How To Comfort a Crying Baby in the Car

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My youngest two sons were marathon criers in the car. They would scream as soon as the car started to the moment we stopped. Whether it was 10 or 90 minutes, they persevered. Since we couldn’t not drive, we all got very good at tuning them out. I still don’t know why they were so very, very unhappy.

“Babies can cry if they get bored in the back,” Dr. Steph Lee, spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, told Mom.com. “Consider adding a toy or book for amusement or play their favorite song and sing to them.”

Some other possible reasons your baby is inconsolable while you’re driving:

• They dislike being physically restricted in the car seat and are used to more freedom of movement.
• They want your attention (physical, emotional, spiritual).
• They’re uncomfortable (i.e., too hot, too cold, motion sick, straps are too tight, they’re hungry, they’re wet, they’ve pooped, they’re tired, the sun is in their eyes).
• They’re angry about the fickle nature of time.

Sometimes it doesn’t matter why your baby is crying. You can’t always park the car and cycle through all their weeping motivations on the side of the freeway. They’ll only cry more when you inevitably give up, leave them in their car seat, and then abandon them as you continue to your destination.

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Short of never leaving the house or going anywhere beyond walking distance until your kid snaps out of this terrible phase of crying in the car, you’re either going to have to replace your tender heart with the darkness of a thousand nights (like I did) and ignore your child’s wailing. Or, you could try some of these tips from my mom friends.

“Keep comfort items in the car (a pacifier or favorite toy, for example),” mom of three Lynn Wiltse suggested to Mom.com. “Playing a movie or music can be helpful. If you have other children, they can jump in to help from the backseat.”

“Open a window about an inch or two for instant white noise,” mom Lizz Porter advised.

Music seems to be a popular solution for car criers. “Put on some soothing music,” advised Pamela Swear-King.

Mom of two Ravelle Worthington agrees: “My 7-month-old LOVES to hear ‘The Ants Go Marching.’ We’ve been playing that since she was a month old and when that stops working she likes us to sing ‘The Wheels on the Bus’ — complete with hand gestures.”

Katie Reed shared this method with Mom.com: “Either mom or dad can start talking in a slightly louder than normal voice that continues nonstop. It can be total nonsense or a recitation of poems or songs, but we keep talking at the same volume and cadence as long as it takes,” she said. “It’s a type of white noise, but it’s more familiar and soothing, since it’s their most beloved voice. It helps them to calm down, and eventually it helps them relax enough to sleep.”

You could also only go out with another person and sit in the back so the baby doesn’t cry because they are with you, the love of their life.

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Don’t be like me as a new mother and nurse your baby in your lap while your husband drives down the freeway. That’s illegal in all 50 states and five US territories. Also, it’s unsafe.

I have also contorted my entire body to hold my rear-facing baby’s hand while trying desperately to keep my eyes on the road. This not only hurt my shoulder, it also made it difficult to safely make right turns because it was hard to check oncoming traffic.

My friend, who begged to remain anonymous, would Spiderman above her baby’s carseat, dangling her breast into her daughter’s mouth so she could nurse the baby to sleep before she drove.

You can see why most of us eventually give up and let our children cry.