Benadryl and flying with toddler and infant...

[amarberry]

I usually stay out of the benadryl discussions because it seems to always get heated. I always bring benadryl with, mostly because my DD does have a severe food allergy, but also for a sleep aid in an "emergency" situation. Not so much for the plane, but definitely for the hotel. We had a horrific experience at a hotel when my DD was just under a year old. She went to sleep fine, but woke up around 1am and, despite our best efforts, we could not get her back to sleep for 4 hours (and at that point, only with the help of benadryl). I think she realized that she wasn't at home and wasn't very happy about it. We tried everything...tons of nursing, walking, rocking, anything we could think of it, but she wouldn't go back to sleep. Finally, after about 3.5 hours, when DH and I were practically in tears from desperation, we gave her benadryl. She fell asleep shortly afterwards. Honestly, at that point, I thought that it was in everyones (my DD, me, DH, and the other hotel guests) best interest to give her the meds.

I just want to point out that this wasn't our first experience with Benadryl for our DD. When she was somewhere between 6 and 8 months, I would guess, her doctor told us to give her 2 ml of benadryl at night when she had a respiratory infection (she had several of those around that age). I thought we were giving it to her as some sort of decongestant or something, but the nurse at the ped's office said that it was actually to help her sleep (her coughing was waking her up). I'm not saying that this was right or wrong, and god knows I don't always agree with our pediatrician, but it was what she recommended for our DD when she was a baby.

 

[islandmum]

Have you given your kids benadryl before? I ask, becasue my mother gave it to my brother once when he was young. The doctor told her it would knock him out. Well, it didn't. He was bouncing off the walls. Not all children react to it the same way.
I should say, that I do not like to give my kids any medicine unless it is absolutely neccessary. Will your older child watch a dvd on a portable player?

our youngest was the same - went into hyperactive overdrive!!

that being said the ONLY time I would think something like Benadryl was necessary on a flight to calm them down if its a really long flight (11 hours plus)

anything less really doesnt warrant it - any decent pharmacist will tell you that they wouldnt drug their child just to calm them down incase.... ,maybe take it with you and IF they are completely out of control then use it - my kids like to fly so keeping them sleepy takes the fun out of it for them - I dont get any rest on the long flights we take as I'm up and after them all flight but they're happy - and its only 9 hours out of my life anyway.

 

[islandmum]

The flight should only be 2.5 hours. I don't think she'll need it. I was just wanting to be prepared...just in case.

sorry - just read this thread.

2.5 hours ..... no need to drug at all!! that will fly by, with a bit of food, some toys and looks out the window and some walks up and down the aisle it'll be over before you even think about anything.

 

[thepeach80]

Keep in mind too that there is a min weight limit for Benadryl, 17# usually. If your youngest is like mine, she won't weigh that much at 10 mos. I tried to call our DR to give Ilana some for allergies and they wouldn't let me b/c she was so little.

 

[amarberry]

Keep in mind too that there is a min weight limit for Benadryl, 17# usually. If your youngest is like mine, she won't weigh that much at 10 mos. I tried to call our DR to give Ilana some for allergies and they wouldn't let me b/c she was so little.

Perhaps this is why my pediatrician recommended benadryl for my DD at an earlier age. She was a chunk and was definitely over 17# at that time!

 

[thepeach80]

Perhaps this is why my pediatrician recommended benadryl for my DD at an earlier age. She was a chunk and was definitely over 17# at that time!

So was my oldest, but these last 2 are tiny. They must get that from DH (though in his earlier years, lol), b/c my baby book and AJ's baby book are almost identical.

 

[jrb022704]

Keep in mind too that there is a min weight limit for Benadryl, 17# usually. If your youngest is like mine, she won't weigh that much at 10 mos. I tried to call our DR to give Ilana some for allergies and they wouldn't let me b/c she was so little.

My son is 21 pounds and will probably be 23-24 come Aug.

 

[a_sailor's_wife]

I would call your DR. I've talked to mine about this and he was helpful and told me exactly how much to use. It worked like a charm. Not the whole flight, but good enough. I've also give DS ibprufen to help with his ears not hurting so much from the pressure change. A month old isn't as mobile as my 2 year is. My suggestions are to make sure to have sippy cup or a paci for the baby for taking off and landing. It will help so much. Also have plenty of cherrios. HTH! GL!

Oh! when checking in ask if you can have a row to yourself if available. It made all my trips so much easier to have him looking out the window.

 

[aestapa]

My 3 year old has severe allergies and he is on a regimen of benadryl until we see the ped. dermatologist. He rockets for about the first 30 minutes afterward and then starts to get groggy, so make sure you know what you are getting.

Also, be very careful with the dosing!! The label is not helpful. I did a web search for benadryl dose and found the benadryl homepage or something like it. It explained the dosage by weight, not just by age, like the bottle. It was VERY helpful...especially after I read about children overdosing!!

