Seasickness & Remedies Poll

[wilkeliza]

I use Sea bands. They have two styles, plastic bands and cloth. I have a pair of the cloth that I have had for 4 years now and will be upgrading to the plastic bands. I typically put them on the night before the plane down to the cruise and only take them off after the first day. If I start feeling the boat I put them right back on. With in 30 minutes I'm no longer feel nauseous. I believe in pressure points and use them for various reasons on a regular basis. You just have to make sure you have them in the right spot. It is about 2 finger widths down from the bend in your wrist and center on the inside of your wrists.

I use these because anti-nausea medicine makes me feel even worse.

 

[ptcbass]

I get motion sickness so I was scared I would be sick for my vacation so I took with me ginger capsules, ginger-ale, ginger lozenges and ginger cookies.
Then the night before the cruise I got scared that ginger wouldn't be enough (even though it tested superior to all other over the counter methods) and took a bonine. Then I took a bonine every night of the cruise. One night I was a couple of hours past time to take it again and was in the theater and started feeling bad. I went back and took it and felt better within about 20 minutes.
The bonine didn't make me feel tired or weird or anything.

Hope this helps!

 

[pikaboo27]

I've been on many cruises and they each taught me a lot. I get very seasick so I knew I had to take something.

I tried sea bands and I was ok (not great, but ok), but by the third day I started getting a tingling in my hands. Apparently plus size wrists and sea bands don't mix since they were cutting off my circulation. Sea bands: Fail!

For another cruise I tried Bonine. I had to take them far more often than recommended to get any relief and my eyes dilated so much! I looked like I was in a horror movie because all you could see of my eye color was a pencil tip thin band of color. And eye dilation is no fun in very sunny weather. Bonine: Fail!

Then we went on a Royal cruise a couple years ago and I tried the prescription patch. *cue choirs of angels singing* Finally I was completely fine despite some rough seas. Prescription Patch:Winning!

Have a great cruise!

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

I'm voting and speaking for my wife, she does get sea sick. She uses the less drowsy Dramamine 24 hour tablets. She takes the maximum recommended dose each night (I believe two but read and follow the label) before going to bed starting with the night before our flight down to Orlando.

 

[blondietink]

None of the 4 of us have very gotten sea sick. We always take our Bonine, ginger pills and wristbands on each cruise and have never had to use them. On our first cruise I asked why there were always green apples out on lido deck and one of the staff said that they are for sea sickness. So, there is a remedy on hand for anybody who feels sea sick.

I will say that the worst rocking of a ship we have been on was out of Tampa and we went right through the gulf of Mexico to Cozumel. Tried to go to Grand Cayman but it was closed due to wind/waves. There were sea sick bags all over the ship and restrooms but we never felt sick. The water splashed out of all the pools on deck it was so rough. We had a blast!

 

[slzer0]

Bonine, I voted it worked but I started taking it the night before the cruise. I'm sure I would have been sick without it. Can't ride in the back of a van, read while in a car, etc.

I have used it twice (two cruises) and will do so from now on. Some have reported feeling more tired but I never noticed anything. I always took it at night, and I didn't think I slept longer or anything. No side effects for me either.

Is nausea when reading in the car a good indicator of potential seasickness?

 

[slzer0]

Has anyone tried Zofran? Its an rx nausea med.

 

[storknurse13]

Has anyone tried Zofran? Its an rx nausea med.

Zofran will help with the nausea but it does NOT help with sea sickness. Sea sickness has to do with your equilibrium and your response to motion which Zofran does not correct? Take Bonine and if you still feel queasy take Rx Zofran if you have some!

 

[caribear]

We use meclizine which is the active ingredient in Bonine. We save mega bucks by buying it at the Target pharmacy. Ask for "Travel Sickness Pills". It comes in a bottle of 100 for I believe 5.00. Bonine is so expensive just because it is brand name. We take it the night before we cruise and every night thereafter. It takes a long time to "play" catch up if you hit rough seas and isn't worth it to us to waste those hours so we just take it daily. That worked for us when Hurricane Hilary changed its course on our EBPC cruise in 2005. So many people were sick but we were perfectly fine. In fact, we loved that cruise the most.

This is exactly what I do. I usually get mine at Walmart either behind the counter or sometimes it is on the shelves near the Bonine. You can chew or swallow the tiny pills, however I was told by the pharmacist that it works faster when chewed. I take 2 pills each evening starting the night before the cruise. I tried to go without taking anything on one cruise.....and it was a big mistake! The first night at dinner I was so ill.....so I had to go back to the cabin and missed the first night on our cruise. I definitely agree that it takes a while to play catch up and feel completely better.....so now I do not chance it...and always take something.

I do get very ill on spinning rides (tea cups, carousel, some 3D movies)....and I cannot read in the car ( books, emails, do crossword puzzles) and sometimes take meclizine when we go to the parks....... as just watching the rides makes me sick.

What is odd is the fact that my mom gets very sick on spinning rides also, but rarely gets seasick. She had vertigo when I was a teenager and I remember her laying in bed for several months feeling dizzy and nauseous. However, when we cruise she rarely needs the meclizine.

Buy the $5-6 bottle of Meclizine for the "just in case" scenario and enjoy your cruise!

 

[blondietink]

Now if there would only be a cure for sea legs after a cruise, which I always have, I would be a happy camper.

 

[NWT]

I tried the seabands when we went on a 4-day Bahamas cruise a few years back. I normally did not get seasick before that and could do pretty much any ride, including the teacups. However, there were some pretty bad storms right before our cruise and the waters were rough pretty much the whole cruise. I was ok on deck, but really felt light headed in the dining rooms and theatres. I was able to manage and did not seek any further treatment, but it was annoying. I wore the seabands the entire time, but it did not seem to work. DH and DDs had no issues. It is funny, because DH cannot tolerate spinning rides, but had no issue on the ship.

In the past couple years, I have been experiencing regular vertigo. I think it is a "woman thing." On our next cruise I am going to try the Bonine a few days before, during and after the cruise. It seems like it is what works best for most.

 

[UCFGrad01]

Biggest of all, I have found the key is to start treating before you board. If you wait until you have symptoms, it's hard to get ahead of it. I've had the most success with the prescription patches. I had dry mouth the first day, but that was the only side effect and it went away.

 

[proud_canadian]

We are from Canada. Is Gravol the same as Bonnie?

 

[eeyoreandtink]

They have Citric Acid supplements --they then ought to work?

I'm not sure if the citric acid alone is why tart fruits work, or if there is something else in the fruit that is contributing. I just know that green apples, oranges, and line juice in sprite were my go to remedies when I was pregnant and my doctor said the citric avid content was what did it.

 

[JacksLilWench]

I've never felt seasick while taking cruises, but I think that's because I always put a Scopolamine patch on the night before we board (or I may have been a pirate in a previous life, lol ). I hope they patches work for you! They've always done right by me!

Like UCFGrad01 said, you want to get ahead of it more than anything. Once you have symptoms, it's hard to play catch-up. And no one wants to spend their vacation playing catch-up!

 

[Swimmergirl]

Thanks all for the great insights and tips!