Car Sickness... Help!

I've used SeaBands for my own motion sickness (as well as for morning sickness!). Placebo or not, they've worked for me!

I still get carsick at times. I haven't found anything that works too well. Some tricks of the trade...no video games or reading. Sometimes movies make it worse too. Keep the car cool. Sipping on a bubbly beverage (gigner ale or sprite) helps. Keep a bag in the car, change of clothes, towels and mints. She probably will feel better when she vomits, I always did. Now that I am older I can take Dramamine for boats and planes. Car rides aren't as bad as they once were, but I still have moments (especially if the car is hot). The bands didn't do too much for me, but I think it would be worth a shot.

Yes, one of my kids was like this. They felt better after throwing up.

I would recommend trying Ginger cookies, or Ginger Ale to sip on. It works for my kids now when we are in the RV for long hauls.

Poor thing :(
I had motion sickness as a child and it was always worse in the morning and on long trips. By the time I was a teen I had mostly grown out of it though I still get nauseous on winding roads (unless I'm driving.)
Reading while riding makes it worse, and I assume watching a tv/game screen probably would too. I never got any treatment for it, but I do remember slowly eating saltines when I started to feel sick gave me some relief. If your daughter starts to say "I think I'm gonna be sick" pull over as quick as you can, once that feeling comes it's hard to stop it.
Check with your doctor, there may be some anti nausea medication you can get for her. But I'd still be prepared with a change of clothes, towel and wipes, just in case.

Oh, I hate that for your daughter! I've had that all my life, as did my dad. The other suggestions are great...keep the car really cool (have air blowing directly on her - better for you to wear a sweater than her be miserable the whole time), have something to drink or nibble on and no strong smells in the car. If she starts feeling nauseated tell her to take really deep breaths through her nose and out through her mouth (almost hyperventilate) and do something to her to get her mind off it. I know throwing up makes you feel better in the short term but long term it's a good idea for her to learn some tricks to calm her body down.

There's a theory that the eyes/brains of people w/ car sickness have trouble processing the disconnect between moving forward and seeing things go sideways past them. It makes sense to me b/c if I could sit in the footwell or lay on the back seat I always felt better. Since that isn't possible now, could you consider blocking out the windows in the backseat? That way she'd only see what's in front of her. I can actually read on a train or in a car if I completely block my eyes from seeing the scenery going by. If she sat in the middle of the seat, w/ windows blocked on the side she could still see where ya'll are going and might even get to enjoy a movie. It might also be worth investigating audio books for her to listen to. I do all the driving for our family since I'm so prone to sickness but even then I turn my head sideways to look out at the window as little as possile b/c a wave of nausea will hit me. I really hope she grows out of this. Some kids do. But if not I'm glad you're figuring this out now. You're a great mom!

I used to get really carsick as a child and still do if crammed into a stuffy backseat. Sea bands helped my pregnancy nausea and weren't uncomfortable at all, so you may want to try them. My oldest has had some issues with this as well, and it helps when I tell him to close his eyes and lay his head back and I turn the rear vent AC on high blowing on him. If we're on a long trip, Dramamine helps -although for myself I've never known if it was just because it knocks you out! The cure for me as a child was riding in the front seat or completely lying down in back, which we can't do now. It does seem to help him to watch movies -maybe due to focusing and taking his mind off of it.

I threw up in all my parent's cars whenever we went anywhere except for if I sat up front and could see out the window to the road. Can you place her carseat in the middle back and perhaps higher up so she can see over the hood and onto the road ahead? This helps the brain sort out the signals it gets from the ear which is telling the body you are moving in unpredictable directions, but with seeing where you are going I can keep myself from getting nauseous. Or if your front passenger airbag can be turned off then sit her up front.
The only other thing that works is Dramamine (or the cvs generic) - I used to get about a 1/4 tablet but it can make you a bit sleepy. The good thing was, that for long trips they would give me a larger dose and I would fall asleep and wake up at our destination. Fresh cool air is also essential and not always available in the back seat if the AC vents are just up front. ABSOLUTELY no looking down at toys or books or a video.
Frequent stops (every 10 minutes) with a walk around, frequent small sips of gingerale (ginger settles the stomach and the bubbles make you burp releasing some of the need to vomit).
Finally, now that I drive myself I don't get carsick as long as I am the one driving. Knowing where my body is going to go again helps sort out those inner ear signals that are telling your brain you are moving unpredictably. The only time I got carsick while driving myself was in the rain in a little car that had very low visibility and a super slanted windshield.
Good luck, remember it is not her fault, she would rather be well. Keep some plastic bags in the car with a few paper towels in the bottom to absorb any wetness - that is what they give you at school when you sit in the nurses office.

