Motion Sickness Symptoms, Prevention & Remedies

[goeva]

Motion Sickness / Sea Sickness Symptoms, Prevention, and Remedies


***Please share your experiences with fellow DISers***


Nonprescription Medications

Dramamine *Dimenhydrinate 50mg [Pills] Side effects may include dry mouth, drowsiness, blurred vision.
Bonine *Meclizine HCl 25mg [Pills] Side effects may include drowsiness and dry mouth.
MotionEaze *A Blend of 100% Natural Oils (Lavender, Peppermint, Frankincense, Chamomile, Myrrh, Ylang Ylang and Birch) [Apply behind your ear]
Zentrip *Meclizine Hydrochloride 25mg [Thin Strips]
Boiron Cocculus indicus *Cocculus indicus 3X to 30X - 3C to 30C HPUS [Pills]
Emetrol for Nausea *Each 5ml teaspoonful contains: Dextrose (1.87 g), Levulose (Fructose) (1.87 g), Phosphoric Acid (21.5 mg) [Syrup]
Flents Cola Syrup


Prescription Medications

Scopolamine (Transderm Scop)[Patches] It must be taken before symptoms start. It comes in patch form to put behind your ear 6 - 8 hours before travel. The effects last up to 3 days. Side effects may include dry mouth, drowsiness, blurred vision, and disorientation.
Promethazine (Phenergan) [Pills] Take 2 hours before travel. The effects last 6 - 8 hours. It is not recommended for children younger than 2. Side effects may include drowsiness and dry mouth.
Cyclizine (Marezine) [Pills] Most effective when taken at least 30 minutes before travel. It is not recommended for children younger than 12. Side effects may include dry mouth, drowsiness, blurred vision, and disorientation.


Alternative Remedies


Acupuncture - Acupuncture is said to relieve some of the symptoms associated with motion sickness. You can have acupuncture done before you plan on traveling.


Wrist Bands (The Motion Sickness Bracelet) - Also known as an acupressure bracelet or sea-band
PsiBands [Over-the-Counter Wristbands]
BioBands [Over-the Counter Wristbands]
SeaBand [Over-the Counter Wristbands]


Electric wrist bands - Such as the adjustable Relief Band, are similar but are said to work by providing a small electrical stimulation to the wrist.


Food and Drink

" Ginger - Sripramote & Lekhyananda also found that ginger significantly reduced nausea and vomiting.
" Ginger Crackers, Ginger Candy, Altoids Ginger Mints, Ginger Pills
" Ginger Ale, Ginger Tea
" Coke or Pepsi
" Plain Crackers
" Bagel
" Green Apple
" Peppermint - This tasty herb is one of the oldest sea sickness remedies in existence, and has been used for centuries to treat all types of stomach upsets. It prevents vomiting and calms stomach spasms.
" Peppermint Tea, Peppermint Softgels, Peppermint Candy
" Fennel - The seeds of the fennel plant have been used in traditional herbalism for centuries to aid digestion and calm stomach spasms. These properties make it an ideal remedy for sea sickness. Chewing 10-20 fresh fennel seeds, or taking up to three 400-500 milligram capsules per day is the recommended dosage for treating sea sickness.
" Fennel Seed Capsules, Fennel Tea, Sugar Coated Fennel Seeds


Symptoms

" Nausea
" Vomiting
" Headache
" Drowsiness
" Dizziness
" Dry Mouth
" Cold sweats or sweating
" Pale Skin - Pallor (loss of color)
" Yawning
" Fatigue
" Increased Salivation
" Malaise (general feeling of discomfort)


Avoid

" Alcohol
" Smoke
" Coffee
" Heavy and Greasy Foods
" Strong Spices
" Reading
" Overeat
" Travel on an Empty Stomach
" Go Below Deck for Extended Time Periods


