Help, my son hates his car seat

threemonkeys

New member
My DS is 17 months old, 25lbs and 35in. He is currently riding RF in a Marathon. My DH and I have tried everything we can think of to get him to like riding in the car better. He absolutely hates to be restrained. He will hold on to the door jam, arch his back, and try everything he can to not have to be strapped in. This happens every time we put him in his seat. He really acts like he is scared of it. Once he is strapped in he cries pretty much the whole time unless he falls asleep.

I am at a loss of what to do to make it better but know that we can't go on like this. My DH is deploying in a month and I would like to figure somthing out before I am stuck with the three kids by myself.

Thank you for reading this.
 
ADS

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
Do you have it installed at a 45-degree angle (using the line on the side of the carseat?) If so, he might be happier with it more upright. The 45-degree angle is necessary only for young babies who cannot hold their heads up; for older babies & toddlers, the car seat can be more upright, which often makes for a happier ride.

(Note - the carseat itself must be in mechanical recline mode. You can adjust the angle of the carseat by the way you install it, though. You just can't change the recline mechanism - it has to be in RF mode when RF.)
 

threemonkeys

New member
We have it as upright as we can. The car seat itself is in recline mode. He has GERD so it has to be more upright.
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
Hrm. My GERDlings loved the MA RF, otherwise I'd suggest maybe the carseat was making his reflux worse. Doesn't seem very likely though.
 

threemonkeys

New member
That is why we bought the Marathon for him in the first place. We were going to use a Radian for him but I could not get it to install upright enough for him. I have thought about buying him another seat but am not sure it would make a difference. Thank you for your help.
 

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