trick!

For fear of sounding like an old hippy, homeopathy works REALLY well - not the stuff from the chemist, but the proper stuff from a homeopath. An old friend of mine used to practice it, even cured my puking dog of car sickness! i wouldnt hesitate with my carsick DC.

My daughter has now stopped being car sick, she is older (3yrs old) and can perhaps focus on the road ahead.

My dd has suffered with car sickness since about 3, we used to use Joy Rides but she seemed to feel worse after taking them, I think it's because they can make your mouth so dry. Now she takes Traveleeze, I think you can use them from 2yrs, they are fab, they are a pastille so just like a sweet & last either 12 or 24 hours so great for my dd (now 6) as she can take one at home & be fine all day of on a school trip. She sometimes still complains of feeling sick but have found she needs to have water to sip & sucky sweets work well too. We use travelbands, they sometimes work but not always. I've never heard of those anti static things, they sounds great, how do they work?