Reclining your airplane seat with someone behind you: rude?

[inkkognito]

Originally posted by Gillian
If you can find a way to do this, short of drugging the kids, please let me know!

Actually, some parents DO resort to "drugging!" On one of our first Disney cruises, hubby and I sat next to a woman flying with her husband and two child (they were in the row across the aisle from us). Her husband was scared to death of flying, so he had drank enough to knock himself out. The kids had been plentifully dosed with cough syrup! We spent the whole flight chatting with her while the rest of her family sawed wood on the other side of the plane.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[NotUrsula]

... I use your seat back to lever myself up when I need to go to the head. If the seat in front of me is upright, standing isn't a problem, but if I have to stand whilst leaning back, I'm going to need leverage in a moving plane.

I have also had someone recline onto my small child's carseat; I once had to summon the flight attendant to force the person to put their seat up, as my child (who had been sleeping peacefully) was screaming from the pain of having his legs crushed between the seats; the bruises lasted for over a week.

 

[sgtdisney]

Originally posted by NotUrsula
I have also had someone recline onto my small child's carseat; I once had to summon the flight attendant to force the person to put their seat up, as my child (who had been sleeping peacefully) was screaming from the pain of having his legs crushed between the seats; the bruises lasted for over a week.

You have a lot more patience (and self control) than I probably would have been in that situation. I probably would have forced the seat back forward. (Probably would have gotten in trouble too)

People don't often realize that the airplane seat can be pushed forward to almost folding from any position of recline or not without the button being pressed on the armrest. Many times when I flew with my Dad (ex-airline pilot) he would push the seats forward if the plane was fairly empty and the aisle in front was empty (in the good old days) to get more room.

 

[Tracie]

I understand crying children, but on my first trip to wdw we flew from DFW to MCO with a crying child with a loaded diaper. The parents did not bring a diaper bag on the plane just 1 bottle. I tried to offer her one of my son's diapers, but she said that is way too big.
The smell just hung their in the air like a fog and when the flight attendants sprayed air freshener.......perfumed poo. So I guess I can deal with reclining seats better than laoded seat covers.

 

[LisaNJ25]

cant stand it. When they put the seat back a little it is fine, but all they was in a pane. I flew to San Francisco last week and both ways the person on from of me reclined the whole way. Eating was oh so much fun and trying to read my book was almost impossible. This was on a continental flight. Airplanes seem to give you less and less room.

 

[Gillian]

It's great to know that you can push back on the seats!

I was very happy one one flight - a small woman in front of me fully reclined her seat. I nicely asked her if she could move up just a little bit, as me & my large pregnant belly were feeling squished. She immediately moved her seat fully upright & wouldn't tilt it back at all, even though I said several time that it would be fine! If only everyone could be that considerate!

And as for shriekers, I am lucky not to have one (so far). BUT, I travel with ear plugs, just in case. This also works to shut out chatty business people

 

[Eeyore1954]

Originally posted by Gillian
BUT, I travel with ear plugs, just in case. This also works to shut out chatty business people

Oh, the chatty traveler -- the bane of any frequent flyer. I used to try to bury myself in a book. Then I found a sure-fire cure that would shut up even the most talkative person on earth. Here's what I'd say:

"Hi, my name is Steve. I work for thus-&-such (fill in any well known name) INSURANCE company. Let's talk..."

By the time the person's brain processed the word "insurance", I was assured of a quiet, uninterrupted flight, regardless of the length. Works like a charm everytime!! (I still do work in insurance -- it's just health insurance now. But THEY don't need to know that, do they?)

 

[freecia]

Anne McCaffrey has been known to introduce herself as a potato farmer from Ireland. I think she also said she sometimes pretends to be a doting grandma and willing to show her new friend all the family photos.
I'm sure you can think of something suitably fun to tell the chatty business traveler. After all, what if the other guy is also an Insurance salesman?

Anne McCaffrey is a science fiction author. You might know her from the Dragons of Pern series.

 

[Threehearts]

What really got me to respond was the remark on "drugging." I'm all for it! We not infrequently have to take the kids to London or on to Stockholm to visit "mother" and the relatives. As a pediatric ICU nurse, I'm sure that you are all appalled to learn that many of we health professionals do give cough medicine to our children on long flights. I say what's good enough for a runny nose is good enough for sleeping in a cramped plane, sitting up. Who does it benefit to have the child screaming, unable to rest in unfamiliar and uncomfortable surroundings? Is it a parental point of pride to say that you didn't provide any medication but that you were able to listen to your child scream for hours straight. My feeling is that if the child is miserable, the parent is miserable and god-knows the other passengers are feeling homicidal. Why let your child be so blessedly unhappy when a low dose of over the counter cough medicine would greatly help? If your child has a mild cough or stuffy nose, most parents would run down to the pharmacy to find a remedy if the home treatments don't work. These medications are not to be used on the short haul and there is no excuse for the parent who did not take out a second motgage to pay for a huge bag of distractions on board so I'm not suggesting medicine as a first line of defense. I guess, I am saying that in some cases I feel that medication has a legitmate purpose. Threehearts

