Need help with Motion sickness remedies

[wolfeman40]

Could someone please post all of the different names for motion sickness pills and whether they are over the counter or prescription and where they are available for purchase (and your opinion on how effective they are and how far ahead of the cruise to start taking them). I have heard that the seasick bands are not very effective on most people and that there are several side effects with the prescription patch. I've seen bonine posted and have also seen ginger posted in some threads, is this Ginger Root? Also can you mix these, can you take ginger and bonine and it be more effective? What is bonine, I've never seen this before, I asked at GNC and they had never heard of it? Thanks,
Chris

[aceinnw]

Basically bonine is non-drowsy dramamine. i used it on my last cruise, started the day before and took it every 12 hours. Did not intefere with an "drinks of the day' and worked great for me. I get motion sickness sitting on a dock watching the waves. Our room was mid-ship which I know helps. Although we had a balcony and it was up high. Nice to get the fresh air, which helps too.

[Spikesgirl]

The only sea sickness meds I know of are: Dramamine, Bonine and Mecclazine (which is the active ingredient in both of the others). I would just go to your local pharmacy and look at the section devoted to this to get your answers. Bonine usually doesn't cause as much sleepiness in people, but there is also a non-drowsy form of Dramamine. These are all OTC.

Ginger is indeed ginger root and you can get tablets at most health food/ GNC-type stores. Whether it works for you or not is pretty much up in the air. Some people swear by it - didn't work for me. You could probably bring both and see which one works best.

Same goes with sea bands - works great for some people, others get sick.

The transderm patch does require a prescription and it has some really nasty side effects - dry mouth, blurred vision, hallucinations, etc. I used it on a 10 day cruise and got really sick on I got on land and took it off. Chemist said it was due to the patch and told my DH to give me Dramamine to counter the effects. That afternoon we climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

I usually take a Mecclazine the morning that we are boarding and then one at night for the rest of the trip. If I get queasy, I'll take another. Have never had a problem with sleepiness that way.

Hope this helps a little.

Charlie

[TommyBoy03]

Every cruise I've been on (10) they have free sea sick pills down at the pursers desk. All you have to do is ask for them. mY girlfriend got a little queasy the last cruise and started drinking ginger ale. She swears it really helped her. Hope some of this helps.

Tommy

[BigDfromTN]

Mecclazine is my choice.
Go to Pharmacy and ask for it. Here at least, its behind the counter and sell for about $10.00 per 100.

Works good and much cheaper that way than the others. I usaually take one morning before I board and play it by ear (or stomach) from there.

Enjoy!!!!!!!!

[cruisinbuddy]

Here's one that won't cost you a dime. Keep your stomach full. Advice to me on my first cruise at the 1st breakfast, on a small, 27,000 ton, ship, with lot's of movement. I've been prone to motion sickness all my life. Trust me I couldn't drive a couple miles with out feeling it, when I was a kid. I know it sounds crazy, b/c when you're feeling "it" you don't want to eat. At this point one morning, I forced myself to eat and it went away. Do it.

[BND]

If you are very sensitive to motion, eating will not help because your stomach is not the problem, your inner ear is. I take non drowsy dramamine and ginger and feel fine. I tried eating bread on our first cruise when I noticed I wasn't feeling very good and then took bonine, but it didn't work, my inner ear rebelled and I ended up in bed after getting sick at 9:30 for the night. I had had a large breakfast, lunch on the ship and snacked but food did no good, nor did ginger ale. Most ginger ale contains ginger flavoring, but not real ginger root. Non drowsy dramamine is a very mild drug and almost no one has side effects from it. It's safer than almost any medication you can think of. We leave in 8 days and I'm starting my meds the night before.

[Mysticks1]

I believe in Ginger Root Capsules but always have Bonine or Dramamine with me also although I have yet to take it. I actually bought some Ginger Root today from Walmart. It was 550mg capsules and a bottle of 100 was $3.88 .

I begin taking them the day before the cruise. But the first time I started several days before just to make sure it didn't have any side effects for me. I take 2 in the morning and 2 at night. I usually take them the day we return also because I feel so funny when stepping back on dry land.

We went to Disney World this summer and I took them while I was there also as a counter-effect to all those roller coasters. :D

[BND]

I believe in Ginger Root Capsules but always have Bonine or Dramamine with me also although I have yet to take it. I actually bought some Ginger Root today from Walmart. It was 550mg capsules and a bottle of 100 was $3.88 .

I begin taking them the day before the cruise. But the first time I started several days before just to make sure it didn't have any side effects for me. I take 2 in the morning and 2 at night. I usually take them the day we return also because I feel so funny when stepping back on dry land.