 

[crazy_for_the_dis]

I am also against medicating. Okay, my circumstances may be different. But my ex-husband gave my 11 yr old daughter some cold medicine one night when she was staying at his place and she had a cold. I was out of town on business. Personally, I am not a proponent of any medication when it is not absolutely necessary, so she has not taken much through her lifetime. When he dropped her off at his mother's to get ready for school, she took a shower, layed back down, and had a grand mal seizure. She had been an extremely healthy child growing up. Regardless, her grandparents performed CPR (probably didn't need to but panicked) and called an ambulance, and I flew home immediately. What I learned after several visits to children's hospital and EEG's and MRI's is that her brain waves indicate that she has a proneness to seizures, something we never knew. What really surprised me was what they felt triggered the seizure....the cold medicine. Certain medications (not benadryl, they gave me a list I think Dimetapp and Children's Nyquil are the ones that are the worst (anything with alcohol I think) can trigger a seizure is someone that has a tendency towards them. With kids, you don't know until after they experience one. Now, not to scare anyone, since millions of kids take medications everyday safely. And it turned out my daughter had an underlying condition (that they think she will grow out of....maybe) that made her susceptible. She is now on daily medication, but has never had another seizure since (going on 8 months). But any medication, either prescription or over the counter, in my opinion should be taken with care and when necessary, and not lightly. If you think that other options could be taken to keep your kids occupied and happy during the flight, I would first try those.

 

[merrywether]

Obviously everyone has to do what's right for their own children. In my case, my son's first flight at age 2 was horrible. The doctor had suggested bringing a binkie for him for both personal security and for ear popping. Friends had suggested the benadryl. I went with the doctor's advice but packed the benadryl in my carry-on. After listening to my son scream in terror for a half hour and try to climb up my body from fear, and begging me to get him off the plane, and flight attendants were stopping by to ask if they could do anything to help (sweet gesture, but what could they do?) everyone on the plane was relieved when I gave him a dose of benadryl. He still had anxiety about being on the plane, but he wasn't screaming. I think the benadryl eased whatever pain or discomfort he was experiencing in his ears. At that point, he was able to focus on stories I read to him and the DVD player with his favorite cartoon on it. The way back home and a subsequent plane trip were much better because I gave him the benadryl a half hour before we boarded the plane. I had no qualms about it because it worked for us. My feeling is that as long as medicating is not a regular habit (we don't fly daily or even monthly) then I don't see the harm. Just my 2 cents!

 

[WantToGoNow]

Please do a trial run at home first. I would be in trouble if I gave it to my kids before boarding a plane. They get super, super hyper. My dd3 has only had it once but ds6 has to take it all the time. He is allergic to Latex and that is our first treatment when he starts showing symptoms -- works well but OMG.

 

[perdidochas]

Our pediatrician told me to give the kiddos (3.5 y/o and 10 months) benadryl before leaving to help them sleep on the plane. Has anyone tried this and did it work? If so, how early on do I need to give it to them?

Test this. Some kids just get tired and aggravated, and still won't sleep. It basically makes them even crankier. Also, never try it two days in a row. With my oldest, the first day put him out. The second day made him irritated and he fought it every second. It was bad.

 

[Gillian]

DS took benadryl when he had a cold with a cough at 11 months. The liquid dose is tiny! I think he got 1/4 teaspoon.

My kids generally sleep with benadryl. DD was taking it every night this spring for an allergy cough, it was the only thing that worked.

I've given DS decongestant drops for his ears, and that made him sleepy, but it most often has the opposite effect. Both he & I get drowsy from sudafed (the original, now behind the counter formula).

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

Benadryl is good for motion issues. I keep benadryl in the house all the time, even though my kids are almost grown. After my youngest son's latest cleft palate surgery, he had an upset stomach from the bed when they moved him into his room, and they gave him benadryl for motion sickness. My kids had so many ear issues with having a cleft palate, our doctor told us to give it to them when we flew. I use it for my allergies.

 

[Kahana-ri]

I give our oldest Bendryl for Allergies when we travel. He gets motion sickness and this helps. He maintains not really getting tired or really getting riled up. I don’t know if I would give this unless I felt there was a reason. Your children may travel just fine without it.

 

[Brygida]

The flight should only be 2.5 hours. I don't think she'll need it. I was just wanting to be prepared...just in case.

If you don't think she will need it, then why are you agonizing over this. Go with your intuition!!!!

My son has flown 16 times (Europe and US) and has just turned 3. He never needed anything. FYI, Benadryl has no affect on him. His best sleep aid is his blankie, a favority toy or book he can hold, and his Mommy and Daddy (patting him, cuddling him, etc).

 

[AmandaCagle]

We received the same advice. It put our then 2 year old boy to sleep for 30 minutes. Then he awoke; a totally different child, screaming, thrashing, angry and completely beside himself. Later I learned that some young children react this way. I (and everyone else on the plane) wish that I had known this before.