 

[goofy4tink]

We are proud users of Benedryl on flights. Can't use any decongestants...wires my poor dd!!!! But you have to love the antihistimines. And one time she got severe gas pains!! That was a first. Thank heaven we had a bulkhead seat. She got her first taste of Coke that day. After about 20 minutes of sipping (she really doesn't like fizzy stuff!), she stood up, stretched and wham!!! The biggest burp you ever heard. 4 rows back were laughing with us.
But, what is it with those parents who bury their noses in a book and never see their little darlin' poking his hands thru to my seat, or standing up peeking around, sticking the tongue out?? Thanks to all of you parents out there who try to teach the correct way to fly. We appreciate it.

 

[freecia]

Originally posted by Threehearts
What really got me to respond was the remark on "drugging." I'm all for it!

I once had a classmate whose parents used to give her a shotglass full of beer. Now I bet all of you are like "EVIL PARENTS who is making their child abuse alcohol". I think it was more for everybody's sanity. She was already a tempermental young adult, I hate to imagine what she was like when she was a child. Parents tempers can break, too, especially when their child is behaving poorly. I bet some parents are thinking that their child is always well behaved. Even the best children have their moments of weakness.
Threehearts might have a point. Getting the child to sleep might be better than the ensuing arguements and tempers flaring. I mean, the child really won't remember sleeping through the flight, but they would remember the time that mommy/daddy started screaming at them in the plane and scared them a lot. They might not ever want to fly again!

 

[atigeg]

There's nothing wrong with a shotglass of beer for the wee ones!
Of course, I come from a background with a German grandpa and Hungarian grandma, and their attitudes about alcohol/kids were much different than the typical American ones. Grandpa liked a beer with his dinner, and when I spent the night at their house, I was given my own little shotglass of beer. Grandma was way ahead of her time, making wine coolers from Mogan David wine and 7-Up back in the 60's/70's, and she always gave me some too (although mine was much more 7-Up than hers). Neither of them were alcoholics, but they liked a daily drink (maybe that's why both lived into their late 80's). I think their attitude actually steered me away from any alcoholic tendencies. When I was older and other kids wanted to experiment with alcohol because it was a mysterious, forbidden thing, my attitude was, "Been there, done that." Now, as a grown up, I drink maybe one alcoholic beverage a month, and it's usually some fru-fru drink that I have in lieu of dessert. I drink for the taste rather than the alcohol (and amazingly, even tho' I liked beer as a kid, I'm not really fond of it as an adult...still like wine coolers tho'!).
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Gillian]

Don't get me wrong people - I'm a pharmacist & there's nothing wrong with a little benadryl. Or even beer now & then (DH is a beer judge & beer writer in his spare time) What I meant was the hard stuff! Real drugs that would guarentee sleep! No percocet for my little one

Benadryl doesn't do it for all kids, and some cough syrups make my son crazy, so you have to be careful & know your child. Test it out before you go & buy single ingredient meds so you know which things work for your kid. Don't get those combo cough cold flu things.

 

[Threehearts]

I agree with Gillian. Threehearts

 

[kel3420]

This is a very interesting thread about meds. I am an adoptive parent of Russian born children and have been on all kinds of e-groups for about 10 years. It is common practice and doctor advised to give these newly adopted kids Benadryl (the clear one) on the 10 hour flight home. It is always stressed to try it out first the day before, because some kids have the opposite effect and get hyper. These are kids that have never been out of an orphanage, in general, so the excitement and newness of everything just throws their little bodies into overload. These flights, with newly Russian adopted kids coming home is often called the "flight from hell" lol. So, I learned many many years ago, that a dose of Benadryl helps immensely for the active child, plus an added benefit is that is helps with the ear popping.

I am not so sure about the alcohol though, I think I will keep that stuff to myself

Best wishes,
Kelly

 

[CarolA]

Well, this is an interesting thread. We went from reclining seats to drugging!!! LOL!!

My parents never drugged us for flights, but my baby brother did manage to drink a glass of beer once. My granddad had him outside on the porch and he was drinking from his silver baby cup (my Grandmother used them for all of us!) My mom just assumed it was milk. Apparently the kid had run out of milk and granddad refilled from his beer mug!!! Did not seem to have much impact on him though!