Hates the Car Seat

Hi P.,
My 10 month did the exact same thing. She got to the point of arching her back when she saw that I was going to put her in it. I don't know what kind of carseat you have but we had a Graco Snugrider. We just switched to a convertible carseat and it's made a huge difference. We bought a Britax and it still has to be backward facing because she doesn't meet the requirements of being 12 months old and 20lbs to face forward but she doesn't seem to mind. She sits up much higher in it and is able to see out the window whereas before she could only watch the ceiling.

1 mom found this helpful

Have you tried listening to some baby/kid music? My son loves listening to "his" music in the car and it makes for a relaxing ride for both of us.

1 mom found this helpful

My KIddo did the same...so I tried to divert her..and in the proess ade her tie the car seat harness. She snaps the top of the harness on her oen and then we clap and I quickly snap in the lower harness.

She gets excited and we do the job!!

P.,

Try bringing the car seat in the house and using it as another chair so that your daughter is slowly introduced to it. Get her acclimated to it in a safe and familiar environment like your kitchen or family room.

R. Katz, Psy.D.
www.richardkatz.org

Sounds like she doesn't like confinement. I wouldn't worry as long as nothing is sticking her. She falls asleep like a lot of kids do; they love the movement and fresh air. She's testing you mom. Good you're not falling for it because that's how they learn to "get their own way" at such an early age. She's not suffering for only 2-3 minutes. Good mommy

My son pulled the same thing! I've found that if I spend just a minute or two making him giggle as I buckle him in, it really helps. I set him in the carseat, and then start tickling him, or put one of his toys in my mouth and start shaking my head. He starts laughing and trying to get the toy, so I can get him buckled in, and then when I'm done, he gets the toy to play with on the ride home, or wherever we're going.

I also got one of those mirrors and put it on the back of my headrest. He likes looking at himself. Best of luck!

Oh P. I remember these days. I too felt bad but then I realized it turned into a power struggle by my 9-month old. This was her first outburst at me of wanting her way. My advise to you is just stick out the screaming( as long as she is ok) and soon she will realize you mean business and she will stop. Good Luck. I actually would give anything for car seat power struggles then the ones I am facing now with my daughter being 5.

She knows that if she goes in the car seat that she will fall asleep and she doesn't like that. Maybe try hanging something from the handles for her to focus on or something like that.

what kind of seat is she in now?

Have you recently switched seats???? She's also at that age where she is trying to exert more independence and experimenting with new behaviors. Sorry not much help as I've been fortunate that both my kids have never fussed and love their carseats.

B.

My daughter (17 months) did this too at around 9 months. I would try to distract her with toys that were used only in the car, tried to make it a little more of a treat. I don't know if it ever worked, she did eventually grow out of it, within a month or so.
Best of luck.

This in normal. Let her know you are in control and she has to get in the seat. Try givng her a bottle or pacifier. This may get better once she starts with a toddler seat. At least she stops crying after a while.

My daughter did the same thing. She received a baby I pod by Parents for Christmas. We give it to her when we are getting into the carseat and in the car ride. She loves to play with it and change the songs! This helped the temper tantrums a bunch.

my little guy just hates the car seat. I could not wait until he turned a year so we could turn him around. But have you tried a mirror so she can see you? I found mine at wal-mart he still hated the seat but it mad the ride a little better.

This is very common. Two of my kids did this, and unfortunately, there's nothing to be done about it except bite the bullet. You can try distraction with toys, mobiles, etc., that might work once in a while. Once my kids were big enough to face forward, that helped a lot. Hang in there!

Try not to react excitedly when she gets upset, but rather stay calm and soothing so she sees the carseat as an "okay" place to be. Also, get some books and other toys ready for her to look at/play with to keep her entertained. There are mini-Magna Doodles you can get, too. Also, some fun kid-CDs are fun for car rides. Otherwise, sometimes kids just hate their carseat for whatever reason! :(

All four of my kids went through this. I always just gave them their favorite things whether it be their blanket, pacifier, toys, photo book or cup or all the above when I put them in the car seat. It is nerve racking but they grow out of it.

Does she still ride in the infant carrier? If so, maybe get the convertible seat now, just make sure you still keep her rear facing. How about a DVD player for the car, my 15 month old is still rear facing and loves the DVD player, most of the time it works to keep her quiet. Also take off her coat in the car if you leave it on. Its a safety hazard anywayz, neither of my kids ride with coats on, but my DD hates her coat or shoes being on in the car. Just a side note regarding what someone said about turning them around at 1yr- DONT, read what the AAP rec. about rear facing and just google it, its not safe to turn your baby around FF at 1year. Also- she is big enough to be more upright, but still RF, take your carseat if its a convertible to a certified car seat person and they can adjust it for you. Then she can see out the window and be more upright but still remain safely RF.

P.,
I had the same problem with my daughter at age 3 months. I went out and bought a new carseat (bigger one) and she stopped crying in her carseat! As a matter of fact, she loves to go on car rides now and never cries when I put her in there. I would suggest buying a new one. It may be that the carseat is too small for her now.

I realize that this baby is a lot older than yours, but here's some info that might be helpful....

http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/db3.asp

Also, I have claustrophobia, so when my son freaked out every time I strapped him in, I just sympathized that maybe he was feeling that way too. What I did was to stop the car and nurse him and then put him back in the car seat. On some trips it meant stopping every 10 min., but doing that seemed better to me than having him possibly suffer permanent emotional damage from feeling so panicked and having me ignore him.

Best wishes as you sort this out. :-)