Advice needed- best option to prevent sea sickness!??!

[sunryz710]

Traveling on a cruise with my sister who is prone to sea sickness.

Does anyone know what works the best? I do not want to chance that she gets sickk and ruins her vacation. What medication is the very best option if yo are prone to motion sickness?

[hotweathergirl]

my friend uses the braclets that she got at the drugstore when we go out on smaller boats and she does really well with them. she even used them on a catamaran.

[mpk218]

Everyone is different but heres my 2 cents.

 

Bonine tablets ( start before the cruise)

 

Ginger capsuls ( work great ) and can be taken with bonine.

 

And a cabin mid-ship deck 6/7

 

good luck

[mrazfan]

I second the idea of Sea-Bands. I have used them on every boat ride I have taken and they work very well. My young daughters use the kid ones and they are more prone to sea sickness than I am. No problems with either of them either.

[pugaddict]

Sea bands are great!!! And you don't have to worry if you want to have few drinks. I always worry when I take anything even tylenol and drink. Have fun!:)

[sunryz710]

Will she need to go to the Dr to get the sea band and/or bonine?

Also, I heard about ginger.. can it safely be taken with the bands as well as bonine?

 

Those of you who have tried the bands have you also tried bonine?

Do either make you drowsy? Can you drink alcohol with these things too?

 

Thanks!

[sunryz710]

Thanks Pug.. we posted at the same moment.

It sounds like everyone likes sea bands. Maybe we will give it a try. Do you think she needs anything else? Also, do they make you drowsy at all?

[jjtt]

Also I heard that if you eat a green apple that works as well. I heard this here on Cruise Critic and also from crew members (they eat green apples if they feel seaseick) several years ago on a different cruise line. My two adult children went with us several years ago and one didn't feel good (didn't get sick) and the other one came into our cabin eatting a green apple and chips. :eek: Don't know if the apple helped or she was not bothered by the slight rocking.

[LindaLa]

I take bonine and really like it. I take it before the ship starts moving and if I wake up and the seas are rough, I take it right away. I did the patch and did not like it. I purchased ginger pills, but never had the need to take them. Good luck. Also, fresh air is really good if you feel a little queasy.

[pugaddict]

The sea bands don't make you drowsy. You wear them on your wrists and they have a little ball in the middle that is placed on the inside of your wrist. This somehow touches a pressure point and makes you not sick. Last year we had really rough seas and they worked like a charm. I looked like I'd just gotten off the tennis court, but oh well it stopped my nausea. My son didn't want to wear them because he thought they looked funny so he asked for some pills at the front desk and they said right on the package, do not drink alcohol. I don't think she'll need anything else.

[swedish weave]

As information -- The active ingredient in Bonine is Meclizine. You can find this in store brands if Bonine is not available in your area. Also, Bonine is 25 mg. If that is too strong for you, you can find Meclizine in 12.5 mg doses in other brands.

 

Meclizine is what the ships usually give you if you ask for seasick pills.

[pugaddict]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention. I have some packed in my suitcase right now. We leave in a week for Bermuda! Yeah!:D:D

[blitheone]

Individual responses to meds and gadgets differ, so your mileage may vary...

 

Sea bands and ginger are both fine, side effect-free first-line treatments for seasickness. There are ginger caps, candied ginger,ginger ale (the real thing---kinda spicy===not the cheap stuff) and ginger snaps (the latter two really helped my little sis through chemo) to choose from.

 

However, I get blechy pretty easily and have found better relief with Dramamine (there's a less sleepy formula available) or Bonine.

 

But, having seen 25+ foot high waves more than once, there's nothing comparable to a scopolomine patch (for me, anyway). They're available by prescription only (at least in the U.S.). Yes, there are side effects (I had to take afternoon naps 'cause they can make you sooooo tiredzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz and I couldn't wear my contacts because I got very dry), but they're usually quite effective. That said, I've come across a few people on these boards who couldn't tolerate them.

 

Okay, I admit to having had seasickness on most of our cruises. But, it never lasted long and you can see we've gone back, again and again. Cruise Critic people are just weird that way.... ;)

 

Janet

[kidzrnseattle]

I get motion sick very easily ( no map reading in the car for me!) and used the bonine once a day on a recent cruise and was thrilled that I never was the least bit nauseated. It is non drowsy. The patch makes my eyes and mouth too dry. Of course that is a good excuse to order another drink;)

[STARFISH*4]

Ginger capsules 2 at every meal and then if going like on tenders/smaller boats take some if needed....hubby and our fren went out deep sea fishing small boat...ruff water and took several they never had any probs or we never notice any side effects...i have done the pills they give you at the desk and the patch and find for me and hubby and our cruise partners we all use the GINGER and do pretty well and very inexpensive.

