Patch for Seasickness

So I asked my doctor for a behind the ear patch for seasickness that a friend told me about just in case. I want something that won't make me tired. My doctor is going to call me in some but this was her reply ... this makes me nervous as well. Not sure if I should look into some sea bands that people are talking about or not but I would need them quick because our cruise leaves on Monday and we head out to drive down this weekend!

Here is my doctors reply on the patch for behind the ear:

"The patches are worn for 3 days at a time. They can give you a dry mouth and dilate your eyes. Make sure you have very dark sunglasses to protect your eyes. Also, if your eyes are dilated, it may make your vision blurry when trying to read. If you still want them, let me know how long your cruise is and I can send in prescription."

"Here is my doctors reply on the patch for behind the ear:

 

"The patches are worn for 3 days at a time. They can give you a dry mouth and dilate your eyes. Make sure you have very dark sunglasses to protect your eyes. Also, if your eyes are dilated, it may make your vision blurry when trying to read."

Hey at least you will not be sea sick...LoL All kidding aside, I do get sea sick not as much on a cruise ship as I do on a small crafted boat, but I do get sick. Not sure if sea bands work but I did use them on our last cruise and I did not get sea sick, but then again we had smooth sailing pretty much the whole way. I had a sea band on each wrist and I put them on before we boarded the plane the day before the cruise, hope this helps.

I have to use the patch - all of the other remedies did not work for me. I don't really get the dry mouth but it does impact my vision. I hate that but it is either deal with the side effects of the patch, be ridiculously miserable or not cruise. It seemed the lesser of the evils.

Your doctor is watching out for your best interest.

Too many people think because they are a patch rather than a pill that they are not really medicine. How many of you knew that are also used to treat Parkinson's disease, muscle spasms, and irritable bowel syndrome? It has also been prescribed "off label" for asthma, depression, as a smoking-cessation remedy, to relieve the nausea that accompanies chemotherapy and is used on many of my hospice patients to “dry” them up to decrease the likelihood of pneumonia.

My friend Natalie, an RN used one on our first cruise in 2011. She was dizzy and confused with blurred vision. She also realized she hadn’t peed in about 12 hours. Removed the patch and next day was fine. She didn’t know if she would get sea sick or not and got an Rx. This was a case of the cure being worse than the ailment.

The flip side is a different friend, also a nurse, wears one every cruise. She gets positively green on a cruise without the patch but has no difficulty when wearing it. She also does not have the above mentioned side effects.

There are a variety of things such as ginger, green apples and sea band which are more holistic that you might try. And there are tons of OTC that are also effective.

Lastly, guys with any sort of prostate problems need to stay away from the chemical remedies. Just ask your doctor of pharmacist for advice as to why.

If you have access to a store called The Container Store in your area, they carry the sea bands and I used them on my last cruise and worked great. I tend to get seasick but that doesn't stop me from cruising. Walmart also has them or you might want to try this ointment kind that you rub behind your ears too. It's called Motioneaze. I found this at Walmart as well. It has a smell that helps with the seasickness. It works instantly. I always get a bottle before each cruise.

I get motion sickness on buses, back seat of cars, amusement rides..almost anything that moves. I take Bonine starting the day before and take it everyday no matter what on cruise...In 10 cruises I only felt "green" once when we had 18 foot seas. I won't travel w/o it.

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I would highly recommend motioineaze (sp), sea bands and ginger capsules. If you are going to use the patch please be very very careful and watch for side affects including but not limited to hallucinations, confusion, inability to sleep, unsteady on your feet and I could go on. My best friend and I traveled with another friend whose doctor prescribed the patch. We had no clue what was wrong (had never traveled with her and had no experience with the patch). We finally took her to the ship doctor and there in the waiting area was a sign saying the patch was not provided on the ship and it's use was not recommended. There were approximately 25 possible side effects listed and I believe my friend probably had 20 of them. I thought the nurse was going to cry when we told her and she removed the patch immediately. Security was notified and they disabled our balcony door and posted someone outside our cabin door all night. Yes, that is how bad it was. Once the patch was removed she improved dramatically and we all got a good night's sleep, but sadly had to disembark the next day.

I know there are many people who use the patch without problems, but for us what was supposed to be a fun girlfriends cruise turned into a nightmare.

The first time I used the patch, my doc told me to cut them in half because they can give you blurry vision. I did and was okay. When I wore the whole patch I did have blurry vision and dizziness. Several cruises later, I am now using Bonine and love that. It is a tablet that you chew before your cruise or flight if that makes you nauseous. It works for around 24 hours for me. It's sold in just about every drug store OTC and is the same thing as dramamine. It's very good if you have any kind of motion sickness.

I also have a prescription level of Bonine for my vertigo.

I use the patch at theme parks. I know I get sick on the rides and this helps tremendously. I get a dry mouth the 1st day and my vision is blurry, but it is much better than being sick. With that said, I don't get sick on the larger cruise ships and all I need on the smaller ships is an occasional dramamine. I don't think you should use the patch unless you know you will be sick. I would start out with ginger or dramamine taken before bed if you start feeling bad.

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My vision is hardly blurry when I wear the patch. It depends on the individual. I'm always carrying a water bottle (or Coke) with me anyway, while onboard, so I'm not thirsty. On the flip-side, I got sea-sick once, and ended up being stuck in my room the first night onboard (thank God I had the patches with me. I brought them "just in case," and was so glad I did.) I'll gladly deal with the side effects before I ever get seasick again.