We went to Disney World this summer and I took them while I was there also as a counter-effect to all those roller coasters. :D

We did WDW last year before our cruise and I can ride anything there without getting sick, although Body Wars does make me dizzy. I rode Rockn' Roller Coaster without taking anything and thought it was the coolest ride. My DH who doesn't get sea sick at all got sick on that ride. You just never know.

Ginger will only have side effects if you're allergic to it. It's not a drug.

[Another Cruise]

Tried ginger root on our last cruise. We both actually noticed we really felt better within 30 minutes. We weren't actually seasick, but seas were getting rough and we didn't want to take a chance. The owner of the health food store where I bought it said she uses it all the time for car sickness and also sells a lot of it for people going on cruises. She told me if you wait until you start to get sick, just break open the capsules and mix it in some "fizzy" drink like 7-up. I think this would be like a ginger ale made with real ginger. She said this will have a much quicker effect.

[Tightlinerods]

Best I have ever had is a script

Phenergan,

10 dollars for an 84 pill supply just ask your doc....

I do make use of the wrist Bands on my boat for people who just get a tad queezy .... but say for 6' seas in a small boat 25' I take my pills ....


John

[2Roses]

There's a new kid on the block at Wal-Mart called Motion-Eaze, located with the Bonine and Dramamine It's an oil that you dab behind your ears. While I have no personal experience with it just yet (but I will have 11-12-06) it has gotten good reports here on the boards. Happy Cruising!

[Seas34]

I'm a strong believer in the ginger root for nausea. It's helped me countless times when I start feel queasy. It's supposed to help calm the stomach so I'm not sure how well or if it'll help with the motion sickness. I'm going on my first cruise next week and plan to take a bottle with me. Someone told me years ago motion sickness was due to an imbalance in the ears but ginger root is worth a try. You can purchase it at most drug stores and grocery stores. Nature's Resource makes it and I usually find it in the vitamins section of the store.

I also take crackers, coke, ginger ale and ginger snaps to help ease the symptoms.

Hope it helps you!

[BND]

Motion sickness occurs because your brain can't make sense of your the loss of balance occurring without seeing it happen. When you're on a ship, especially indoors, your brain can't figure out why the floor is tilting, etc because you can't see the horizon. You'd have to spend all your time outside staring at the horizon to keep everything on a even keel. The center for your balance is in your inner ear. There are diseases that also can cause this when you're on land and those have to be treated constantly to avoid nausea and dizziness. Ginger works on your stomach, some of the meds, such as dramamine are benadryl like which is why you can get tired on them. Meclizine (Bonine and non-drowsy dramamine) are antihistamines which has less side effects than regular dramamine. Here is a link to wikipedia that explains motion sickness causes and remedies: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasickness

[seashell36]

We took Bonine and Bonine for Kids with us on our family cruise a couple of weeks ago. I gave DD (9) a regular bonine a couple of times - starting the morning before we boarded - she didn't have any side effects or sea sickness. I never had to give our 4 yr old anything - he thought the rolling motion was fun!:rolleyes:

[divadiverfl]

Unless I missed it, nobody mention Triptone. Go to your local dive shop or go on a scuba site and get it. It is nothing like any other. Take it right before shipping off and any other time after that. Around this area it flies off the shelves. It has no side affects what so ever. I take it when I go diving out on a boat during rough:) seas and it is great.

[BND]

Unless I missed it, nobody mention Triptone. Go to your local dive shop or go on a scuba site and get it. It is nothing like any other. Take it right before shipping off and any other time after that. Around this area it flies off the shelves. It has no side affects what so ever. I take it when I go diving out on a boat during rough:) seas and it is great.

Triptone is the same as Dramamine. I just looked it up to see what it was.

[bills blasters]

I just had a severe inner ear infection, and had 24 hour motion sickness for a couple weeks. I first tried bonine and dramamine. My dr. Sent me to the Drug store to get Meclizine HCI, 25 mg. It came in a bottle of 100 for $8.00. It wasn't on the shelf, but druggist had it behind counter.
It says to take One or two tablets once daily. The dr. told me to take 3 a day, morning, noon and night as needed. It worked much better than the other medications I tried. I am bringing them along on the next cruise, even tho I normally do not get seasick.

[letsgocruz1]

I just had a severe inner ear infection, and had 24 hour motion sickness for a couple weeks. I first tried bonine and dramamine. My dr. Sent me to the Drug store to get Meclizine HCI, 25 mg. It came in a bottle of 100 for $8.00. It wasn't on the shelf, but druggist had it behind counter.
It says to take One or two tablets once daily. The dr. told me to take 3 a day, morning, noon and night as needed. It worked much better than the other medications I tried. I am bringing them along on the next cruise, even tho I normally do not get seasick.

The active ingredient in Bonine is Meclizine HCI 25 mg, isn't it?

