3 Year Old Flying with Cold--Ideas to Help Ears

Hi A.!
I don't know if your little girl has chewed gum before, but that is what has always worked in my family. Even a piece of hard candy or something to eat. When you're ears are needing to pop on an airplane, what helps is the production and swallowing of saliva, so anything that will get her to swallow will help you :) Just have her eat, suck, or chew on something during take-off and landing, and you should be set! I hope this helps! Good luck with your flight!
~J.

i would go with ibuprofen instead of tylenol, reduces inflamation... also, what did your doc say about allergy meds? they are on the market and they decongest as well. (just test the bendryl first so no adverse reaction). as for chewing swallowing.. lollipops and gummy snacks have been a big treat for us and not as messy as gum. have fun. oh and give the tylenol before the pain starts, or it won't work until after you've landed!

You can still buy an expectorant for her and start it right away. Expectorants melt mucus.

I can't remember now where I read this tip (knowing me it was Consumer Reports Health), but it mentioned asking a flight attendant to put a washcloth (you provide?) in the bottom of a cup (maybe even some plastic Solo type cups you have that you can throw in your purse?) and adding just enough hot water to make it steamy. Somehow the steam helps with the pressure. You'd obviously want to pour off any excess that the cloth couldn't hold for safety. Then you hold the cups over the ears to encase them. Sure, you'd have to be very careful as it is a hot liquid, but as I mentioned, if you pour off the excess I'd think you'd be fine. And at three years old I'm sure she'd understand not to tip her head to either side so a hot washcloth didn't come crashing onto her ear. And sure, it looks a bit silly to hold cups over your ears, but hey, if it works...

My daughter has been flying since she was 3years old and I have always given her benedryl for all her ear problems. I give it to her about 1/2 hour before we board the plane and this has helped her to sleep and not feel the ear pressure.

she is now 8 yrs. old and a pro at flying. She flys every year either with me or her father sometimes both. I believe she flys more than either of us.

Hi A.,

Yes, chewing during take off and landing is best. Just don't be "premature' like I was and give it to her before you've actually left the ground :O)

You can plan to give your 18mo old a bottle at the same time to be safe for him :O)

This all worked for me and my boys....

~N. :O)

Hi A.,

Hope this helps. When our daughter was barely 4 we travelled to Hawaii - a very long plane ride. We were advised by our pediatrician and confirmed by the stewards on the plane that she should be chewing during take off and landing as that would help with her ear discomfort. She had just recovered from a very long bout with an ear infection (took several medicines till they found the right one.) This may or may not help, but our Katie flew just fine both there and back to home. By the way, we bought sourdough bread at Fisherman's Wharf and that was what she was chewing and eating! Hope this helps!
With God's love,

Patti

Hi A.,
I am a JIn Shin Jyutsu practitioner. It is a form of Acupressure that can do magic for the ears in the airplane. All you have to do to open the energy to the ears is to hold the little fingers. Your daughter can do this for herself by holding them one at a time or by putting the pad of the thumb over the little fingernail, forming a circle. Or you can hold both little fingers for her. There is no special technique. Just wrap your hand around her little finger. I would hold both of them for a couple minutes before you get on the plane, then before and during take off and landing. You cannot overdo it, so don't worry about holding them too long.

If she has any worry about the travel, or for your own worry, you can hold the thumbs. That helps release the energy related to worry. Have a great trip!
T.

You can still buy the "good" sudafed that works. You have to go to a pharmacy & they keep it behind the counter. They do that because people were buying it & using it to make drugs. Sudafed behind the counter is the ONLY thing that works to help mine & my daughters congestion.

Last time I flew, I tried a type of earplug designed to help relieve pressure while flying - a plug "stem" with a series of soft rubber circles attached. I was surprised to find it actually did help. The earplugs do come in child sizes, but as the adult size felt somewhat large for my ears, you would just have to try and see if the small size is small enough for a 3 year old, or if your child would tolerate putting something Walgreens carries them with the other earplugs. I have also seen them in airport shops.
A.

Get s good sippy cup and her favorite stuff to drink - can't underestimate the drinking/swallowing on descent. If you can nurse, do it!

There are ear plugs called "Ear planes" which help with ear pressure. Put them in for take off and 1/2 and hour before landing. I have used them with my 3 year old since she was 18 months old and they work really well. Hope you can find them as they are what my Ear, Nose and Throat specialist recomends.