New twist on seasickness meds....

[outahere]

When DW took our DS to his pediatrician yesterday for his allergy shots, she asked him about seasickness meds. His response was that the ones you can buy over the counter are antihistamines and that if you are taking Zyrtec, Claritan or other meds for allergies, you would be "double dosing" on antihistamines if you take them. He said that if you are already on Zyrtec, etc. that you probably wouldn't need any of the OTC meds.

Just thought others would like to know this info...............

 

[DISJen]

I've been hearing this lately. My question that hopefully someone out there knows is does it work just as well?

 

[SeaSpray]

Bonine, which is also meclazine, IS an antihistamine, but supposedly not a very good one as far as helping with allergy symptoms goes, but they found out that it works great for vertigo and seasickness.

DH and I both take Zyrtec for our seasonal allergies and last year when it was time to cruise, we were concerned with seasickness, and our doctor also prescribed meclazine for us. You can buy this over the counter, too, you don't need a prescription.

So, you CAN take both at the same time, safely. If you have any questions at all about this, I suggest calling your own doctor, just to be sure!

 

[Katdb]

On our first cruise, the waves were hurrendous and my family was really seasick.

My mom had bought two types of meds, the 4-6 hr kind and the 24 hr kind. In a little mix up, one of my family members took the 24 hr kind thinking it was the 4-6hr (thus, took 2 the first day) and was feeling REALLY good.... we figured it out after, and all had a laugh (as no one was hurt...)

I would suggest talking to your doctor or pharmacist. They'll be able to give the best answer!

Katdb

 

[CheapMom]

I didn't realize Bonine was an antihistemene- does it make you drowsy?

 

[Roemama1]

Originally posted by CheapMom
I didn't realize Bonine was an antihistemene- does it make you drowsy?

It never makes me drowsy. I take the 24 hour kind so I don't have to keep remembering to take it. They say to take it before you get on the ship and then each day thereafter. That way you don't START to feet seasick. It's harder to feel better AFTER you've already started feeling sea sick.

I've taken Zyrtec before which totally KNOCKS ME OUT but Bonine is GREAT!

P.S. No, I do not work for the makers for Bonine, LOL! :0)

 

[Doctor P]

Your doctor is absolutely incorrect about this. I asked this question because I take Allegra-D every day (I now take Zyrtec-D). Pharmacologically the antihistamines in the motion sickness meds and the allergy meds work differently in your body and the do NOT stack up and increase the antihistamine effects or drowsiness any more than taking either drug separately. Unfortunately, most MD's are not very astute about the pharmacology aspects of the drugs they prescribe and it has gotten me into trouble sometimes and has caused me to panic other times. I took Meclizine HCL and Allegra-D together every day of our cruise and had no problems whatsoever. As another example, if you have a severe allergic reaction MD's will tell you to take Benadryl or give you a shot of Benadryl. Other antihistamines would not work in this circumstance (or not work fast enough) from the information I have been given.

 

[lp69]

Has anyone had luck with the Seabands? My mil wants to use those on our upcoming trip (including for my children) and I'm not sure how well they will work. Any thoughts?

 

[Luv2Dream]

I am not prone to sea-sickness unless we hit very rough water, but I have used the sea bands "just in case" and they worked great for me. I only used them until I got used to the motion on the ship. Then I believe I took them off. They didn't work at all when the sea was extremely rough. Meds would have been the answer that night. Does anyone know if you can take these meds if you have high blood pressure?

 

[DisneyForLife]

I have a box of Bonine so I just read the box. It doesn't say anything about HBP so I would assume it would be okay to take. I would ask my doctor to be sure though.

 

[SeaSpray]

Regarding high blood pressure, this is now a concern for me as well, and it wasn't last summer when we cruised. Just got diagnosed last fall.

Unfortunately I'm now on 2 different HBP medications. Fortunately, antihistamines are usually fine, I take Zyrtek with no problem, I just cant' take Zyrtek-D which also contains a decongestant. It's the decongestant in some cold/allergy medications that are not good for people with high blood pressure.