GOOD LUCK you might need to TRY a few things to find something that works for YOU!!!

[zubee23]

Sea-Bands worked for me on my 7/5-7/12 Dawn trip to Bermuda. I had a scopolamine patch handy just in case but I didn't use it. BTW, I can get sick in port and on Disney rides. I was amazed the Sea-Bands worked!

[rxlowry]

Pugaddict...you shouldn't take Tylenol and drink! Tylenol is metabolized by the liver and when taken with alcohol or even the next day for a hangover will result in killing some liver cells.

[pugaddict]

Thanks rxlowry, I won't.

[Crissy699]

I dont know what the problem is with Dremamine :confused: Do people get side effects or something? Is there something bad in it? I have VERY VERY good luck with the non-drowsy version, chewable and works quick.

[tbear2762]

OK so my first cruise was a smaller ship and I was sick used Dramine not much help. Second cruise I secured the Scopolamine patch for myself and all in our cabin. I placed mine before boarding ship as the doctor had instructed me (it is slow release and needs to be in your system) hubby didn't said he didn't need it. I was not sick the entire cruise, hubby got sick place the patch but got no releif. Third cruise I asked for the patch went to drug store and to my suprise the cost was outragious, seems some insurance companies don't see the need and don't cover them. Druggest suggest the sea-band which I got and it was great. I will never go with out them again. They are also used by a lot of pregnant women with great success. It is a form of accupressure.

[uneamie]

"SEA BANDS" !!! I am prone to get deathly ill with any kind of movement. I used "sea bands" and that works perfectly.

 

I do not like taking the meds because I like to drink occasionally...don't like to mix the two.

 

I also take a bottle of "ginger capsules" with me and I take 2 the night before we leave and then 2 more the day of...and never had to take any more after that.

[lyndyb]

sunryz710, both Bonine and the sea bands can be purchased at a drug store and without a prescription. If you have difficulty finding them locally, you can get them at drugstore.com I've attached links for both products - hope that helps!

 

One of my co-workers took Bonine and suggested I try a half a tablet because even though she took the non-drowsy formula, they made her very sleepy. My sister had side effects with the patch - it made her vision blurry and she felt vaguely sea-sick when on land. She removed the patch and the symptoms went away, so all was well.

 

http://www.drugstore.com/search/search_results.asp?N=0&Ntx=mode%2Bmatchallpartial&Ntk=All&srchtree=1&Ntt=sea+bands

 

http://www.drugstore.com/search/search_results.asp?N=0&Ntx=mode%2Bmatchallpartial&Ntk=All&srchtree=5&Ntt=bonine

 

 

Thanks to all of you who have posted the great results with the sea bands. I wasn't sure if they were effective or just a myth. After seeing all your posts, I'll be heading to the grocery store where I saw them (next to the Bonine and Dramamine).

[joycep13]

Traveling on a cruise with my sister who is prone to sea sickness.

Does anyone know what works the best? I do not want to chance that she gets sickk and ruins her vacation. What medication is the very best option if yo are prone to motion sickness?

 

Take everything with you, never know what's going to work for one person vs. another. On our cruise last year my aunt turned out to be ultra super sensitive to the ship's motion even though we had perfectly calm seas and weather (this was her first and I'm sure her last cruise!).

 

She'd be flat out in bed all day, seasick, while the rest of us couldn't sense even the slightest whisper of motion. She used ginger, ginsing, and sea bands, none of which helped. We wanted to get her some of the ship's free seasick pills but for some reason she kept refusing. Finally, about two days before the end of our trip she let us get her some - they worked great! She felt fine. Too bad she wouldn't take them earlier, could have saved her 10 days of misery and missing the majority of an amazing Panama Canal cruise.

 

Cheers,

~Joyce

[sunryz710]

Thanks to all! I think we are going to try Sea Bands and take some ginger pills with us. If for some reason they do not work we can try the pills from the ship. I really appreciate your responses! Thanks!

[4 cruisers]

Candied ginger!!!!!! I have "saved" many people by sharing mine on board! :D