A mom writes in asking for advice about her 5-month-old son. She says he has recently started screaming every time she tries to put him in the car. She wonders if it is perhaps due to the stay-at-home order currently in place in her state, which has kept them pretty much housebound, making this car thing relatively new to her son. Regardless, she is looking for advice about how to get the screaming to stop.
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A member of the community asks:
“My 5-month-old screams when I put him in the car: Advice?
My 5-month-old has recently been screaming every time I put him in the car to go somewhere. We have barely left our house since the stay at home order, so is that why he’s doing this? He cries the whole car ride and it stresses me out to even think about going anywhere anymore. I know we can’t stay at home forever.
What are some things to try and help with this? (No, I will not put a DVD car player back there he is way too young for screen time) Also, I think part of why he does cry is Because he’s in the back seat by himself. He is an only child and dad works a lot so I don’t always have the option to have someone sit back there with him.”
– Mamas Uncut Community Member
Community Advice for This Mom Whose 5-Month-Old Baby Screams Whenever She Puts Him in the Car
To see what advice the Mamas Uncut Facebook community has for this mom in need, read the comments of the post embedded below.
Advice Summary
The community offered this mom in need a lot of great advice. Read some of their responses below.
“My daughter at 2-3 months old would cry and scream back there til she vomited even on short trips. The magic solution for us was to switch her to a convertible seat.”
“My 4-month-old settles right down if I crack the window open.”
“Make sure the car seat is comfortable and the straps are tight but not digging into the skin. You may have to switch to a different style of car seat. Not too young for a little bit of screen time, but that’s your choice. One thing that may work is to play soft white noise/rain sounds over the car speaker.”
“A mirror and toys helped with my son and daughter at that age. Even though if it was dusk/ night that wouldn’t always work.”
“Adjustments to the belts. Sometimes they grow so fast you don’t even realize how snug the belts can get.”
“A baby mirror could help also if he is still in an infant seat maybe look into switching to a rear-facing convertible seat.”
“Maybe try a mirror, more toys, some that play music and have lights. Make sure the car seat is clean and smooth. Maybe a shirt that smells like you to hold onto or a blanket. Do NOT turn that seat forward-facing like I’ve seen suggested no matter what. Now that it’s nicer, try to crack the window open for some nice breeze. I’m totally with you on no screen time. My kids had very very little, until they were about 4. Kids don’t need it, it’s something they get used to. Maybe make sure the straps aren’t too tight. Good luck…we had issues for a bit…didn’t last long. The window being cracked, music and a mirror worked for us.”
“My baby was the same. I ordered a headrests holder for iPhone and played Baby Bum on there for him. ZERO SHAME because we could actually get somewhere without both melting down.”
“It’s pretty normal. You just deal with it. Do you have a mirror in the back of the car? Is the car seat adjusted properly? Is he interested in toys yet? You could give him some fabric books or something… it’s really just about distractions at this point.”
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