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mtnrdredux_gw

Seasickness?

mtnrdredux_gw
9 years ago

I have a tendency to get motion sickness, but I haven't taken anything for it since I was a child. I avoid certain situations, get a lot of air, drink water, try mind over matter, stare at the horizon, etc etc

We will be on a Antarctic cruise in Dec., and it can get quite rough (albeit only 5 days for the cruise portion). I read about something called a scopolamine patch, prescription only, and also homeopathic remedies (which are more appealing as the scrips has side effects).

I'm guessing I would have to get scrips for the whole family before we go?

Anyone with recent experience to share?

Comments (24)

  • neetsiepie
    9 years ago

    My DD has used the patch with no ill effects and swears by it. I'd recommend having it on hand for everyone-as sea sickness is NOT pleasant!

    I'd also suggest lowering sodium intake prior to the cruise and keep ginger on hand, too.

  • Sueb20
    9 years ago

    When we went to the Galapagos, the dr. gave us a prescription for something that is similar to Dramamine but non-drowsy. Can't remember the name of it at the moment. Both DS and I get seasick so we were happy to have it.

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    9 years ago

    Our CR/Panama cruise was on a sail boat so no stabilizers and it did get quite rocky. I found the key was to become one with the boat...not to try and stand straight as the boat was rocking which would lead you to sway, but to rock with the boat...so any time I was feeling unsure, I'd find a wall and lean up against it so I moved with the boat...it helped a lot. Of course, I still went through all those phases, like for awhile, when we were on land, the land was rocking and back on the boat, everything was fine. All part of the experience.

    another article on motion sickness treatment

    Here is a link that might be useful: Rethinking motion sickeness

  • coll_123
    9 years ago

    I would go prepared with a full arsenal of stuff. There is nothing worse than being trapped on a boat with seasickness and not being able to treat it. NOTHING WORSE!!!!

  • hhireno
    9 years ago

    Get Sea Bands, they look like a sports sweat bands for the wrist. There is an acupressure knobby thing inside. I bought mine in the pharmacy section at the grocery store. Ancient Chinese medicine or placebo: who knows, who cares, when it works.

    I wear them on planes, boats, and buses. I don't think I'd rely solely on them for your cruise but it would be my first line of defense. My sisters swear by non-prescription Bonine for travel, it's a non-drowsy Dramamine type product.

    Just thinking about the misery that is motion sickness makes me lightheaded.

  • luckygal
    9 years ago

    If you google "ginger for motion sickness" you will find much info on the benefits of this natural substance. I prefer to use candied ginger because I like the flavor but also have capsules. No side effects altho caution to those on blood thinning pharmaceuticals because it does thin the blood. I haven't had a problem with that.

  • beaglesdoitbetter1
    9 years ago

    I was also going to say ginger candy. My husband gets seasick on cruises and uses that to great benefit.

  • funnygirl
    9 years ago

    I haven't used the patches (prescription) but they sure did make some passengers a lot more comfortable on our last cruise (Galapagos). One passenger, a physician's wife, didn't want to use them, as her husband recommended and was using, and got very sick. Apparently he slapped one on her as she was leaning over the toilet and she had no problems the rest of the time. I did the "become one with the boat" thing and did fine but would have accepted the offer of a patch if it hadn't.

  • blfenton
    9 years ago

    I don't normally get seasick but the last time we went on a cruise it was in the Caribbean and we were going to be skirting a hurricane and the seas were going to be rough. Before we even left port and before I had the chance to get the least bit queasy I started taking gravol and was religious about taking it. I didn't get sick unlike the other 90% of the ship including crew who got really sick.

    It did get really rough in a kind of fun way, for me any way.

    Maybe the trick is just to get ahead of it.

  • lynninnewmexico
    9 years ago

    I agree that ginger is wonderful for nausea and seasickness for some people. I love the flavor of it myself, and it works very well if I take it for nausea. But, it can also cause major stomach irritation for some people, especially if you have a sensitive stomach to start with. Me, for one. Been there; done that! I would be hesitant, in a situation like yours, to count on that alone, and then end up having to quit it while onboard with no other alternatives that work for you . . . and no stomach meds. After it caused major stomach problems for me, I can only use it minimally and very occasionally.
    I use Sea-Bands now and so do both my (now adult) kids, who've inherited this malady from me. On one trip to Hawaii when DS was 12, he experienced pretty significant motion sickness, despite the (sea sick prevention) meds we brought along . . . on our boat ride, helicopter tour, plane trip there and back, on our oceanographic sub excursion and on our rafting trip along the Napali Coast. Poor kid! We hadn't discovered Sea-Bands yet. But, we took a 7-day Caribbean cruise later and we all were fine using the bands . . . thank goodness!
    Lynn

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    9 years ago

    I remember my brother didn't get seasick, but we didn't know it so dad gave him something....which made him sick!
    So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't!

  • rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
    9 years ago

    Gin Gin candies are wonderful! I keep their hard and their chewy candy on hand, just because I like the flavor; they have a high percentage of ginger and are an effective anti-nausea aid for many.

    For severe sea sickness, I would use a patch or other medication plus the ginger.

  • calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
    9 years ago

    If you are only going to be at sea for a few days, use the patch. If you are going to be a month or so at sea, most people will adjust to the movement in about three days(miserable days). Bring the patch in case you are one of those that never adjust. Al

  • bonnieann925
    9 years ago

    I'd get the sea bands because they are all natural. We have cruised several times, and only rarely do I have to use the bands, but when I do, they work wonders.

    Have your doc write scripts for the patches ahead of time and take them with you. Most cruise infirmaries carry them and will dispense them to you, but I'm not sure of the cost. Better to have them ahead and avoid a trip to the infirmary.

  • dedtired
    9 years ago

    Do all of the above. I get seasick and when I have it all I want to do is throw up or die and I don't care which. I just stay off boats altogether.

  • coll_123
    9 years ago

    Lol, exactly, dedtired. I'd bring it all. If the holistic stuff didn't work, I'd break out the Dramamine and fall into a blessed sleep. ( although I do hear that the patches work). The three worst hours of my life were on a ferry from Boston to Provincetown when I was 17...I can't even imagine enduring more than that with that feeling. It's carsickness times a million....probably amplified because you just. Can't. Stop. The. Car.

  • hhireno
    9 years ago

    Before I knew about sea bands, I used the patch once on a Cruise to Nowhere (an overnight cruise from I don't remember, NYC maybe, down past Atlantic City and then back again). It was autumn, the sea was a bit rough, my BFF, who I think of as having a cast iron stomach, was sick and I was fine. My pupils were HUGE and I couldn't drink anything with dinner but, most importantly, I didn't get invited into a complete strangers bathroom because it looked like I needed to vomit. She did.

    I hadn't thought about that cruise in years. Thanks for the memories. It's not a bad memory when you're on the right side of it. My BFF might have a very different memory of the cruise. If I were mean, I'd bring it up. But as it is, I'm not going to rock her boat...

  • straitlover
    9 years ago

    On cruises, i use meclizine, the generic form of Bonine. No prescription needed, pharmacist keeps it behind the counter, and way cheaper than brand name. I start it a couple of days before sailing to get it in my system, and I take it before bed so if I get drowsy, I'm already in bed so it doesn't matter. :)

  • lilsophie
    9 years ago

    I do and use the same med as Straitlover. It's the only one that works for me. And start it the day before. Nothing else works for me. Bonine(meclizine) except this one.

  • kswl2
    9 years ago

    Get the patch, it is a LIFESAVER! Slap it on as you leave the dock, do not wait for bad weather! And make sure you have enough for all your little mates, too, for the duration. The last one I used was a three day patch which I replaced once during a week cruise.

    Mtn, I used to live on a sailboat and spent most days at sea in inner turmoil. I was even seasick in Norwegian fiords so far inland they are half salt, half fresh! When I finally used the patch I thought I had died and gone to heaven, amen. They are prescription only, don't let that deter you.

  • coll_123
    9 years ago

    I'm not sure fresh vs salt water has much to do with it. This summer I visited family in lake michigan. I decided to take a chance and go out on my cousin's boat. I was fine, UNTIL The boat stopped,and was just bobbing around out there.l.they were letting some of my young cousins board an intertube to get towed behind . Every time the boat stopped to load up the kids, I wanted to die. Seasickness = hell on earth. I'd like to take a cruise one day, but, no. Sea sick in Boston harbor, check. Sea sick onLake Michigan, check. I'm done!

  • melsouth
    9 years ago

    Years ago, I bought the sea bands before a cruise just in case.
    I didn't get sick, but my friend did.
    She was MISERABLE.
    I gave her my bands, and she still swears they saved her life.

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thank you all for sharing your experiences. Given that it is Antarctica, it isn't like we can pick something up at a port of call. Or get off! If we are deathly seasick, our only really option would be to decamp and lives out our lives among the seals and become wizened weathered seal-people. If so, I will need decor help with our igloo!

    So, I am going to arm the family with all of these options. Ginger, wrist bands, and patches. I have gotten the patch prescriptions but will discuss with our doctors; funnily enough dizziness is a side effect! (huh?)

  • patty_cakes
    9 years ago

    Play it safe and stock up on all the above. If one doesn't work, you'll have several back-ups. Besides, not everything works the same for everyone, especially when you bring kids into the equation. You also need to eat/drink to keep up your energy, and there is nothing worse than trying to eat when you're seasick!

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