Motion Sickness questions...

[SuperSequin]

My mom gets motion-sick even WATCHING a carousel. Her sister gets just as motion-sick as she does. However, her sister can do Rock'n Roller Coaster because there isn't a lot of spinning and there aren't a lot of drops. Both my mom and her sister use the Bonine motion sickness medication and both have the motion sickness wrist bands they wear.
Those of you who DO get motion-sick, can you share what you can and cannot ride and why? Do you think my mom would be able to ride Rock'n Roller Coaster? Our next trip is this August and she wants to be able to do as much as possible. Thanks!

 

[LoriABil]

Everyone is different!

But the carousel bothers me, too, as well as the teacups (one ride and I am out for the day, whether I take motion sickness medication or not!)
BTMR bothers me, too, so I am guessing Rock'n Roller Coaster would do me in. However, Splash mountain does not bother me. I can do one BTMR if taking medication, but I have never pushed that to see where my limit is.

The problem with motion sickness is that for most people it is cumulative. If the carousel causes mild queasiness, the BTMR causes mild queasiness, and Splash Mountain causes mild queasiness, what you get is nausea and/or vomiting when you ride all three! I have ridden the teacups once (in a cup, alone so I didn't spin it anymore than what it already was spinning) and I knew better than to get on BTMR that day.

Different things affect people differently. But motion sickness is not hereditary, so just because the daughter can do coasters does not mean Mom can. My advise is, take the medication (I dose throughout the day) and try it once, preferably at the end of the day so she could lie down and rest if she needs to without missing the entire park!

 

[SuperSequin]

Thank you very much!
How interesting... my mom can do one round on BTMR but hates Splash Mountain! Everyone is different, I suppose.

 

[AndyFL]

If motion sickness is an issue as it is with me, don't forget the good ol' natural standby GINGER.....not the castaway on Gilligan's Isle, the supplement. A while back the TV show Mythbusters did a segment on motionsickness and they only "myth" that they found that worked was ginger. Women have used it for centuries to help with morning-sickness.

 

[momof1princess]

i have suffered from HORRIBLE motion sickness since having gastric bypass surgery in 2004 (the only trouble i had prior to this was i would get dizzy trying to read in the car). i use meclizine (generic bonine) and have no issues at wdw, but i DO avoid the teacups, mission: space, and star tours. i became so ill on mission: space a few years ago that the girls running the gift shop at the ride exit wanted to call paramedics. no vomiting, i just looked very ill, and i felt horrible-nausea, PROFUSE sweating, dizziness. never again.

 

[spacemountainmom]

I can get horrible motion sickness, but I have never had it on a roller coaster. I do the teacups....just once! Star Tours can make me sick as can be and put me out for an hour or two. I do the easy Mission Space and Soarin' Usually I take a non-drowsy dramamine just to be safe!

For some of us, the watching is much worse than the doing. I can't watch home movies....too bouncy. Quick action shot and cuts in movies and tv can make me lose my lunch. My family laughs at all of my little queasiness issues.

I would say go for it....RnR is like nothing you've ever experienced!

 

[Princess&JackMom]

I, like your aunt, can do Rock N Roller once and Space Mountain once (with a little recover time) but I can't ride in the back seat of a car.

I can't do Big Thunder Mountain (all those circles and shaking) and Star Tours/Body Tours puts me down and out. (They are the absolute worst for me out of all the rides). 3D movies also sometimes give me a problem.

Most other action rides not a problem, though I haven't gone on the tea cups since I was 7 (though I'm sure my twins will make me this year).

Things like Dumbo, etc., are fine because they go slow and aren't very long.

If your mom has her bracelet and does Rock N Roller early (without too much food), she may be able to do it with a minimal recover time. It's such a short time that her motion sickness may not even have time to kick in.

 

[themilesfamily]

I can ride any of the rollercoasters at Disney, (although I avoid Rock N' Rollercoaster because it's too fast for me -- but it doesn't make me motion sick.)

What absolutely makes me sick every time is Star Tours at DHS. And I'm guessing if I ever rode Mission Space, I would be sorry.

 

[luckyprincess]

I can get motion sick on a swingset, really, but I love rides. S I take non-drowsy dramamine (still makes me a little drowsy especially if i add cocktails) and bring ginger pills and ginger gum. I've taken cruises successfully, even rough ones with this mix. I've gone on the Disney coasters and have been great. I went to Universal and did dueling dragons once and Hulk once and felt a little woozy after them. I just walked around while my bf went on like 10 more times...
Without meds I would have been nauseous, sweating, dizzy and shaking the rest of the day so it really helps. The only things I really can't do even with medication is anything that spins. At. All. Not at all. And some coasters with a ton of corkscrews and upside down loops have the same effect, pretty much. But my world is definitely better with dramamine and ginger.

 

[Kriii]

It annoys me to no end that I now get motion sick since I never did when I was younger and I'm not fearful of the rides otherwise! The rides that make me sickest are the Teacups (this actually caused me to be unable to stand), Expedition Everest (going backwards KILLS me), BTMRR, Space Mt, and Mission Space (I tried the original version and have never been able to make myself try even the milder version since then). Less severe but still enough to make me avoid are Star Tours and Rock and Roller. Strangely enough, ToT does not bother me, nor does Soarin' or Splash. I find every year, I do fewer and fewer rides due to motion sickness Disney is still fun though!