Behavior Tips

" Get plenty of rest before you go out on the water.
" Eat before sailing. An empty stomach can be almost as bad as one with the wrong types of food in it. Don't overeat and get bloated either. Easy does it.
" Avoid greasy or acidic foods for several hours before your sailing adventure. Consider less acidic fruits (apples, bananas, pears, grapes, melons, etc.), breads (muffins, croissants, rolls), cereals and grains as alternatives. Milk, water, apple juice, cranberry juice and other low acid beverages are gentler alternatives to orange juice or grapefruit juice.
" Drink plenty of water during the day, as dehydration can make the symptoms of motion sickness worse.
" Carry mint or ginger flavored lozenges with you.
" Chew on dry crackers.
" Seasickness often begins with general feelings of drowsiness-the first sign may be yawning.
" Vomiting may occur suddenly, and no one wants it in the boat - If you do feel sick, take a position near the rail on the leeward (downwind) side of the boat.
" Select a cabin near the mid-point and on a lower deck of the ship if you are prone to motion sickness. The motion of the ship is less noticeable in this area.
" Climb to the top deck on the ship and look out at the horizon if you start to feel ill. Keep your eye trained on the horizon or on a fixed spot ahead of you.
" Keep your head as still as possible.
" Drink plenty of water. Take lots of water with you and drink often.
" Avoid Sun Overexposure.
" Use a cotton swab to keep your ear canals clean and unobstructed. This will help by allowing the ear membranes to adjust more quickly to ongoing disturbances.
" Do not sit facing backwards from your direction of travel.
" Do not read while traveling if you are prone to motion sickness.
" Staying busy and keeping your mind occupied are the best ways to avoid seasickness.
" Walk around and grow Sea Legs.


Children

" Talk with your doctor before giving your children any new medications.
" Make sure your kids get enough quality sleep before leaving.
" Feed him light, healthy foods prior to leaving; rich foods stay in the stomach longer and may contribute to nausea.
" Bring toys to occupy your child, but avoid letting him read, color, or play video games. These activities can cause the conflicting signals that trigger motion sickness.
" Pack bottled water along with pretzels or saltine crackers as these items tend to relieve mild motion sickness symptoms.
" Place a cool cloth on the child's forehead and encourage him to close his eyes and lay his head back.
" Make sure to listen, if your child says he's feeling sick or dizzy. Also, pay attention if your child loses his/her appetite or appears pale or sweaty.

From CDC Website:
For children aged 2 1/2 years, dimenhydrinate (Dramamine), 11.5 mg/kg per dose, or diphenhydramine, 0.51 mg/kg per dose up to 25 mg, can be given 1 hour before travel and every 6 hours during the trip. Because some children have paradoxical agitation with these medicines, a test dose should be given at home before departure.


The Anatomy of Balance

Dizziness, vertigo, and motion sickness all relate to the sense of balance and equilibrium. Researchers in space and aeronautical medicine call this sense spatial orientation, because it tells the brain where the body is "in space:" what direction it is pointing, what direction it is moving, and if it is turning or standing still.

Your sense of balance is maintained by a complex interaction of the following parts of the nervous system:

" The inner ears, which monitor the directions of motion, such as turning, or forward-backward, side-to-side, and up-and-down motions.
" The eyes, which monitor where the body is in space (i.e. upside down, right side up, etc.) and also directions of motion.
" The skin pressure receptors such as in the joints and spine, which tell what part of the body is down and touching the ground.
" The muscle and joint sensory receptors, which tell what parts of the body are moving.
" The central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), which processes all the bits of information from the four other systems to make some coordinated sense out of it all.

The symptoms of motion sickness and dizziness appear when the central nervous system receives conflicting messages from the other four systems.

Prevention is the Key.
I had my share of motion sickness experiences.
Not fun, my friends. Not fun.

[the kids]

Thank you for putting this information together, it is very helpful.
Last cruise we used bonine for both adults and kids. It worked great. Now that bonine for kids is discontinued, we are trying sea bands. I will report back after our cruise.

[chemnerd09]

Thanks for putting this information all in one place. I am really excited about going on my first cruise but my biggest worry is getting sea sick. I've been on two research vessels which are small boats and have gotten quite sick without even leaving the bay. I'll be sure to take a few different remedies in case one doesn't work.

[asunutgirl]

The key is prevention. Once you are sea sick it is difficult to get rid of it.

We take Bonnie and start 3 days before we leave. The rest of my family stays on it while we are cruising. I switch to the patch when we are cruising. It does mess with my vision but I need reading glasses anyway... I am the most sensitive in the family and the patch really works well for me.

I can also recommend the green apple. Worked for me when I had an issue on an RC cruise several years ago.

We bought the ginger for our cruise this summer and frankly the taste of it was so bad that it turned my stomach. Personal preference here but it certainly wouldn't work for me for sea sickness!

