During lunch with two of my friends yesterday, I mentioned that we are leaving for Ecuador in a few days and one of my friends had just one word of advice, “Benadryl.

“Give them Benadryl. Just be sure the flight is not delayed. Maybe as they are boarding first class or something. It will make such a huge difference.”

I am very anxious about our trip to Ecuador. Maybe because I remember how rough the last one was and especially how it affected their sleep and how we spent a couple of months helping them recover from that. I am anxious because they are still not fully settled in our new home and this upheaval is already scaring them, my little sensitive Okapis. I am anxious about traveling down there because Jordyn seems incapable of behaving well for more than an hour or so at a time. That means approximately 10-11 full blown hissy fits or temper tantrums during our flight down to Ecuador. That is flat-out terrifying. And the only reason I am even considering giving them Benadryl.

I have no qualms with giving them medicine when they are sick. Jordyn has been taking Benadryl several nights this week because she is so congested, so much so she ends up choking on the mucous pouring down her throat while she is trying to sleep. Two nights in a row now I have had to wake her up to give her more medicine because she was choking so badly. To me, though I wish I didn’t have to medicate them, to ease her suffering and make it easy for both of them to sleep makes it worth it.

But to medicate them just to have an easier trip seems like a cop out to me, like I am not a good enough parent to entertain my Okapis during the flight and must resort to external assistance, Benadryl. On the other hand, my girl easily could drive us all insane on a long trip – not to mention every poor sucker who sits remotely near us on the plane or in the airport. I don’t want to fight her for 11 hours, desperately trying to entertain her, pleading, begging her to just hold it together a little bit longer. She had a hard enough time on the three hour flight to Florida! And that was on JetBlue so it had a TV on the seat in front of us! What is she going to be like on two long flights with a layover in between?

But to drug her? Is that really the answer? I just don’t know. I feel like I am thinking about it the wrong way and if I just shifted my perspective a tiny bit, like thinking about how much easier it would be for her as well if she slept for awhile on the plane, then it might be easier for me.

What do you think? To Benadryl or not to Benadryl?