Adult passenger safety question-- pillows under butts?

[Synchro246]

I'm trying to ensure that this baby is going to be optimally positioned and my car seat forces me to sit in a position that encourages malpositioning. Also, my back hurts. I want to sit on a wedge type pillow, but knowing that things under carseats are a no-no I wondered if things under an adult are potentially dangerous as well.

Any insight appreciated :)

[scatterbunny]

I don't know the answer to that. :confused: What seat is the rear-facing seat in? Can it move somewhere else so it's not intefering with your seat?

I heard that some car company (Volvo, maybe?) made booster seats for adults...wish I could find that info now.

[Patriot201]

I don't have any good advice about this, but I can tell you what one of my friends (who is 4'10") was told: Don't put anything under yourself that can compress. She was told to go buy a backless booster for herself. I guess when you are an adult who weighs less than 90 pounds, you can do that. :)

I know it was a police officer who gave her that advice, but I don't know if that officer was also a CPST. :confused:

[scatterbunny]

Honestly, if I were small enough to fit in a backless, I'd consider it for certain vehicles!

[Synchro246]

I don't know the answer to that. :confused: What seat is the rear-facing seat in? Can it move somewhere else so it's not intefering with your seat?

I heard that some car company (Volvo, maybe?) made booster seats for adults...wish I could find that info now.

My child's car seat doesn't interfere with me LOL. It's *my* vehicle's driver seat that causes *me* to sit in a position the encourages the baby in my uterus to go in a position not favorable for birth. It doesn't really matter how I adjust the back or my distance to the pedals either. My butt is lower than my knees and the small of the back is curved oposite of what it should be.

[Synchro246]

I don't have any good advice about this, but I can tell you what one of my friends (who is 4'10") was told: Don't put anything under yourself that can compress. She was told to go buy a backless booster for herself. I guess when you are an adult who weighs less than 90 pounds, you can do that. :)

I know it was a police officer who gave her that advice, but I don't know if that officer was also a CPST. :confused:

I'm 5'7'' and about 160lb. Would that be too big?
I'm going to look up those adult boosters.:o

[Synchro246]

That was hard. I can't come up with a word combination that doesn't come up with a bunch of child passenger safety info.

[Morganthe]

Honestly, as long as you can drive with the lap part of your belt over your hips or legs + sitting with the shoulder strap in the correct position, I wouldn't see why you cannot use some type of corrective pad below you. It's not putting you any closer to the steering wheel and it's helping to stop pain.

I've used rolled up towels to help with back pain and offside sitting too. The only way I could drive or be a passenger in a vehicle. They're not ideal, but it's what I did to solve the problem. I think it's better than what my mom had to wear for years --- a full waist cast that fit like a corset for her bad back. Looking back, that WOULD have caused injury to her if we had been in an accident, but she had to wear it to get through her daily responsibilities. :( Life goes on. :cool:

[twokidstwodogs]

I understand your concerns about birth positioning, but unless you're in the car 8-10 hours a day, I wouldn't worry about it. (I'm assuming there aren't special circumstances, like sciatica, that are complicating things for you. I hope not!) I can't imagine that a little time in the car could cause serious malpositioning. Maybe just do some yoga when you get out of the car to compensate?

[CPSDarren]

I use a thin, wedge type cushion on long trips. I don't think it is likely to be a major safety issue.

On the other hand, one of the reasons we have child restraint compatibility issues is due to the deeply sculpted seat designs in many vehicles. These help to keep adult occupants and older kids from submarining under the lap belt and reduce the chance of abdominal injuries related to seatbelt syndrome. I suppose that you would lose some of that benefit if you used a cushion. You would just want to make sure that both the lap and shoulder belt fit you tightly and correctly every trip.

[becca011906]

so there aren't any child booster backless seats that don't have an upper limit on them are there??? I ask b/c when i drive the intrepid i often have troulbe seening out of it and i'm 5'4 although i have a very short torso hight of only 20.5 inches, yeah i'm all lets like my girls. LOL I know the parkway has a no upper limit on it right??? Hummmm dh would really think i took it to far if i get myself a booster seat! LOL

[CPSDarren]

I don't remember if there are any labeled like that. As an adult, you could always make your own choice about it, of course. The advantage of a backless booster over a seat cushion is that the booster has the integrated arms that hold the lap belt in place to reduce the chance of submarining under it.

[savdoc2]

What about using a lumbar support? They are usually quite firm. Something like this: http://www.chirostore.com/items/item480.htm

I understand where you are coming from since I ended up with a c-section for my first breech DD (we got DD#2 turned so I avoided a repeat section). Even a few minutes in the wrong position can make a baby turn the wrong way.

[southpawboston]

I know it was a police officer who gave her that advice, but I don't know if that officer was also a CPST. :confused:

wouldn't he have to be an APST? ;)

[Synchro246]

I'm here for a little update. I folded up a towel into a fairly narrow (8in) and fairly thin (3-4in) to go under the very back of my butt. My back feels SOOOOOOOOOO much better and actually I think the seatbelt fits better and I can see more out of my car too.
I think it was a good choice.