Has your Sea Sickness sensitivity changed?

[Gary Matthesen]

Well, lets consider, thicker liquid, makes a less "refined" sensory input, where one overcompensates and loses balance. I agree I don't dance around the fore deck of a J 35 like I used too (similar age group)

[DEAN2140]

Although you didn't ask for a remedy, I found that Transderm patches worn behind the ear are very effective. I sailed from Tahiti to Hawaii (3000nm) with no problem. I could read, prepare food and eat below. Without the patch, I would have been in trouble.

[Sea Venture]

We did Cape Town South Africa to. Namibia. Namibia to St Helena Island. St Helena to Salvador Brazil. I was sea sick on every trip for the first 3 days. What really works for me is , my wrist bands and cotton wool in one ear.

[Mango51]

I've alway gotten sea sick. In 2008 I got bells pausing paralyzing 40 % of the right side of my face along with my inner ear. I'm dizzy 24/7 and I can't run because I'll fall down. I think loosing sensitivity to any of your senses due to age or health will be negative. On the positive side I'm a cheap date because I'm already drunk. 😊

[Fiveslide]

The only boat that has ever made me vomit was a 40' catamaran, I guess it was the quicker motion than I was used to in heavier mono's. Each time I threw up was about day two or three of a passage and I got better after then and enjoyed the rest of the trip. It was never debilitating seasickness, just got sick when below, never during a watch.

One other time... We were in the gulf stream in November fishing in weather one would not normally choose to go fishing in. The owner/Captain of the boat asked what we wanted to fish for, we wanted a big blue fin, the gulf stream was where he took us. I got queesy and came close to hurling, so I started getting drunk on beer and the queesy feeling went away.

Now, I just recently almost got sick on a carnival ride and that has never happened before. I haven't been out of sight of land since 2013, I don't know how well I'd handle a passage now, as far as seasickness goes. Hopefully I find a cruising boat and put it to the test soon.

[thinwater]

For most people it gets better. Though I never got seasick, in the beginning I would feel the motion after I got off the boat, but eventually, that went away. I might feel something if I was in the galley long enough in rough weather, but that faded too.



However, one family member did not see improvement.

[Gary Matthesen]

There you go...Sick below deck
where your eyes say a cabin door frame is vertical, but the vestibular system says your moving. I agree too that a few beers breaks the discrepancy of the neurological information from vestibular and visual. So get drunk and go sailing if your over 50 years old. Works for me!

[thomm225]

I almost sold my old boat due to seasickness.

This even though I'd had lots of boats (power and sail) . It may have been because I didn't sail or go boating in the same water as I did with this one

I sail in the bay and within 10 miles of the bay in the ocean. The bay many times has a mixture of bay and ocean waves especially when the wind has an Eastern component

I tried everything. Pills, bracelets, Ginger gum, beer, and nothing seemed to work. Sometimes I was forced to work on the boat (stuck furler for example with the sail out) while having dry and wet heaves)

Then I happened to purchase some chewable dramamine that promised relief in about a minute. So I had them aboard and found myself in 25-28 knots winds with nowhere to go but 40 miles downwind South and I was starting to get ill after a few hours

And btw, boats like mine going downwind in big waves and wind simply does continuous rolls back and forth, back and forth, while also going up and down over the waves

Just before I really got sick, I reached below (I had to steer on this day because the autopilot wouldn't keep up) and grabbed these chewable dramamine pills. I took one and felt better almost immediately. The cover said take two for 24 hour releif so I did and no more problem

I was having few beers a couple hours later

So now if I ever feel queasy, I'll take 1/2 a regular dramamine. I usually only need this on the first day although I have had time at anchor with the wind on the beam that affected me not in a good way and I was popping dramamine

[Lihuedooley77]

Excellent topic

Thing is motion sickness can be a very individual issue and sometimes air sickness can be added in as well.

Personally I do not have a problem with sea or air sickness.

Before I met Erica , she used to get sea sick, and air sick. Bad news, not just queezy.

When i met her, she had recently purchased a new Crealock 37 sloop, and was taking sailing lessons with me at the Newport Sailing Club. I was her instructor. She is very strong minded, and has a will to accomplish any goal that she sets for herself.