[BND]

The active ingredient in Bonine is Meclizine HCI 25 mg, isn't it?

Yep. I have dramamine less drowsy and Bonine up in my packing pile for our cruise in one week (yeah!) and the active ingredients are identical - meclizine HCI 25 mg. It's just cheaper to buy the generic.

[dan40]

Free pills at the Pursers desk and/or the infirmary. A complete ship exploration should include the infirmary anyway. They will give you pills or there will be a box full of them on the wall outside the inf.


A word of hope, on her first 2 cruises, my wife upchucked her way across the Atlantic. Then a month later, she upchucked her way back. Sick, in bed, too weak to move, total misery. It was more than 10 years before I could get her on a 4 day cruise. She was nervous and queasy, but not sick. Next cruise, she was a little worried but had no problem.
Now she has more than 20 cruises and is an old salt. Had one or two where the ocean was quite rough, she didn't even notice except to laugh at the staggering thru the halls[us included].
So it can be overcome.

I experienced seasickness once on a fishing boat in the Pacific [swells higher than the boat] so I understand how miserable it is. But you can acquire your sea legs.



Dan

[BND]

The worst for me last year was when we were crossing the gulf stream on the way out and back. I probably could have done without the meds once we got across, but I didn't want to risk it after how sick I was that first night. The third day of our cruise (at sea day) it was pretty rough for a couple of hours in the morning and on the way to breakfast we were zig zagging as we walked, but I didn't feel sick at all so it was good I had it in my system.

[SL HomeschoolMom]

I love wristbands. I can go on a sailboat, but any powerboat (including a friend's 54' cruiser docked way up a river) I can not go on without them. It's been a while, but wristbands have worked for me. However, make sure if you rely on them to have more than one pair! (When was I supposed to wash them? I ended up wearing them wet!)

[flczr]

My wife swears by "Motion Eaze" has done 2 cruises and had no problem. Lent it to freind she also had no problems.

[billsrobb]

I don't know if I am one of lucky one's but I have been on 6 cruises so far and not once have I ever had any problems with motion. Last cruise on the conquest was the best ship so far. I never felt anything.

[ooulio]

I have taken the Transdermscop patch for 7 cruises. Only side effect I had was a dry mouth. I am very prone to migraines. Never bothered me. One cruise that I didn't use anything was the First one on Disney. Sick the whole cruise. Waves were hugh and ship rocked the whole time. Beautiful room and bath and a half was great. Think I used it so much. I already got my next patches for my Thanksgiving Cruise and my Feb cruise. Wouldn't go without them.

[Fun, Fun 44]

First cruise didn't know what to expect! Took Ginger Root and a tiny bottle of NATURAL oil. Both bought at Wal-Mart in the vitamin section. Easy to find and cheap to buy. Knew the ship had for free the other. We had three choices so felt like one woul for sure work for us. None of us needed a thing! First cruise we walked around like we were drunk the first three hours, but so did the crew and everyone else......no sickness.

Have fun!
Kat

[zqvol]

The only sea sickness meds I know of are: Dramamine, Bonine and Mecclazine (which is the active ingredient in both of the others). I would just go to your local pharmacy and look at the section devoted to this to get your answers. Bonine usually doesn't cause as much sleepiness in people, but there is also a non-drowsy form of Dramamine. These are all OTC.

Ginger is indeed ginger root and you can get tablets at most health food/ GNC-type stores. Whether it works for you or not is pretty much up in the air. Some people swear by it - didn't work for me. You could probably bring both and see which one works best.

Same goes with sea bands - works great for some people, others get sick.

The transderm patch does require a prescription and it has some really nasty side effects - dry mouth, blurred vision, hallucinations, etc. I used it on a 10 day cruise and got really sick on I got on land and took it off. Chemist said it was due to the patch and told my DH to give me Dramamine to counter the effects. That afternoon we climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

I usually take a Mecclazine the morning that we are boarding and then one at night for the rest of the trip. If I get queasy, I'll take another. Have never had a problem with sleepiness that way.

Hope this helps a little.

Charlie
The only thing I am going to throw in is that the patch works well for alomst everyone who uses it. The side effects range from none to many depending on how your own body reacts. Until you try it there is no way to know how it will effect you.

[madisonswims]

We took Bonine and Bonine for Kids with us on our family cruise a couple of weeks ago. I gave DD (9) a regular bonine a couple of times - starting the morning before we boarded - she didn't have any side effects or sea sickness. I never had to give our 4 yr old anything - he thought the rolling motion was fun!:rolleyes:

That made me LOL!!! Oh, to be 4 again...

[marty30907]

I have found that 2 extra foo-foo drinks work of me. It might not help the sickness, but then, I do not really care anymore!:D