Cleaning carseats - child with motion sickness

[Layney82]

So it looks like DS gets motion sickness. In the last two months he has had six massive vomiting incidents in the car, where he showed no signs of being sick before, and was fine within 5 minutes of getting out of the car. In all cases, we were in heavy traffic, moving at variable speeds. It looks like cleaning up vomity car seats will be a regular part of my life

Is there anything I can do to make clean up easier? We have a Radian, and it's pretty difficult to clean out all the nooks and crannies. Also, the straps cannot be soaked, so every time this happens, they need to be replaced - that's getting really expensive. (The kid throws up so much, that everything is soaked after.) My car is also suffering - it's only four months old now, and the seat stinks since its been saturated with vomit so many times. Is there anything I can use to contain the mess?

[abunchoflemons]

can you make covers for the straps to kind of protect them so you just have to take them off to wash and reuse? wash cover and have a replacement set at least for that or a towel or something that can be exchanged fast. Maybe if in traffic gets anxious? I know I was older but my brother used to literally rock car like boat on ocean (start top really bad all the time) and I got sea sick. Fabreeze or whip it for the smell and clean for the car. Does he not get that way not in traffic?

[tjs77tsa]

A waterproof seat cover? I have seen some that are intended to be used with pets that would at least keep it off the seat of your car. My aunt used to keep a coffee can or icecream bucket in the car because my cousin had motion sickness she learned to use it when she was about 2 because she didn't like to be covered in vomit. Odoban will remove almost any odor and it doesn't just cover it up it kills the bacteria that cause the odor. We used to use it when I worked in a nursing home for everything.

[BeccaSueCongdon]

On a trip we had two kids puking from a surprise virus. We were desperate and out of clothes so we put garbage bags over them like rain covers. It mostly protected their clothes though. :-(

There are those rubber bibs with the pockets/catchers on the bottom. Not sure of that would work.

DH and I were even brainstorming getting a big hairstylists bib that they put on you when you get your hair cut. So once kiddo is buckled in you put it on over the carseat and straps and try to tuck it around the outside of the seat. You'd still have vomit on the floors but maybe you could put down plastic floor mats and those would be easier to clean?

And is there any medicine you could give him?

[Layney82]

Thanks for the suggestions. I will definitely get a bucket and teach him how to use it and will look into a full body bib. I'm not sure what I can cover the straps with, but will think on it. I don't want to medicate him every time we get in a car and am nervous giving Gravol to a 2 year old anyway. I did buy one of the Diono seat protectors to go under the carseat - hope it doesn't mess up the install. I've also ordered another seat cover to keep in the car so that I can change it if it gets soiled.

I get car sick too, if I ride in the back seat, so I know exactly how he feels. At a constant speed its not too bad, but the stopping and starting and slowing down again in heavy traffic get me every time (and apparently him too.) My family thinks turning him forward facing might help, but since he's not even 3 yet, I'm not willing to try. Also, I've thrown up in countless cabs (I always carry barf bags with me just in case), so I don't think facing forwards will help him anyway.

[BeccaSueCongdon]

Originally Posted by Layney82 Thanks for the suggestions. I will definitely get a bucket and teach him how to use it and will look into a full body bib. I'm not sure what I can cover the straps with, but will think on it. I don't want to medicate him every time we get in a car and am nervous giving Gravol to a 2 year old anyway. I did buy one of the Diono seat protectors to go under the carseat - hope it doesn't mess up the install. I've also ordered another seat cover to keep in the car so that I can change it if it gets soiled. I get car sick too, if I ride in the back seat, so I know exactly how he feels. At a constant speed its not too bad, but the stopping and starting and slowing down again in heavy traffic get me every time (and apparently him too.) My family thinks turning him forward facing might help, but since he's not even 3 yet, I'm not willing to try. Also, I've thrown up in countless cabs (I always carry barf bags with me just in case), so I don't think facing forwards will help him anyway.

I get not wanting to Medicate him. I get carsick like that too if I'm not driving. :-/ I don't think ff will help other than making it slightly easier for you to reach to hold a puke bucket for him. But f he can hold it himself then that shouldn't be a problem.

[monica-m]

Here are the things I would try:

Get the seat as upright as possible (use an angle adjuster if necessary)
Try and obstruct his view out the side windows so that he can only see out the back window.
Sea Bands to see if they help
I like PP's idea of a bib. I would try and make a few that can go on after he's buckled in his seat and that have a pocket in the bottom to try and catch as much of the mess as possible. I would make it PUL or nylon backed to try and contain the mess.
Try a small snack and/or a sippy of Sprite or Ginger Ale.
Ginger candy or tea
Benadryl for a long car trip but check with the doc first.

Good luck, car sickness is tough to deal with.

[Layney82]

Originally Posted by monica-m Here are the things I would try: Get the seat as upright as possible (use an angle adjuster if necessary) Try and obstruct his view out the side windows so that he can only see out the back window. Sea Bands to see if they help I like PP's idea of a bib. I would try and make a few that can go on after he's buckled in his seat and that have a pocket in the bottom to try and catch as much of the mess as possible. I would make it PUL or nylon backed to try and contain the mess. Try a small snack and/or a sippy of Sprite or Ginger Ale. Ginger candy or tea Benadryl for a long car trip but check with the doc first. Good luck, car sickness is tough to deal with.

Thanks for the suggestions. I will talk to the doc about Benadryl - I thought Gravol was our only option. I was hoping that DS had avoided the car sickness, but it seems like it's here to stay now.

I see you're a CPST. Is the Diono seat protector mat safe to use? I'm confident that I got a good install without the mat and will install it the same way - I just want something to catch the vomit. This time it happened on the express way and it was a while before I could get off the highway to clean him up - the backseat had a good two hours of 'stewing' in it before I had a chance to clean it up.

[mama_to_DJM]

I get car sick too (not to the point of vomiting, thankfully), and for me it makes a difference if I'm RFing or FFing. The few times I've tried sitting RFing (like on a train or a bus) I feel so much sicker than if I'm FFing. Maybe that will help your son?

[monica-m]

Originally Posted by Layney82 I see you're a CPST. Is the Diono seat protector mat safe to use? I'm confident that I got a good install without the mat and will install it the same way - I just want something to catch the vomit. This time it happened on the express way and it was a while before I could get off the highway to clean him up - the backseat had a good two hours of 'stewing' in it before I had a chance to clean it up.

Ugh, we have dealt with vomit in the car and it's not fun at all. We only had it happen once and it trashed DS' Coccoro and my back seat. I had to order new straps and a new buckle because they were so soaked. My car smelled like Simple Green for weeks but it was better than the smell of vomit .

As for the seat protector, Diono says it's safe to use with their seats. I don't like seat protectors at all. I find that they interfere with the installation and that I can always get a better installation without one. I would do test installations with and without and put a mark on the seat belt in chalk to see if it uses more seat belt with the seat protector. If you can get a good installation with it that you are comfortable with, then use it. I really try hard in seat check situations to convince parents not to use them but in a case like yours, I would just explain what I have already explained to you and let you make the decision without further attempts to guide them away from it.

If you don't use the seat protector, I would use a thin towel or receiving blanket under the car seat to try and protect the vehicle seat. I would also explore the possibility of PUL backed blankets to put on either side of the car seat and up on the back of the vehicle seat.