How to Encourage Sleep in a 9 Month Old (Benedryl Doesn't Work) on a Car Trip

Try to schedule your travel time around his sleep schedule. Travel when he usually naps/sleeps. Play soothing music on the radio. Give him a bottle of milk. Feed him. Entertain him w/ Baby Einstein videos on a DVD player. Sit in the backseat w/ him. Have a car toy for him to look at or play with. When kids are facing backwards... there is nothing to look at and it is boring. Take pit stops and get out of the car regularly. And if nothing else works... take him out of the car seat and hold him. I know that's taboo and it's not recommended safety wise... but, I've done it before out of desperation. It worked wonders. But don't expect your child to sleep the whole time on a 16 hour road trip. Not unless you are planning to pull an all nighter and drive straight through. If that is the case... drive at night. I don't know that that is a safe option, though. Bring children's music along that the whole family can sing to. Laurie Berkner, Dan Zanes, and Raffi are tolerable ones. Read books. Point things out that he can see outside the window as you drive by. Good luck. I don't envy you.

Um, I don't think that the baby is supposed to have Benedryl until they are four. I wanted to give my three year old some of that to see if it would clear up his exzema but the instructions stated that he had to be four, there wasn't any instructions for a younger age.

Maybe the baby is going through a growth spurt and is needing more and because of that he doesn't want to or can't fall asleep. Give him hard-cover books to play with. Have him clap his hands when you sing. If you can sit by him play Peek-a-boo.

Good Luck!

melatonin - you can buy it at whole food, vitamin cottage - recommended by my pediatrian - has worked absolute wonders!!!!

my 3 yo get one mg vial & my 5 yo boys get 2.

Time to learn the joys of overnight driving in shifts...It stinks and it is exhausting, but so quiet.

Hi B.,

Try Calms Forte kids by Hyland's you can buy it at vitamin cottage, I tried benedryl and Calms, I think Calms worked better! Hope it helps.

L.

Overnight trips work best for us. Put him in PJs, give a big dinner, and get in the car. We did a trip with our son about the same age (not overnight) and I sat in the backseat and leaned over his carseat breastfeeding for hours to keep him happy. I wouldn't recommend that!

I would say toys and lots of them, games and cd's to sing a long with. I about went crazy driving to Iowa with our son singing the wheels on the bus and old Mac Donald, but he was happy and would nap on and off too. Keep the toys and games with you and don't let him see what you've packed before hand. Then surprise him one at a time with a favorit car, puzzle etc.