Best thing for sea sickness

We are leaving of the JOS on February 17th. Last time I went on a cruise was Oct 1996 and I was sea sick. Based on your advice what was the best thing to treat sea sickness? Thanks for your help.

We are leaving of the JOS on February 17th. Last time I went on a cruise was Oct 1996 and I was sea sick. Based on your advice what was the best thing to treat sea sickness? Thanks for your help.

If you were seriously seasick in 96, then get moving and get a prescription for the scopolamine patch. This is the biggest gun you can use.

I will include the following advice for others who may be reading this. The optimal way to approach scopolamine is to get a prescription for it months in advance of your cruise to be able to experiment with it well ahead of time to see if and how you react to it.

Bon Voyage~~

Leslie

Jack,

We always take Bonine. You can buy it over the counter, very inexpensive. It is an antihistamine based drug, available in adult and children's dose. It is chewable, although somewhat bitter. It is safe to use and still have a drink or two. Some people find it makes them mildly sleepy, but you can take it at night if that is a problem. I find it makes me thirsty, not a bad thing on a cruise, lol. We usually take on our way to the ship, then every morning upon awakening. Do not wait until you feel sick! We have been in HUGE seas, storms, etc. and never missed a meal.

Hope this helps.

Arlene

My Dr. said it sometimes depends on why type of sea sickness you get. He recommend Bonine for me and it works! I get a funny feeling in my head...it feels like the inside of my head is swaying...lol..but I am not moving! It will stop if I go up on deck and look into the horizon..but once I walk away...ITS BACK!! I take one in the and am and one right before dinner and I feel just fine. I have tried to go without, forget it. They don't have any side effects, I sometimes feel a bit more thristy...but hey whats one more cocktail or two...!! Hope this helps!

Just back from the Jewel last month where we had some rough seas a couple of nights. I have always used the patch with no ill effects and it's always worked...but, on this last cruise, it made me feel horrible and did not work at all! It made me so thirsty (I literally had no saliva in my mouth, which is a side effect), I couldn't stand it. Plus, I was still seasick. My dear friend takes Ginger pills for seasickness so she gave me some of those. Well guess what? They worked! Off came that darn patch (hello saliva), and my seasickness was gone. I used those for the remainder of the cruise anytime the seas started to become rough or before we were going to get on a ferry or tender and had no problem for the remainder of the cruise.

The patch comes with a lot of side effects and you're not supposed to drink with it though everybody does. Ginger pills have no side effects and you can still have your foo-foo drinks without worry.

Just back from the Jewel last month where we had some rough seas a couple of nights. I have always used the patch with no ill effects and it's always worked...but, on this last cruise, it made me feel horrible and did not work at all! It made me so thirsty (I literally had no saliva in my mouth, which is a side effect), I couldn't stand it. Plus, I was still seasick. My dear friend takes Ginger pills for seasickness so she gave me some of those. Well guess what? They worked! Off came that darn patch (hello saliva), and my seasickness was gone. I used those for the remainder of the cruise anytime the seas started to become rough or before we were going to get on a ferry or tender and had no problem for the remainder of the cruise.

 

The patch comes with a lot of side effects and you're not supposed to drink with it though everybody does. Ginger pills have no side effects and you can still have your foo-foo drinks without worry.

i second the ginger pills, they were a miracle cure for me. I take 2 before we start sailing and one every 3 or so hours the entire cruise. You can get them at Walmart, Ginger Root Capsules, for about $4.50 for 100. Even my skeptical father in law used them last time and swore by them!

and if you have really bad sea's like we did this last cruise, I take 2 every 3 hours.

good luck and hope you find something, I for one know how miserable it is to be sick on a cruise.:p

The first year we took Bonine (Walgreens generic brand actually) but then we discovered from cruisers on CC that Bonine is just meclazine (sp) and that you can ask the pharmacist to order a large bottle of 100 for about $8. So last year that is what we did since we take two each a day for an 11 night cruise. We used half the bottle last year and because it has a long shelf life the other half will be used soon, very soon. :D We had no side effects.

We wouldn't even think about cruising again with out the patch!!! It saved our vacation!!!

Bonine--but usually never need it

I am someone who gets motion sickness very easy. Our first 2 cruises I used the patch. It worked for the motion sickness but I noticed it made my mouth very very dry. No amount of fluids I drank helped with that. So last year I just used Bonine and to my surprise it worked just as well without the terrible side effect of dry mouth. So I will stick with Bonine now, although my sister used prescription meclazine and she said that worked very well also. Hope this helps.

Green Apple worked well for me on NYE cruise last day when it was really rough. First time I tried it, but at the same time it was the only 100% natural option on the ship at that time. Nutrious as well, so I may add it to the daily morning cruise diet for the daily fruit intake and if it helps ward off uneasy stomach while in rough seas all the better.

Combine the Green Apple with other methods and it is just like double protection. :)

Hi y'all. I've been lurking this board for a few months and have found it full of wonderful advice ... as well as some really nice people. I'm taking my first cruise April 6th - out of Galveston. This has been ten years in the making. I've planned cruises in the past, but always had to postpone due to illness or something else coming up. I'm SO excited about my upcoming cruise. But ... I am worried about seasickness. I'm not normally prone to motion sickness. How soon do you know if you will be affected? Does it depend on how choppy it is? And those seabands, do they really work?