 

[robby69]

Bonine (Meclizine) is an antihistamine that is used for vertigo, sea sickness, and meniere's disease. All of these conditions are caused by a middle ear pressure imbalance. For Seasickness prevention, one dose per day is probably sufficient. It can be taken up to 25mg every 8 hours if necessary. That is where the drowsiness can become more evident. If you know you always get seasick, it will work better taken as a preventative, than after the fact. Dramamine (dimenhydrinate) is also an antihistamine that is specific for treating middle ear imbalances. It will generally cause more drowsiness, than Bonine (Meclizine). Meclizine should only be taken by adults > 12yrs of age. Dramamine can be dosed in younger children, but the liquid is no longer available. A chewable tablet is available for younger children. Dramamine is available in a "less drowsy" formula, but if you look at the ingredients it is meclizine. You may get some benefit by taking other types of antihistamines, but none will work as well as Bonine or Dramamine. If you take an anthistiamine for allergy symptoms on a daily basis, you can take Bonine (Meclizine) for seasickness, but be aware of side effects such as drowsiness, tiredness and dry mouth Everyone is different in how they react to antihistamine sedation. Some people will even get drowsy from the non-sedating antihistamines such as Claritin, Allegra etc. These products will generally not aggravate patients with high blood pressure (although that will vary with the cause of their high blood pressure), but can cause problems with people that have prostrate problems & glaucoma

 

[sillysmom]

I went to my pharmacist today after reading this thread. My DD takes zyrtek liquid. She said that YES people do use this medication for sea sickness. Since my DD doesn't take it every day, only when she has allergy symptoms, the pharmacist said to have her start it 2 nights before the cruise and continue until we return (she takes it before bed) and she also said myself and DH could take the liquid and what the dosage should be. If you take it before bed, it doesn't matter if it makes you drowsy or not.

 

[robby69]

Originally posted by sillysmom
I went to my pharmacist today after reading this thread. My DD takes zyrtek liquid. She said that YES people do use this medication for sea sickness. Since my DD doesn't take it every day, only when she has allergy symptoms, the pharmacist said to have her start it 2 nights before the cruise and continue until we return (she takes it before bed) and she also said myself and DH could take the liquid and what the dosage should be. If you take it before bed, it doesn't matter if it makes you drowsy or not.

Just remember is is NOT as effective as meclizine or dimenhydrinate for sea sickness.

 

[RDFAMILY]

will liquid benadryl for children also work for sea sickness? we have a 2yo that we have bought the sea band for but she will probably want to take it off..

 

[thepoohbear]

Ask your doctor about the ear patch. (I think it's called the transderm patch or something along those lines.) Nothing has ever helped me until I found these. One works for 3 or 4 days and they come 4 per box. I get sick just floating on waves on my back in the ocean and had no problems with anything with these patches. By the way, my doctor said that some people have side effects so I tried one a week before we left just to be on the safe side. I had a little dry mouth but it went away in a few days.

 

[aprilgail2]

If anyone is going to use the patch try it at home first...it has terrible side effects for many people including not being able to see enough to read a menu and feeling like you want to vomit among others...its a very strong medicine and before you ruin a few days of your cruise by using it try it at home to make sure you can tolerate it!

 

[DOCTORRICK]

I'm a family doctor, and since I have gotten familiar with bonine, I almost never prescribe the scopolamine patches. I find bonine just as, if not more effective, with much less sedation. As has been stated here any antihistamine can be tried, but in in general Allegra, Clariten, and Zyrtec are much less effective.

 

[outahere]

DOCTORRICK.............

So what do you suggest for a 10 year old? Even though our Dr. said that DS probably wouldn't need it, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Thanks...............

 

[JJsmama]

Of course I'll ask my doctor before we go, but in general:

Can kids 4 and 6 take the Bonine?

I get very motion sick--even in cars, rafts, etc and am worried that if my boys inherited my motion sickness they will have a very unpleasant first cruise.