My husband gets pretty motion sick and he always wears the ear patch thingy on our cruises. He's never had any side effects (thankfully!). There was one trip where he still felt a little seasick, even with the patch.

You could always take them, as an option, but start with the dramamine/bonine/wrist bands. Should none of that work, you'd have the patch as a backup, with the knowledge of possible side effects to watch out for. His Dr. told him to limit alcohol consumption while wearing the patch, but he never drinks so that was easy for him (wouldn't be so easy for me :-)! Maybe that is why he's never felt side effects?

We used the patch back in the 90s but it did have the weird side effects. I was 20 and tiny back then and it did help to cut them in half. I had previously had them prescribed for during migraines as a kid. Then one cruise my gfs and I met a group of guys. The first 5 mins one of them reached over and pulled off my friends patch. When she asked him why he told us he is a doctor and just by looking at her eyes he could tell it wasn't the thing for her. He made us all take them off. He assured us that if we got sick he would give us something in the original packaging to help. No one did. It was Bonine he had and it was before it was so widely used. The best part of the story is that the little cruise group we formed with these guys and a few other then singles in that trip (13 of us) have now been on numerous cruises and all over the globe together. We have been in each others weddings and watched our children grow together. The beauty of cruising for me started NOT when I was crew, but because of a Scop patch and some brazen guy "claiming" to be a doctor (hehe! He is and we still tease him about not really buying it!). Ginger for three days before and one a day on the ship and Bonine at night only and as needed. Helps you sleep without all of the side effects.

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My wife uses the Reliefband. Works for her. Ask your doctor.

Bonine! Hardly any side effects. My husband was a Dramamine user until he ran out on one of our cruises and had to use my Bonine. He is a convert.

I have heard many complaints that the ear patches can cause blurred vision. I posted a thread similar to this and you can see some of the replies I got below:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2458732

DH has been using the patch as part of his regular cruising routine for the last 15 years. The only issue he has dealt with over the years is that he is a little drowsy (but not consistently through out the cruise). Its more like a very mellow, laid back feeling that can be adjusted by an afternoon power nap if need be.

He uses the patch the night before we leave, the first day of cruise and sometimes the second day. Then he is done, he feels fine (this is a man that has suffered from car/motion sickness since he was a kid and still gets car sick if he is not driving). We also keep plenty of ginger ale in the mini fridge in cabin and bonine on hand in case he feels a little icky during cruise. We cannot and would not cruise without the patch for DH in the beginning of the cruise as it has made a huge difference in his ship experience. I think our prescription is $50 for 10 patches so we have enough for 2 or 3 cruises.

Our cruise last April we had to use the patch for 2 days as the sea was really choppy and rough, even mid ship the sway was rough - most noticeable in the AFT dining room. I ended up giving 1 patch to a friend who traveled w/ us.

We BOTH got blurry vision ... no dry mouth issues. I keep the patch w/ us as a precaution, JIC ... not had much success w/ any other remedies.

I will say though ... it can be difficult to get your insurance to cover it for a cruise as it's "not medically necessary". We had to pay out of pocket which is about $20 per patch ~ as neither BC/BS or Tricare would cover it.

Dramamine Naturals are great. They help with motion sickness and are non drowsy.

I have a friend who gets car sick very easily but really wanted to go on a cruise. I had her take Bonine, starting the day before we left, and ginger root capsules starting several days before. We were on the Holiday, so a small ship. Had one pretty rocky night but she never felt even the littlest bit queasy. She's been on 3 cruises with me now, and #4 booked. Not one bit of seasickness.

I use the patch, but am one of the lucky ones who has never had a bad side effect from it. I don't get dry mouth or blurry vision. I drink while having it on, with no issues. On our first cruise, I got very seasick and just felt off the rest of the vacation. I get car sick and can't ride very many roller coasters without feeling ill. I won't cruise without the patch!

I'm very prone to side effects from medication. What I do is take a ginger root pill that I bought from Walmart. I take one a day, starting the day before. No nausea, no side effects. Works great for my husband and I.

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Dramamine Naturals are great. They help with motion sickness and are non drowsy.

Just so you know, Dramamine naturals is just ginger root. I buy ginger root capsules at Walmart for much less. It's around $4 for a bottle of 100. Works great!

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As with any medication, even over the counter, there is side effects that sound scary. If you are concerned about how your or your family will react to the meds, try them first before getting on the ship. See if you feel anything. If you have negative side effects, then you know not to try it on the ship when it could potentially make your trip not as good.

My wife got seasick one time on a cruise. At that time, the medical department had some kind of pills -- not sure what they were -- but they gave here 2 and instructed her to take 1 then (it was morning) and the other around dinner and to chase it with a can of gingerale. Those pills costs us less than $5.

That was on the Elation in 2012. I've heard they are not as easy on the prices in the infirmary these days.

Anyway, this can be your backup plan.

DD, who is now 18, just started getting airsick/carsick/cruise-ship-sick over the past 4 years.

The ginger GUM works wonders for her.

Blah taste, or NO taste, but she is FINE when she is chewing it.

Just another option.

Also, for the last trip, on Oasis, in June, we got her the seabands. Not sure if it was in her head, or they really worked. I know they are supposed to touch the "pressure point", but I just don't know that I buy that or not. Regardless, she was fine. But she still had the gum.

Good luck!!!!