Sea Sickness Remedy

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C

Chief

Anyone have a sea sickness remedy that they can share. My 8 year old gets sick virtually every time we go sailing, and I can count the guests on one hand that have not gotten sick. We head out for a full day, and wind up coming in early. I had purchased an herbal remedy that you rub behind your ear, but lent it to a business associate and never got it back. It also never got put to the test from what I have been told. We sail in the Atlantic Ocean, and a good day is 2-4 foot seas. I hate to give my daughter anything that is going to put her to sleep. I do want her to enjoy sailing as much as I do. We have a BVI vacation booked in April, so finding a solution and getting it tested is even more important than ever.
 
Oct 25, 2005
265
Macgregor 22' Long Beach
sea sickness

I use a prescription drug called Transderm-scop and place 1/2 a patch behind one ear at least 4 hours before getting on the boat and it lasts for 3 days. It works fine for me but does give me a dry mouth and eyes so I drink lots of non-alcoholic liquids. I don't know if they will prescribe it for children. Nothing else has worked for me in the 50 years I have been boating, diving and sailing. Novelman Duane
 

Mulf

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Dec 2, 2003
400
Hunter 410 Chester, MD (Kent Island)
Electronic braclets

These have done the trick for my wife who now can cook dinner while under way, nap below, etc. None of that would have otherwise been even discussable. Try West Marine or similar outlets.
 

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
Try ginger snaps cookies. Ginger is as good as

anything and costs far less. Ginger ale is good if you buy real ginger ale not the soda-pop.
 
Feb 25, 2007
191
- - Sandusky, Ohio
Where is she?

Have to ask the obvious. Is she in the cockpit or below decks. My 8 y/o gets queasy if she' below too long. Usually perks up once above decks. I wouldn't give my 8 y/o scopolamine (Trans-Derm Scop) without her Pediatrician saying it was a good idea.
 
Jun 7, 2004
350
Oday 28 East Tawas
electric bracelet

Got one for my sea-sickness prone wife last summer. It worked very well for her except under the most extreme conditions (a rolling boat on a beam reach). She said it takes a little getting accustomed to but once she did it worked very well. Cost around a hundred bucks as I recall. Sea sickness is no joke: It can ruin a vacation or a day on the water.
 
Dec 9, 2006
694
Oday 22 Hickory, NC
Chief...

...started getting green about the gills one day and was given some 'Toasty' crackers, the little crackers Lance and others sell that has peanut butter in them. Was told to chew them for a couple of minutes before swallowing. I felt better fast! Doesn't work every time, probably 80% of the time. Supposedly the oils in the peanut butter coats your stomach. Hope that helps! And the old adage about having her watch the horizon is a very good one! Jack Hart
 
J

Jerry Clark H356 SV Persistence

Sea Bands

Sea Bands are elastic braclets with a plastic sphere that compresses over the inner area just above the wrist. My wife uses them at the beginning of each season, then doesn't need them anymore. It is based on an accupuncture theory, but it does work. The electronic bracelet is a take-off on the same idea. It's also imperative that she look at the horizon once getting queasey. Take a magazine or something that blocks her view of the rolling boat and near waves. People that get seasick are concentrating on the rolling motion and that gets their brains and reality all messed up. It the brain thinks that things are stable (as the horizon is), then you are on the way to recovery. Also, avoid greasy foods on board as snacks and for meals before hand. Good luck.
 
J

joe daly

sea sickness

My wife deals with the sea-sickness. Very sensitive to drug remidies(spelling?). She has been using ginger root pills, takes prior to getting to boat and as needed. It's natural and settles the sea-sickness. There are also ginger crystals to chew. Health food stores will carry these products. I agree with the previous posts,just have to try some different ways to find where your daughter gets the most relief or feels comfortable.
 
Jun 14, 2004
79
Ericson 29 Biddeford, ME
Sea Bands

A friend of mine who sails with me is prone to seasickness and he also swears by Sea Bands. He brings them all the time and has not gotten green yet. The one time he did not have them he did.
 
M

mjb

motion sickness meds

Hi Chief, I sailed for years out of Point Lookout and my wife and daughter (now 14) would barely get out of the Jones Inlet without a problem. We've tried sea bands, herbal "behind the ear" oil, electronic wrist bands, various forms of ginger, and motion sickness meds (e.g., Dramamine). We've never tried the Transderm-Scop because of the side effects. In the end, you have to try some techniques and find what works. We've chartered in the BVI, St. Martin, and Guadeloupe. For our long charters, taking one motion sickness pill each evening or morning (use the non-drowsy formula) has worked great. The electronic wrist bands are the only solution that works after somebody already feels uneasy - everything else must be applied/taken usually one hour before getting on-board. On our recent trip for 7 days sailing around Guadeloupe, we tried the electronic wrist bands and they worked great. My wife and daughter forgo the motion sickness meds and were generally OK but a couple of times they started to feel uneasy and put the wristband on and within just a few minutes they were fine. Good luck. Mike Belvedere Huntington, NY
 
Jun 12, 2004
1,181
Allied Mistress 39 Ketch Kemah,Tx.
I have the greatest admiration for

those that have never been sea sick. All I can say is that it cant even be compared to the worse hangover you ever had. I'm one of the unfortunate ones that have not yet found anything that works for me. As I'm getting older, I find that its not as bad as it used to be. I used to be a crew boat capt in the oil firleds in the Gulf of Mexico. With all that time on the water, one would think I would have gotten over it. Although, its not no where as bad as it used to be.
 
