Sea sickness tips?

[ade1982]

When my parents went a couple of years back with P&O, there was a woman in a cabin next-door who had fairly severe seasickness. She ended up at the ship's doctor, and they gave her an injection of something, which although costs about £50, saved her from having a ruined holiday. She was almost instantly better.

 

For the sake of £50, it was probably a good idea having spent £3k on the cruise!

 

You may also be able to claim that back on insurance?

[baggal]

I had too many side effects with the patch so I finally tried Bonine. I took one the night before I boarded, and from then on, one before I went to bed every night of the cruise whether I had symptoms or not. I never felt seasick, even in choppy seas. One caution - Bonine is dehydrating - make sure to step up your liquid (non-alcoholic!) intake.

[bam1958]

I agree with the previous posters who say BONINE. I used to be sea sick on every cruise. Nothing worked. Tried Bonine and it works for me. I take 2 chewables at bedtime the night before we cruise, 2 at bedtime the first night of the cruise and then 1 a night thereafter. I don't have any side effects and do not wake up with a "Benedryl hangover" like I did with Dramamine. For some reason, Bonine doesn't make me drowsy. Good Luck! Oh, and I have found it at Wal-Mart on the shelf next to the Dramamine.

[4merlurker]

BONINE!!!! I start 2 nights before, take it every night of the cruise, and 1 - 2 nights after. (helps with the land sickness after the cruise is over)

[1cat4jan]

I too used to get very seasick until I tried Bonine. Meclizine is the generic name. I get the chewable ones. I think the trick is to get it into your system and keep taking it. Once you get sick it's too late.

 

But don't worry, if you start using them after the fact, they will work - it just means you will have to wait until they take effect before you feel better.

[luckyprincess]

I seriously get sick on a swing set - even in the front seat of a car. I cannot read and be in a car or bus - just really bad motion sickness. If you know you are really bad I'd say don't even chance it and start taking medicine the morning of the flight/cruise. Some people will say just see how you do and try iffy remedies but most of us with serious motion sickness know that there is lots of stuff out there to prevent it but not a heck of a lot that helps once it's here. Don't suffer on your vacation!

 

I have taken Bonine but it makes me drowsier than Dramamine, which I know is weird. :p I've also taken less drowsy Dramamine which worked good but no where near as good as regular Dramamine. I was ok until we hit a really bad storm and people were hitting into walls, glasses were sliding on tables and people were throwing up in garbage cans. Then I was forced to lie down with a slow growing threat of nausea for almost a day. Now I just suck it up and start taking the regular Dramamine the morning I leave. I do 2 pills every 6-8 hours. On the Explorer cruise I just went on they had a pretty bad night where we were really rocking all over. I was on a deck 2 ocean view and the water was hitting my window! I took my pills every 4 hours, drank ginger ale, hoarded and ate green apples from the Windjammer and my favorite trick....go watch the movie in the screening room! It's on a really low deck, deck 2 and there is less motion, you are inside in a cool, dark room focusing on the fixed screen so your mind is busy and you aren't seeing waves outside. I watched Total Recall 3 times on Sunday lol! :D Have a great time!! But take your medicine as normal and when a choppy night or a fast moving tender comes along you'll be looking around and saying 'thank God I took a dramamine!' like I was!

[travelplus]

An apple or a few a day keeps the sea sickness at bay. That with ginger tea, sea band and ginger pills. Also when you start to feel the motion look to the horizon and go up on deck.

[Alexat2]

An old folk remedy that my favorite Captain's (Capt. Erik Bjustedt of Orient Lines) mother used. He swore it worked for her:

 

Every morning his mother was on board ship she would start her day by eating a green apple, and doing a shot of scotch. :eek: As long as she did this, she never got sea sick again.

 

She was not a drinker, and this only time she drank alcohol.

 

It kind of makes sense, the acid in the apple would calm the stomach, and the scotch would relax the person.

