Seasickness

[Janelletb1]

Any tried and true seasickness remedies? Once the going gets rough...actually, when I'm offshore I can't take my seasick pills because they make me worse. Last trip took about 24hrs to get used to the motion but it meant someone had to cover my watches.

[boatpoker]

Ginger beer has always worked for my wife.

[Kenomac]

Bonine works best for me and doesn't seen to have the dizzy, sleepy side effects; I use it on one and two day passages. For longer passages seasickness has been a problem which manifests itself in the form of a severe migraine headache. Below I've reposted some great advice from Boatman61 that was sent to me in the form of a PM.

Originally Posted by Kenomac
Boatman,

Hello,

99 % of the time I'm just fine during the 4 months I live aboard in the Med. On short 1-2 day passages I take bonine as a precaution for seasickness, because if the conditions are right, I do sometimes get dizzy and woosey. bonine works fine for that.

During long passages like on a trans atlantic, what solutions work for you or others on board when seasickness is not an option? I had one episode two years ago on the way across the Bay of Biscay, where 2.5 days out.... I had a severe migraine headache set in which completely knocked me on my ass. I and everyone else thought I was having a cerebral bleed. Don't want that to happen again. It was my way of experiencing seasickness & I had to abandon in A caruna. Seems to come on from disrupted sleep patterns during a passage.

Thanks in advance.

Ken

Hi Ken..
Guess I'm lucky.. went through my seasickness period in my youth in the Royal Navy where one had to just work through it.. no sympathy there..
After a few months off during winter the 1st trip has me slightly queasy but I get past that after a couple of days..
I have a different diet at sea.. little and often.. no big meals.. apart from lunch.. the rest is hot soup, sandwiches and chocolate or crisps.. depending on what my buds fancy..
The only 'drug' I use is Paracetamol..
I have found fizzy drinks helpfully as this relieves the build u of acidic gases in the belly which contribute to queasiness.. try Ginger Ale/beer..
With my crew I've been lucky in the main.. however there have been a couple who I've had to turn back for a couple of days out for fear of them rupturing their guts.. some get past it others never will..
Keep meats to a minimum or at least stuff like chicken which digests easier and quicker than beef and other red meats..
Hot Porridge/oats is a good bulk starter for the day.. and can add semi dried fruit like rasins, prunes, dates and nuts to supplement your proteins and vitamins on crossings..
I usually lose weight during the season.. on my Florida-Australia trip I went from my normal 80-ish kg down to 68kg.. but man I was fit.. just had arms like turkey necks.
Hope you find something of use in here..
Best wishes,
Phil

[a64pilot]

an alcohol type of beer at the start seems to help me, not several, just one. It seems if I stop the feeling from beginning life is a whole lot better. Also I won't go in the cabin for the first few hours either for the same reason. Seemingly if I prevent the urge of feeling sick from beginning I'm OK

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by Janelletb1

Any tried and true seasickness remedies?

Yes and no. Every person reacts differently. What works the perfect cure for one person may be less than useless to another. You have to try different things and find out what works for you.

That said, I find that meclizine works quite well for me. My wife uses the wrist bands that apply pressure to a particular spot and they help her quite a bit (I think they're call Sea Bands, or something like that).

[ontherocks83]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

Yes and no. Every person reacts differently. What works the perfect cure for one person may be less than useless to another. You have to try different things and find out what works for you.
.

+1

Bonine works wonders for me but not everybody. My wife who gets car sick doesn't tend to get sea sick. You really have to try everything and see what works for you and what doesn't

[Janelletb1]

Thanks for the ideas, I've tried the wrist bands and ginger beer, and fizzy drinks, also a bland diet, and a few over the counter medications and will look into bonine

[robert sailor]

Never met anyone that did not get good protection from Stugeron. Start it the day before you leave, should make you bullet proof!

[Jim Cate]

There have been numerous threads on seasickness here on CF, and all possible methodologies have been beaten to death, and then again just to be sure that they are really dead, and then willow stakes have been driven through their hearts.

The admonition that it is highly individualistic is the big lesson to be learned. Keep trying different drugs or regimes until something works for you... and remember that for most folks, the longer you go to sea the less it will affect you, so hang in there!

Cheers,

Jim

PS In case the message didn't get through, try the google search function offered in CF. It will reveal all the previous discussions on the subject and I truly doubt that anything new will be offered beyond these sources.

[osirissail]

I don't get seasickness unless I am sick from something else first. But guests on my boat have used successfully the Transderm SCOP (scopolamine 1.5mg) half or quarter tablet. And others from Europe swear by Stugeron (not available in USA), which they say can also be used after you get seasick to help reduce the symptoms.

[yachtdaemon]

Stugeron. Everything else knocks me out. The first time my husband and I took it on an offshore trip, it ruined my provisioning plan - I wasn't expecting us to eat until day 3 when we started feeling better, but we were eating well from day one.

[Captain Ludd]

I am lucky because I don't suffer (Yet), I know I will be punished for that smugness though.
I have seen these glasses and have heard they have worked for some.

Anti Motion/Sea Sickness Glasses - Boarding Ring Only £49.95 Buy Now at www.marinechandlery.com for Fast Delivery

[Nomadgurl]

It has been found or discovered that putting an earplug in only one ear helps a great deal to getting rid of it. Also for nausea, you can sniff an alcohol pad, like the ones they use in medical areas to clean the skin before you get a shot etc, can be purchased at the drug store. Best of luck.

[Emerald Sea]

Sturgeron has worked for my wife and son. She also enjoys her ginger (raw) in a smoothie or tea and say this works well for her. Also when one of us starts to feel queasy the we take over the helm. This also works well and refocuses their attention. Most of the others we've tried have been waste of time. Ie acupressure bands.

[neelie]

I have used the electronic wrist bands with great success. They are a variant of a TENS machine - in that they send a small electric shock to your wrist.

Heres an example : NEUROWAVE MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES ReliefBand® Voyager for Motion Sickness at West Marine

The downside is that they start to be really uncomfortable in the muscles? of your hand if you are using your hand vigorously (e.g. using a winch to reef down etc... exactly the time when things are getting unpleasant and you need relief)

And then to alleviate the discomfort, I turn it off and will succumb to seasickness within 5 minutes... this is how I know that it works for me. The electric output is adjustable, but I have not found the Goldilocks setting yet.

Anyhow, it gets me through the worst of the first couple of days. No need for it after that.

We're all different, so it may not work for you, but its still worth a try at around $129. If it works for you then its heaps better than drugs.