M

Martin

Another idea

As a young man I was stationed on a submarine out of New England. We would have to travel several hours before submerging and submarines are not ment for surface travel (roll alot)and you can't see the horizion down below. Boy did I get seasick. Horrible. Anyway, I learned to take draminane (sp) as late as I could the night before departure. The sleepy side effects were gone the next morning of departure, but the anti-motion effects lasted through most of the next day. Just another idea.
 
L

Liam

Get on with it

I am lucky that I have only gotten sea sick a few time in thousands of miles sailing. But when it has happened I have found that tossing the cookies is my cure. Once my stomach is empty a beer and some crackers settles things right down and an hour or so later I am just fine. Someone once told me that the very best cure that works for everyone is to simply sit under a tree.
 
R

Ross B.

Avoid any sweet drinks

I'll have to agree with Liam. Sugary or sweet drinks, even mixed drinks will put most people into the queasy zone on a rough day. If you're not religiosly opposed to it, try giving her a small amount of beer with some pringles or other chips. If you think about it, alcohol and dramamine are both drugs. It's just a matter of which one you choose to use. It also helps to keep people busy doing something. Often, if I can tell someone is getting queasy I'll put them behind the wheel for a while. On the average they forget about feeling sick in a short while, even more so when it's rough and it takes a lot of effort to handle the boat. Also if weather forces crew down below, let the ones more likely to get sick to take the v-berth and lie down. Although it moves up and down a lot, the rolling is very limited in the bow. Most will go to sleep with the sound of the water passing on the hull.
 
Oct 10, 2006
492
Oday 222 Mt. Pleasant, SC
Candied ginger

In the Asian section of the grocery store, you can usually find candied ginger. Tastes great and a good way to get a bunch of ginger in your stomach in a short time.
 
Jun 19, 2007
77
- - Long Beach, CA
Try Meclizine HCI

You can get it as a "call item" from your pharmacist; about 100 pills per bottle for $10. Normally, one takes a pill the night before and the morning of departure; some drousiness in the first day, but diminishing with time. However, in my opinion the very best solution to sea sickness in the short term is to put the sick person at the helm, giving him/her something else to think about for a time. It also helps if the person has something like cheeze-its, crackers, or coca-cola (so I disagree w/a couple of earlier comments), to munch or sip on. BEO
 
Mar 18, 2006
147
Catalina 25 Standard/Fin Keel Grand Lake, OK
We have used the drops behind each ear.

It is called Motion-Eaze and is available more places than it used to be. It can also be had over the internet by just putting in the name in your search. I get seasick easily and we used it 2 years ago while sailing around the St. Maarten area. It worked quite well for me, but I did get tired of it's sweet smell after a while. I wouldn't hesitate to use it again.
 
Feb 9, 2007
35
Freedom 21 Forked River, NJ
Ginger pills

My wife has been taking the pure ginger pills that you get at the Supliment Shop. She has had veritgo and Seasickness all her life. This is the first summer that she has been able to enjoy the boat with out getting sick at all. It has also helped with her veritgo. They are horse pills so an 8 year old might have trouble. You need to take one a day all the time and not just before you go out on the water.
 
Oct 10, 2006
492
Oday 222 Mt. Pleasant, SC
Just remembered

Mythbusters did an experiment on different OTC ways to take care of motion sickness. If I remember correctly, ginger is the only thing that helped as much or more than meds. Formatting was lost from wikipedia. Tried to clean it up a bit. Just because they confirmed or busted a remedy doesn't mean it will or won't work for you. Coke helps me more than anything. My wife swears by salt and vinegar chips. I brought the candied ginger with me last time I went deep sea fishing (5-7ft seas, no wind, not trolling) but started chumming the water before I remembered to eat some. And at that point, nothing was going to go down my esophagus. ---------------------------------------------------- Seasickness - Kill or Cure? Because Adam and Grant are very susceptible to motion sickness, they test non-pharmaceutical remedies for seasickness by… …using a cinnamon-flavored tongue spray. Busted - The spray took no effect on Adam or Grant. …taking a ginger pill. Confirmed - Both Adam and Grant endured the spin-chair for twenty to thirty minutes without experiencing any symptoms …using magnetized arm bands. Busted - The arm bands had no effect on Adam or Grant. Some celebrities like Barry Manilow claim they work, but they nonetheless do not operate on any valid scientific principles. …using an electro-shock wrist band. Busted - The shocks mildly discomforted Adam and Grant, who nonetheless became sick. …using a placebo, like a vitamin or a sugar pill. Plausible - While Adam was not affected by the placebo, Grant was successfully tricked into thinking he had taken a store-bought sea-sickness medication and did not throw up. He had taken vitamin B12 and claimed it was the most effective remedy. By falling for the placebo all his test results had to be thrown out on the grounds of psychosomatic influence.
 
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