Any and all advice (on seasickness or anything else) is greatly appreciated. :)

- Virgin Cruiser

On our first cruise we took Bonine and my wife still got sick. For our second cruise last summer on the Explorer my sister in-law who is a doctor recommened to prescription medicines BUT told us to try those sea-bands first. She swears by them.

Being the skeptical native New Yorker that I am, I didnt believe her but tried it anyway. I was so shocked to find out that it worked for both my wife and I for the entire 9 day cruise. During one point in the cruise I took them off and forgot to put them back on. I started getting a little dizzy. I put them back on and I was good to go.

For those that dont know what they are. They are elastic bands you wear on your wrists that have a little bead that presses up against a pressure point on the underside of your wrist. If you read the directions and put them on in the correct spot, you will be as surprised as I am how well they work and without any side effects. You can find them at any pharmacy store.

Rob

You just need to cruise more often. Also pick the newer bigger ships and you will be ok after a couple of cruises. LOL.....................RADICAL

We went on a cruise to Alaska last August and I myself and my friend got very sick on the 2nd day. Our husbands bought us the Sea Bands and within 2 hours we were doing awesome. I personally swear by them. Bonine alone did not work for me so I combined the two and did wonderfully. I did take the bands off for a bit and I too started to get ill. I even showered with them from then on out.. GOOD LUCK :D

DH swears by Ginger but he always starts a few days before so that it is already in his system.

I swear by Bonine (it is what they used to give us when I worked on a ship). I take one before dinner each night starting the night before the cruise.

DD uses the sea bands...

Everyone is different, just make sure you start whatever you are going to use BEFORE you feel any symptoms.

Personally, I saw way too many people have problems with the patch, to ever try it.

The best thing to do for seasickness if to Be Prepared! Facts to know:

Scopolamine patches (prescription only) might make you very dizzy and give you severe dry mouth; Bonine (OTC) is a preventataive only--not a curative. If you use Bonine, start the morning you get on the ship and take it once a day, either in the daytime or some people prefer to take it at bedtime--just be sure to take it the same time each day; Dramamine (OTC) can be used once you start to feel any seasickness coming on. It will make you sleepy, but that beats feeling ill; sea bands work for some, but not for everyone. Can't hurt to have them with you; Last and probably the best thing to travel with if you know you have a history of motion sickness is a prescription for Compazine. It's an anti-nauea medication, and if you were sea sick on the ship and went to the ship's doctor, this is what he/she would give you in injection form. Oh, and I almost forgot, Ginger tablets, taken twice a day, work for many folks too. You will need to figure out what works best for you. Good luck and smooth sailing!

Karen

Best thing for sea sickness is take more cruises to get yourself used to the motion :D

Personally, in regards to the patches behind the ears.......on my very first cruise a few years back, they worked, but i felt a fog in my head and dry mouth. It was sort of like having medicine-head when you have a head cold.....it was not totally unpleasant, however, i did feel like i lost a bit of the "1st timers cruising experience" (being my first cruise and all) on the first two days. 2nd cruise, had SUPER HIGH seas from Cabo to LAX coupled with a Tequilla hangover,:o and ginger saved my life, truly it saved my life. Trying the bonine this time around and will go out on deck and look at the horizon if it gets real bad.......oh yeah and packing some ginger too,

Happy sails

I'm a big fan of Transderm Scop - commonly known as the Patch. It is available by prescription only. You can find out more information by visiting:

http://www.transdermscop.com/about.htm

It worked great! I didn't know if I would get motionsick so I didn't use it initially. That was a big mistake because I was seasick within 4 hours of our ship departing. I put the patch on and after the drugs took effect, I didn't feel sick again (It took about 4 hours to start work).

I initially experienced dry mouth, but if I was mindful of drinking lots of fluids, it didn't bother me. Once thing that I experienced was post cruise/patch sickness. This is a listed side effect: whenever I got in a car, I felt motionsick even though I don't typically get carsick. This lasted a couple of days.

Despite the side effects, I'll use it again beause they are better than being seasick!

Best thing for sea sickness is take more cruises to get yourself used to the motion :D

I like this approach!!!! That is probably the best prescription! :D

Relief Band has worked for my wife. I originally found it in a pilot magazine. It is an electric sea sick band that was built for chemo patients. My wife says it works great - I'm not sure why it works - but it does. It is now available at many drugstores. Here's a link with more info - you can probably find it cheaper that this link with a little effort.

http://www.drugstore.com/qxp182550_334918_sespider/relief_band/explorer_motion_sickness_device_reusable.htm

Sully

Best thing for sea sickness is take more cruises to get yourself used to the motion :D

I wish it was that easy. I've taken 4 cruises in the last 14 months and I still got seasick on my b2b even with the patch. The ginger pills were the only thing that saved me. Maybe if you cruised every month, but I doubt I could talk my husband into that.

I've packed Bonine, ginger pills, and ginger gum for our upcoming cruise. I've never tried the ginger gum but thought my kids would be able to use that if they can't swallow the ginger pills. Has anyone ever tried the gum and if so, did it work?

Patty

Monroe, CT

Most medicine can work great, but be very careful with use on children! On my last cruise an 11 year old I was traveling with got sick from the patch. We thought it was sea sickness and had to take her to the ship doctor. Once the patch was off she was fine, but she was seriously sick for two days.