They Planned a Long Road Trip Together — The One Who Gets Carsick Got Stuck in the Middle Back Seat
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Road trips get complicated fast when comfort, motion sickness, and limited car space all start competing for the same few seats.
One traveler warns the group about getting nauseous, but when the seating plan still leaves her in the middle, would you tough it out or skip the next trip?
One already-uncomfortable ride was turned into a much messier argument about fairness and fat-shaming.
Read on and see why one cramped backseat created such a divided reaction.
AITAH for refusing to go on a trip because of two overweight friends?
Last month I went on a road trip with some friends (L, P and F).
Sometimes I get car sick, usually on trips longer than an hour, but it depends on the road and the driver.
I know I’ve been a little carsick with a reckless driver. Will OP be OK on this journey?
While we were organizing the trip in a group chat, I informed them about this and said I’d prefer to sit in the front or at most on the side in the back, not in the middle (there’s less visibility outside, and since there’s no lateral support, you get shacked more).
They replied it wasn’t a problem and that we’d sort it out the day of.
Uh-oh. Did they need to pay to reserve a seat in advance?
On the day of the trip, we met in a parking lot to depart and met M, a friend of F.
Of course, there was a seating issue: P was driving, L is P’s girlfriend and she also gets carsick, so she sat in the front seat.
That left me, F and M in the back.
Yeah, not ideal. I wonder if they are gonna make it without upchucking.
F and M are both overweight and refused to sit in the middle seat, saying it wasn’t comfortable for their size and that I had to sit there because I’m smaller, even though I reminded them I’d feel sick.
The car ride lasted 1H45, and I did get nauseous.
When we arrived, I skipped the first activity to get some air and recover.
On the way back, I got to sit on the side, but F was taking up half of my seat, and IDK whether it was due to the heat or the anxiety of being crushed, I still felt nauseous toward the end.
Doesn’t sound like a great road trip. Did anybody else notice them suffering?
A few days ago in the group chat, they started talking about a new trip to a city that is about 3 hours away by car.
I said I couldn’t go because I had something else planned, but L is my roommate and knows I have nothing to do, so she started pressing for the real reason.
Apparently not. Will they spill the beans?
In the end, I told her the truth: given how uncomfortable the car ride was, I’d definitely feel sick again, and since it’s just a day trip, I wouldn’t even have time to recover and enjoy the day.
L told everyone in the group chat, and F and M got angry.
They started calling me an AH and accusing me of fat-shaming and of not wanting to be friends with them just because they’re fat.
Hm, not what they said, but maybe they’re insecure.
I tried to explain my side of the story and even suggested going somewhere by train if they still wanted to do a trip together, but they won’t listen.
What should I do?
Seems like nobody listens to their problems.
How will the commenters weigh in on this one?
One person is like, très bold.
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Someone else is like, your friends must not get it.
One person says, setting the bigger problems aside, you shouldn’t have to sit middle.
This poster is like, why go if it isn’t fun?
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a woman who is annoyed that her brother is making their mom’s international trip all about how broke he is.
Another person says, we’re gonna need a bigger car.
She had warned everyone about her motion sickness, then spent the first trip nauseous after getting stuck in the worst seat for it.
When another longer drive came up, she declined and even suggested taking a train instead.
Some people saw that as reasonable self-protection, while others felt her explanation unfairly centered her friends’ size instead of the cramped car itself.
That road trip was clearly not well thought out.
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