forward facing car seat

N

ninahh

Registered User
hi,

my baby hates being in the car and facing only the backseat. she starts crying as soon as she can't see me or my husband anymore. we've tried everything, toys, music, mirrors but nothing works. she is only five month now but i would love to put her in a forward facing car seat asap. does anyone know when it is safe to put her in one?
thanks
 
Sorry to hear you having a hard time of it.

My understanding is that it is about bub's neck and if it is strong enough. I think they recommend not before 6 months.

Can you hire a baby capsule? I think they can see you from in one of those?
 
We had the same issue and changed it at 5.5 months to a forward facing, Britax fixed car seat (it had a lay back function that put her nearly horizontal when she slept).

She was a big baby for her age though and had a strong neck - generally the guide is 6 months, some people even keep it back facing up to a year. She immediately loved facing forward, looking out the window etc. and now is a great traveller!
 
perhaps try putting a mirror somewhere so she can see you from her her carseat. do you toys for her to keep herself occupied?
 
We had the same problem with our daughter who screamed throughout the journey and only occasionally comforted if the road was a bit bumpy (crying again if we stopped at lights etc).

Made any journey more than 15 mins quite stressful.

I think forward facing seats are generally recommended for babies who are 9kg or 12 m/o. We put our little one in one at 9 m/o as her neck was strong and that pretty much fixed the problem.

Not sure what else you can do other than drive during nap times (so the car rocks her to sleep) for a few months or so...
 
Here is a link about rear and forward facing car seats, and lots of other car seat information. This is a very well respected agency in Canada and thier information is credible.

We switched our kids around 17 or 18 months. One of them really did not like the car and cried every single time we hit a red light, but in time they just get used to it. At that age babies get bored so easily. It will be better once a bit older.

http://www.safekidscanada.ca/SKCFor...ID=11330&sss=Rear+Facing+Car+Seat&sssID=11572
 
we tried the mirror as well as the toys, but nothing really works. her neck is already quite strong, but i guess 5 month is too early?
for now i'm trying to avoid the car and use the taxi
 
We switched our first born at 4 months. He was a big boy from birth (over 4.25kg) and could hold his head up by himself really early so he was physically able to go face forward. Our second born son went face forward at 6 months.

It's not really about age, it's about size, neck control etc (as others have mentioned). There are always guidelines out there but they have to cater to being overly careful given that some people can't work out for themselves when their child is truly capable of sitting forward. Some people see things like that as their child reaching a milestone (when it has nothing to do with it) so they want to move their kids forward early.

I have a friend with an absolutely massive 2 and a half year old. And i mean massive. There is not a regular car seat that he can comfortably fit into so he is already in a booster despite the guidelines stating children shouldn't move into boosters before the age of 4. You just have to take a good honest look at the situation. Is your daughter big and strong enough to face forward or are you just trying to get her to enjoy the car journeys more? If it's the latter then wait a bit longer and wear ear muffs!
 
i think she is quite strong, 7,5 kg and holding up her head quite well, but how can i be sure? can i ask the paediatrician?
it's not a big problem for me actually, it's just that i feel sorry for her
 
Ultimately, it's all about safety... and I think probably that her being in a forward facing car seat would probably be safer than in a taxi, if you look at it like that!! If I were you, I'd try turning her seat around and see how that goes. But I tend to be less cautious than a lot of people I know!!
 
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