[waxhawfamily]

Our DS seems to get car sick with every trip over 30 minutes if he is not asleep.

This started on the 3 hour ride from the orphanage to our hotel in Moscow. It was horrible for him, being sick, being with strangers, being in a car for so long. I really felt bad, but I assumed it was nerves. He threw up for the last 2 1/2 hours of our 3 hour drive. The 45 minute ride to the airport was no better (only shorter, thank goodness!).

Again, I hoped it was nerves, but we are repeating the pattern here as well. My parents live 2 hours away and I long to visit more often, but it's difficult to be alone in the car with DS and our 5 yr old. No matter what I do, our 5 yr old MUST go to the bathroom at least once during the 2 hour drive. When he has to go, we have to stop, which wakes Andre up - otherwise DS may sleep the whole way and not get sick. When he gets sick, we have to pull over, clean him as best we can. We calm him down, and get him fresh air until we feel he can ride again. The 2 hour ride pushes 3 hours when this happens.

We also have two vacations coming up in the next 6 months. One is a 4 hour drive, the other is an 8 hour drive - which we will try to do at night.

Any tips regarding car sickness?????

[mikeintexas]

I get very motion sick, not just in cars but also on planes. There is the Dramamine which may help. You'd need to check with your pediatrician about the dosage. It will make him very sleepy and really that is what you need to happen.

The other thing is that my parents always put me in the front seat as the effects weren't as bad there as in the back seat. Times have changed though and front seats are out of the question most of the time. But I suspect it would help. I just don't know about the risk or legal issues involved.

Believe me, you have my sympathy on this. It is a horrible horrible thing to deal with. I haven't grown out of it...it's only gotten worse. Check on the dramamine and see what your ped says.

Mike

[momm2be]

My daughter gets carsick frequently, usually on rides > 30 minutes too. Its really rough. We have pulled over on many highways to allow her to throw up.

The best thing that helps now on the long rides is the portable DVD player. When she focuses on the DVD she does better and can withstand the 1 hour drive to Grandma's house.

I was adamant not to have a DVD player in the car. I think it is an awful habit. But this keeps her from being sick so I gave in.

[Alison_inPA]

If you can get him to look outside the car at the horizon ahead of you during the time when he's awake, that will probably help. It will probably require some reminding, though, until he makes a habit of it. Looking at something stationary in the distance helps the brain to get a point of reference and compensate for the motion.

Some people who get carsick say that mints or hard candies or gum help reduce the queasiness. For others, though, it makes it worse, as does anything else with a strong scent or taste. Our oldest girl would get carsick at times even on short rides, and she claimed that gum helped her. (She considered gum to be a necessity of life even if we weren't in the car!) She would also refuse to eat anything before getting in the car. I'm not sure that actually help with the carsickness, but she was so concerned at times about getting carsick that there was no arguing with her.

My brother has been prone to motion sickness his whole life. He believes that fresh air and a visible horizon help him the most. Any kind of scent at all in the interior of the car is likely to set him off throwing up.

[sak9645]

When I was a child who became nauseated in the camp bus on the way to day camp each day, the counselors told my Mom to buy some Coke syrup -- the stuff that is mixed with soda water to make the Coke we all know and love -- and to give a spoonful to me in the morning before I got on the bus. She tried it, and it worked beautifully.

Nowadays, it's a little harder to buy Coke syrup, since most stores don't have old fashioned "soda fountains" that mix the syrup and water. Yet it's still a good tool in fighting nausea, according to my daughter's young, well-trained pediatrician.

When my daughter had some illnesses that involved nausea and vomiting, the pediatrician said that, if I could not find Coke syrup, I should take a can of Coke (regular, not Diet) and either stir the bubbles out or wait for it to go flat, then give it to Becca.

He said that it would help to quell the nausea, AND to rehydrate her. (She was totally unwilling to drink Pedialyte.) And, lo and behold, it did.

She also developed a taste for the stuff, alas, and now that she is ten, she often bugs me for it. I don't happen to like to give caffeinated beverages to kids, except when medically necessary, so I'm afraid that I say no most of the time. She can have Sprite on special occasions.

Becca doesn't get carsick, but when she was younger, she had such a well-developed upchuck reflex that vomiting happened a lot. It was nice to know that there was something I could do about it that didn't involve sedating medications or medications with other side effects.

Sharon

[pwnort64]

Ginger is supposed to help with nausea, too. Perhaps let him nibble on some ginger snaps?

[VinSue99]

My niece used to get car sick and the doctor instructed my sister to have her look out the front window, not the side windows. The objects out the side windows go by so fast, that they dont have time to focus.....apparently that was what was making her sick.

[mikiment]

I used to get very carsick as a child, and we went on a lot of family vacations. Things that helped were locating me next to a side window that was several inches open for fresh air plus running the A/C very cold, a hard candy like a Peppermint to suck on, and Ginger Ale or "flat" soda as mentioned. Also nibbling on plain old crackers (not junk food or sweets - just made it worse.) Focusing on a spot on the horizon sometimes helped, but it's hard to get a young child to understand what you are talking about.

Reading was a HUGE no-no (and I was a bookworm) as it would definitely push me over the edge toward "Linda Blair" style hurling everytime. I personally couldn't handle the dramamine as it made me sick, but some others swear by it.

I'd also suggest traveling at night as much as possible. If I could get to sleep, I could usually do ok. If there's anything you can do to avoid stopping once your child is asleep, boy, would I try to find it.

Best of luck; it does take the fun out of road trips when your children are so uncomfortable. Hope it gets better -- thankfully I outgrew it (so sorry, Mike! I remember those days all too well.) Hope things get better for you.

[Vicki H]

Just a quick question. Have his ears been checked recently?
My Alex gets this way sometimes and it seems like this happens only when he has an ear infection.
It could be nerves as well, maybe the car makes him nervous. Some children just do not like the car ride.
I hope he feels better.

Vicki

[karenmarq]

Hi,
Another motion sickness person here, from little to big.

I need the fresh air and dramamine, but my husband, the traveler, told me about these wrist bands that I also wear. They have them at the drug store. I'm not sure about their use for children. Basically they just put extra pressure on some type of points that give you an equilibrium. I think they also have some that go behind your ears.

It is such an uncomfortable thing. Good luck and keep trying lots of different things. It may be a combination of things that will finally work.

Oh, and stay off sailboats. They are the worst!

Karen

[Javalita]

I get very carsick. I will tell you (for me) the wrist bands, looking at horizon, coke or saltines do not work. Dramamine works, but it makes me sleep. My neighbor just told me that she gives her dog ginger capsules and it works for the dog! I know they say to nibble on candied ginger (doesn't really work for me!) so I am going to try the ginger capsules too. I'll do whatever it takes!!!!!!!!!

Go to a health store and ask about ginger.