SeaBands hurt the heck out of my wrists, so even if they were effective they were SO uncomfortable that I couldn't wear them more than ten minutes :(
Dramamine keeps me from getting sick, but it also knocks me out. I mean, I CANNOT stay awake to save my life. I took it on our honeymoon and ended up sleeping though our whole day, which was a scenic drive through Kauai. So I wasn't sick, I just slept in the car (like 5 hours of sleeping).
I really haven't found anything that keeps me from getting car sick without a side effect that's just as bad. The only thing that works is being the driver, which obviously isn't an option for your 5 year old.
I agree that throwing up, or at least lying down for a while (with plenty of fresh air) once you arrive at your destination, should help a lot.

One of my girls gets carsick. Like others have said, no reading or games in the car. Your body knows it is moving but doing any of this confuses it and results in carsickness. Especially for long trips, extra stops is a must. Fresh air really helps. Also, the heat in the car can make it worse and my d can get really sensitive to any smell like the smell of the hot car--stale air. Now that my daughter is 12, she is able to sit up front when my husband is not with us so she has an open window--the one thing I hate about my van is the back windows do not really open to let in air.

First, make sure she's not sick. Second, if you're giving her medicine or daily vitamins with breakfast, switch to after dinner/before snack before bedtime. This helped almost instantly with my car sick daughter ;)

Third, let her sit in the middle seat (you'd think by the open window, but no). Middle seat, no reading, have her try to keep her eyes forward staring out the windshield. Crack the windows or crank the AC (open windows work better), and always have a bag ready, just in case. My daughter was the same age and went through this phase for a few weeks until we figured out the vitamin thing!! Good luck :)

my son started throwing up, all of the sudden, every time we went in a car, once even on the train. we realized that he doesn't do it if we skip the big yoghurt he usually has in the morning. if your daughter has milk before getting in the car skip that too... not sure if it will work for her but it worked for us...

my daugther went through this too. she is over it now, thankfully, but if you have a morning road trip, then don't let her eat or drink anything for like an hour before or not at all until you reach your destination and no snacks in the car. If she must eat something before you go, make it bland and light. it will probably pass. good luck!

Both my girls have this problem. My older daughter (7 almost 8) seems to be over it now, but my younger (4 almost 5) still gets sick. My doctor told us 1/2 of a childrens Dramamine would work. With my oldest it did, my youngest needs a whole pill. It works very well. We give it to her for anything over 30 min. or so. One pill lasts all day and we have had no neg. side effects. They make a chewable version, but she now prefers the swallowable one. Hope that helps! :)
Side note: They make non-drowsey motion sickness pills. Dramamine or Bonnine. My girl can watch movies and play if they take the pill! Sometimes they do sleep, but not always. Depends on the length of the trip! (I have motion sickness. It is the worst feeling! I give my daughter the pill about a half an hour before we are ready to leave, if I don't sometimes it doesn't have time to work and she might still get sick.)

My husband always had this motion sickness in cars as a child and still does. He discovered if he could see out of the front window of the car, he did a lot better. Of course back in the day he sat up front with the window rolled down or way in the back of the station wagon with that window rolled down..

This is why he also is always the one to drive if possible. If he is a passenger, he becomes VERY ill.

If we go on long trips, I keep ginger ales in the car,. . Ginger calms the tummy. Also you may want to either place her seat where she can see out the front windshield or next to a window she can roll down for fresh air. Sometimes the air conditioner blowing on her face could help.. Give her one of those battery operated hand fans.. She can control the air circulation.

This happen to my daughter since she was 2 weeks old. Finally I got a new doctor when she was 5 years old. She told me for long trips more then 30 mins. give her tsp of Benadryl it work with the car sickness. Ask your doctor.

I would try the SeaBands. I would also tell your daughter that they will
prevent her from getting sick. Sometimes it is mind over matter. You
have nothing to lose. Hope it works and you can go on your long trips
without a hitch. Maybe saltines before your car trips. Might help settle her
belly. Good luck.

My son gets carsick, too. It started when he was 2 and I didn't realize that's what it was because he couldn't tell me he was feeling sick. It happened several times in the 2-3 year old age. Once he turned 4, he realized that he felt sick and now tells me so I just hand him a bag just in case. Keep a bag in the car and it makes clean-up much easier. I hate to see him get sick, but he always feels better right after. However, it doesn't happen very often at all because he just asks me to put the window down because he feel sick or hot and the air in his face seems to make him feel better. I drive with the window down in the middle of winter and even though I am cold, he feels better! Good luck!

My son gets carsick and throws up on most our road trips. We just started him on Bonine for children per our ped. suggestion. They make him a little sleepy, but don't knock him out. We do everything else (carseat in the center, cold air blowing on him, and pretzel sticks to munch on and a full belly before we leave) and that helps, but the only way he won't throw up is the medicine. I get terribly carsick too and it feels so awful that I just give him the medicine as soon as he asks for it. When this first started he would always say he needed to burp and then about 5 minutes later he would throw up everywhere. It took quite awhile before he realized what the sensation of being carsick meant. Good luck!