[Niebz]

Our first cruise we did nothing to prevent. I drank alcohol at the sail away party and in the evening the boat got rocky and I felt like I was going to die from severe dizziness and nausea. I bought seabands and picked up some meds that they hand out at guest services but it didn't help much. I was on a low deck with no verandah. I felt better up on deck with fresh air.

My second cruise I started taking ginger pills the morning before we boarded and continued taking them every 4 hours for the whole cruise. I didn't drink any alcohol at all and had a verandah to get fresh air. Another rocky first night but it didn't affect me at all. I felt perfect the whole cruise. Ginger pills were my saving grace and I think avoiding alcohol was important too.

[daisydog2]

This wasn't mentioned above. But I went for acupuncture a few months before our trip and I didn't have any problems. I had been anxious for months prior to the cruise, and the acupuncture took that away too. We plan on a 2014 cruise and I'll be back at the acupuncturist again....

[gunka]

Can't say enough about Bonine. Took it the night before we left on the cruise and one every night before going to bed while on the cruise. Never had any side affects and did not feel one bit of motion sickness. I had only felt queasy in the past, but not this time - nothing. And we had some pretty good swells heading to SF from LA. Prior cruise felt funny while in the theater or closed in areas - again I felt nothing. It was awesome. Thank you Dis Boards

[jacob408]

Thanks for the information. It's very helpful.

[MAJPLO]

Homeopathic combination remedy "motion sickness" for myself and the kids. Any kind of ginger candies were too spicy for my daughter who gets motion sick regularly but they were semi effective for me. Peppermint gum or peppermint candies have always worked fairly well for me as well. Although at my worst I was eating the Life Savers brand Pepomints like pretzels. My doctor has also recommended benedryl for my daughter. While I haven't used it for cruising with her, it does work wonders on car trips and only sometimes makes her sleepy.

[JohnathanS]

For me, Scopalomine is the best and only solution. It did dilate my eyes, causing light sensitivity more than blurred vision. Also, it did dry out my mouth. Still, it has almost no sedative effect on me, and so I am able to be awake for my vacation. I don't use it on the cruise line (I don't get motion sickness on the big ships), but I do use it when I go sailing.

I have also tried:

Dramamine: knocked me out.

Bonine: knocked me out.

Sea Bands: Didn't work.

Ginger: Didn't work.

Phenergran: Not for motion sickness, but for nausea. Be warned, phenergran has a powerful sedative effect on a good majority of people. For me, it worked because I was sleeping while under its effect!

The important thing to note, however, medications can affect people in different ways. The only way to find out what works for you is to try them out until you find success with one or more of them. Best of luck!

[KingRichard]

MOTION EAZE!

We used it on 2 cruises and it works great and cost like $5!

Very bumpy Dream cruise with 40-45mph heads winds and the Hawaii cruise where lots of people complained that first night.

1-2 drops of oil behind the ear and safe for children and so easy.

Used it on our 3-4 year old daughter and the 2 teens and us of course.

Tested by me with scotch and cigars!

[MrsScooby]

Bonine works great for me. It starts acting pretty fast (within 20-30 minutes) so I don't need to take it in the days before the cruise, just the morning of embarktion works fine.

I have found for me that it doesn't make me drowsy and that I can also have a sailaway drink while on bonine no problem.
This might not be true for others though so I would see how your body processes it before your trip so you know what to expect.

I also tried ginger capsules one time after getting off the Star Tours ride at what was MGM studios (Now Hollywood Studios) and that works great after you get nauseous
I felt fine in a short time after taking the ginger capsules and it helped that they didn't have a strong taste or smell. I think the ginger candy would have pushed me over the edge with its strong taste. And I have no problem with ginger candy when I am not nauseous...



For the record, I have had years of problems with motion sickness...cars, planes, boats
Bonine really changed things for me

But I get complacent, and sometimes forget to bring bonine with me on excurions, like small boat excursions really don't like that stroll down memory lane...

[shiner6]

You may also purchase generic Meclizine 25 mg. at a greatly reduced cost. It works just as well as the brand name.

[kriswin1]

bonine says 1 or 2 tablets as the dose. which one do you do? also, do the sleepy side effects last the entire 24 hours? if we take it at night should we be ok during the day?

[MAJPLO]

Originally Posted by kriswin1

bonine says 1 or 2 tablets as the dose. which one do you do? also, do the sleepy side effects last the entire 24 hours? if we take it at night should we be ok during the day?

I'm fairly petite so I take one. My husband takes two.