For 35 years plus , she has sailed california's coast and channel islands, Mexico, Cabo San Lucas to Los Angeles Harbor, Australia, Tahiti, Tonga, most of the Caribbean and Greece.

NO PROBLEM WITH SEA SICKNESS. She was determined to overcome the mal de mere since she loves sailing and is an excellent sailor and seaman...well, seawoman and she loved being pilot in command as well.

The only time that she and I got a little queezy, was sailing between Raiatea and Huanine ( Tahiti ). The wave motion was a bit different than the other passages to Bora Bora and back to Riaitea.....

So, we fixed that with an apple and a bottle of Hinano beer. Go figure.

As to her air sickness, that was also a serious problem but I never witnessed her air sick. When I met her, I decided to get back into flying. I was a commerical pilot , flight instructor, charter pilot, etc. Well, she wanted fly. We bought four place Piper Cherokee 140, and she began flying with me for fun with local and fairly long cross countries..

She worked diligently at her lessons, got her private pilots license and also now has a few hundred hours flying aerobatics. No sign of any airsickness.

Now, does this mean that everyone who gets sea or air sick can overcome those maladies , sorry to say, maybe not. It comes down to the individual and what is the cause of the problem
.
But, there are plenty of people who have been successful and are now free of any sea sickness or air sickness.

I worked for many years as a U.S.C.G Licensed charter capt, did a lot of local,and Catalina charters and bare boat charters with groups on international cruises. My suggestions for charter parties, sail or power. Most of the times these ideas were helpful.

I would contact the charterer, who ever set it up, or organized it. Or, gave pre cruise briefings for flotillas, to all of those going on the sailing vacations or charter.

1. Have a healthy breakfast. Lay off any over abundance of liquids . Also, a few cups of coffee and a donut is usually 100% chance of checking the prop from over the stern. Not good.

2. Stay top side, spend as little time down below as possible.

3. I would put them to work, at the helm, or trmming sails, and looking out at the horrizon or land mass. Tried to keep their minds active.

4. Lay off the booze the night before. Get a good nights rest

5. Take a motion sickness medication as prescribed, Which can be hours before getting on board. Read the instructions on the med.

6. Have the others on board refrain from telling their very vivid mal de mere stories.

7. If someone does get ill, I position them down wind , if possible, on the quarter or the stern. I have someone , hold on to the back of their belt or pants. DOES NOT WORK WITH BIKINIS. They know, with their leaning over toward the water that they are not going overboard. And , have a clean wet towel that they can use to wipe off their face, etc.

My frequency of passengers or crew getting ill was near zero . Just a few instances, and one time, a healthy and fit male guest, had been to a bachelor party the night before, and topped that off with a couple cups of coffee. That lubber was muy el sicko.

Again, motion sickness may be overcome, but, then again, circumstances might be that total recovery is not possible.

But, you never know until you give it a try.. There are lots of successful and true tales of how many people have mastered the mal de mere.

[a64pilot]

Absolutely you get acclimated to it.
I have been flying all my life, pretty much grew up in the backseat of a 182 and a 210, but when I started flight school in the Army, a helicopter made me sick, they have no stability and in the hands of a novice, they wallow like a drunk.
Instructor told me to have the Wife smuggle me some dramamine, that worked and soon I didn't need it anymore.
we always know when we get our "sea legs" back, it's when we close our eyes to rinse our hair we feel like we have the bed spins a little, once we get that, we don't get sick easily anymore, but until then we can.
Spending even a couple of days at anchor is all it takes for us to get re-acclimated.

Last Hurricane season we spent in Brunswick Ga, that Marina has zero wave action and no boat traffic, so your boat never moves even slightly.
Well we went out to head South off shore and decided to duck in at St Mary's, they weather was a little sporty and we weren't having fun, it was just that we didn't have our seats legs back yet

[captlloyd]

In my opinion, being seasick is about as sick and nauseous as a person can get. Dying seems to be a good alternative. Then I discovered Dramamine. What a blessing.

[Scout 30]

Just saw a segment on our local cable news channel about this product. Might be worth trying.

https://nomonausea.com/collections/all-products