 

[luckyprincess]

It annoys me to no end that I now get motion sick since I never did when I was younger and I me not fearful of the rides otherwise! The rides that make me sickest are the Teacups (this actually caused me to be unable to stand), Expedition Everest (going backwards KILLS me), BTMRR, Space Mt, and Mission Space (I tried the original version and have never been able to make myself try even the milder version since then). Less severe but still enough to make me avoid are Star Tours and Rock and Roller. Strangely enough, ToT does not bother me, nor does Soarin' or Splash. I find every year, I do fewer and fewer rides due to motion sickness Disney is still fun though!

Kriii, motion sickness can make you feel left out and like you're missing out on everything. Have you tried using any meds? Ginger is natural, with no side effects and really works. I would try them and stay off of the spinny stuff but it's sad to hear that you are missing the rides you've always enjoyed!

 

[palmtreelover08]

I get motion sick on everything-bus, back of car, tea cups, carosel, etc. The first thing I do everymorning at Disney is take either Bonine or Dramamine. With either of those, I can ride everything with the exception of Star Tours. I can ride Everest, but will feel sick if I ride it more than 1x, even with the Bonine or Dramamine. If I go to Universal, I can ride everything when I take my motion sickness medicine with the exception of the Simpsons ride. Motion Sickness medicine make some people drowsy, but they do offer a non-drowsy formula.

Good Luck and Enjoy your trip!

 

[SuperSequin]

Thank you for all the good advice! I think we've decided to let me ride it first (so I can remember for sure what the turns/drops are like and how many there are- it's been a WHILE since we've been to WDW!) and go back and report to Mom. She said that with two motion sickness pills and her bands that she will probably end up doing it!

 

[acc82]

I also get motion sick and have been that way since my memories began.....

The only piece of advice I would give is this: if she does go on the ride and gets sick, be prepared to scrap the day. So, maybe do RnR last so that if she does get sick, all you have to do is go back to the room and sleep it off.

I also get sick at movie theaters if I sit to close or if there is spinning in the movie. I DON"T get sick watching carousels or anything like that. I can ride any coaster that doesn't go upside down though. So, I'm different than the moajority here that can ride upside down coasters. Just be aware that everyone is different. I did EE last year and felt nauseated for about 20 minutes after. I ate, got a sprite, and felt better; however, my husband felt so bad that we had to scrap the day at 1 PM and go back to the room. And, my husband doesn't really get motionsick. It's that backwards part that's awful. I did this ride with meclizine and I was okay after a little while. Without it, I would've been in the same boat with my husband.

I find that Regular drammamine (the sleepy kind) works better for my more severe motion sickness. So, i take that before flights. I cruise and would get sick without anything so I take meclizine daily and if I find that it's not cutting it, I switch to my sco-patch.

So, I'd say as far as effectiveness it goes: meclizine (non drowsy drammamine)->regular drammamine-> scopolomine patch.

I also can't do star tours, the simpsons ride at universal, and would not EVER try mission space. The only disney rides I don't do are: RnRC, EE (I may give it another go with regular drammamine this time), & Mission space. Now, i agree with the poster that said motion sickness is cumulative. For example, I have no problem with the backwards portion on revenge of the mummy but the EE is much longer and thus worse.

Oh, I'm also an RN; so I advise anyone with motion sickness talk to your doc. The scopolomine patches are great if you can get through the side effects.

Bottom line: Take the drammamine and save those iffy rides for last so it doesn't kill your day. I'm speaking from lots of experience here.

 

[disdream00]

I too suffer from severe motion sickness - think getting sick by watching my kids play video games, and can't ride on long car rides, boats or planes without medication. I also have the problem that all the OTC meds, even the non-drowsy ones, make me very drowsy. I've tried ginger pills and the wrist band and they only work for mild motion situations, not for serious rocking, spinning, etc.
This is what I found to be the best solution for me, I did it on a cruise 3 years ago and on our Disney trip this past May: I start taking half a pill of Bonine (generic is fine) the day before my trip, and keep taking it every 6 or 8 hours for the duration. I feel that this keeps a low level of medication constantly on my system and I do really well with the motion sickness and don't get knocked out. I did not get sick once on a 7 day cruise, even when tendering on rather rough waters. At Disney, I was able to do the following, which normally would make me sick to the point of puking:
Splash, BTRRM, Teacups!, all 3d movies, Soaring, Test Track, Star Tours, TSM, Triceratop Spin and Dinosaur. I have to admit that Star Tours almost got me, if it had been a little longer I think I would have been sick, but we did get on it right after lunch at Sci-Fi, not a good idea!
Sorry I did not get on Tower of Terror, RRNC, or Everest because I HATE drops, I was forced into Splash by my 5 yr old.
I had done Space Mountain in the past and did fine, did not try it this trip.
Mission Space I would never risk, I don't think there is any amount of drugs that would help me with that one!

 

[The Expert]

If motion sickness is an issue as it is with me, don't forget the good ol' natural standby GINGER.....not the castaway on Gilligan's Isle, the supplement. A while back the TV show Mythbusters did a segment on motionsickness and they only "myth" that they found that worked was ginger. Women have used it for centuries to help with morning-sickness.

I saw this episode and can CONFIRM it is absolutely true! The best thing about ginger is you don't feel any drug effect. I always hated using Dramamine or Bonine because they made me feel sleepy or out of it, but ginger works even better and I just feel totally normal. I can actually ride everything if I pop a ginger pill with breakfast!