 

Lydia

[emmac25]

Thank you very much for all your suggestions! I appreciate them all!

[Deatsch]

Two words:

 

Accupressure band.

 

It works the nuts.

 

hth,

 

Jim

[austincici]

There is a natural oil remedy that you put behind your ear that they sold on Holland America called Motion Eaze. Most of the ship was sick (including the crew!) when we went to Alaska last September it was so rough. I used Bonine and ginger pills and at the time was also using the Seabands. I was so sick I had to go get the shot (a lot of us did). My stepsister got the oil and it worked for her, so I tried it, and have also used it on our last Caribbean cruise. Just ordered a bigger bottle from Amazon. Works great! But I will still be taking my ginger and Bonine, and adding that any time I feel a little sick. Takes that feeling away almost immediately! By the way, on HAL, the crew all recommended green apples and saltines. The saltines I could handle in tiny bites, but green apples when you are already seasick just didn't work for me-couldn't get it down!:rolleyes:

[pcur]

I suffer terribly from sea sickness, and am first time cruiser. No idea how I am going to react on the ship as never been on one this size before. I don't want to have to rely on dramamine or the patches behind my ear (had reaction to that last time so it kind of put me off).

 

Are there any others who suffer from sea sickness and have advice or tips, all-natural remedies etc. Also any advice on the sea bands (?) I think that's what they are called.

 

Here's what I do (sorry if this is a repeat of what's written above):

 

The DAY BEFORE (or longer if you are really sensitive) take a half dose of non-drowsy bonine when you get on the plane, or sometime during the day before. The morning of the cruise take another half dose. When you go to bed the first night of the cruise, take another half dose. There are several posters here on CC who start taking it a week ahead of time.

 

This gets the bonine into your system without overpowering you. By the time the ship is moving you have a full dose or more in your system.

 

I stop at this point, because it's usually enough to take care of me for a week. If the ship gets rocky, I take another half dose.

 

The trick to seasickness is if your BRAIN is aware of what's going on in your STOMACH, then you need to act. If you even think the thought, "gee, tummy is feeling weird; am I hungry or seasick?", just take the half dose.

[webecruzin2]

My son gets motion sickness - we don't know (yet) if he will get seasick. So I'm packing a pharmacy's worth of remedies! Meclizine, SeaBands (helps him in the car), ginger gum and ginger snap cookies. I'm also bringing his travel puke kit - a bucket, Ziploc bags to line it, puppy pee pads for splatters, wipes, and gum to get the taste out of his mouth. He's super fun to travel with. :rolleyes:

 

LOL, I was just thinking that!

But seriously, I hope everything goes well for you and your son.

[temple1]

I used to go the patch route but several cruises ago I started having a bad reaction. SO I switched to Bonine chewables at night and the night before I leave. Big help.

 

One other tip, according to a flight attendent when I spent a good portion of a flight in the bathroom hugging the toilet, :rolleyes: is to make sure to consume carbohydrates. She asked what i had before the flight (it was a morning flight) and it was my usual glass of milk and a banana. She warned me to always consume some carbs before flying. When I was able to hold my head up I managed to chew a couple of the Bonine and I was okay by the time for the second half of the flight.

[carsaw]

I have gotten sick on plane flight and cruises. Someone recommended Bonine to me. I take one the day before the cruise (usually when I fly) and every day for the entire cruise. It is the best thing I have tried. I do not have any side effects and can have a few drinks with no problems. Walmart over the counter (best price). I noticed they do sell out so must be very popular.:)

[MsViola]

Ginger pills were a life saver for on my last cruise. Also, the ginger beer I got from a grocery store in Nassau works great for any type of nausea. Have a great cruise!!

[Shelley61]

Going off on a slight tangent, I was talking to my hairdresser today who used to work in the salons on various rcl ships and she said that she used to enjoy the rough seas and found them quite entertaining up until her last contract when she suddenly started getting sea sick! So, it appears that even those who think they're immune to sea sickness might succumb eventually!