Don’t spoil the excitement of your approaching bareboat adventure with the fear of sea sickness. I’ve been sailing for over 20 years and have gotten sick more than once, twice… oh the number is LARGE. Any sailor that tells you they’ve never gotten sick is full of $h%@. If you tend to suffer from this illness, like me, it is best to take sea sickness precautions. I’m a true believer of… Better Safe, Than Sorry! So take preventative measures! Once you're aboard and start seeing green, it's too late. You should take anti-seasick measures before you step on board. Within 2 or 3 days you normally will adjust to the new moving environment! You’ll "Gain Your Sea Legs!” If you board in a fit, rested and healthy condition, your chances of experiencing sea sickness decrease significantly. So… if you have allergies or a head cold, rest up and take something to clear it up. Why do we get seasick?
Well, it’s really “motion” sickness. It can happen whether you're in a ship, smaller boat, a car, plane, or train! So “sea” sickness is just motion sickness while on water. If the seas are calm, the risk of getting sick is reduced. Rough seas however, push up the probability of sea sickness.
Why does this happen? Well, they say… The signals sent to your brain by your eyes and inner ear, conflict. It's called visual disorientation and means that while your inner ear detects that you are moving; your eyes detect that you are not. The result is the terrible feeling of having lunch again (only slightly over processed). To get rid of the nausea, you need to "override" the signals by, for example, looking at an object outside of the boat/car/train. Someone’s even told me to think about the Cubs (Chicago Cubs --- not that I’m a huge baseball fan or anything, it was just something to distract me from concentrating on my head and stomach fighting!) Another way is to get your inner ear to experience stability which is a lot more difficult when you’re moving!Prevention Is Better Than Cure
My suggestions (based on past experience)… ALWAYS start with a good diet. No trips to the greasy spoon or night of heavy drinking before you board. SKIP the Dramamine, Bonine, Antivert, etc. They don’t work, they make me drowsy, and I end up on the leeward rail puking my guts out all night. If you have allergies or are susceptible to an inner ear infection, take the basic Sudafed (the little red ones you get from the pharmacist). They’ll clear you right up! And a clear head is much more fun on a boat. Divers use this trick to help equalize the pressure while diving. Lastly, if you know you get sick easily while in a car, plane or train… go to your doctor and get the “patch!” He or she will prescribe the right dosage. But even then, if you’re a petite girl or have a high metabolism you might want to cut the patch in half. I’ve found that some patches make me go a little “cuckoo for coco puffs!” So try half a patch and if you need more you can always up the dosage. (P.S. I’m not a doctor, so consult a real MD before you do anything!)To The Rescue!
If you suddenly start to sweat, turn pale, salivate and have a general feeling of discomfort, hopefully remember the following information until you get your sea legs:
Do:
1. Look out the window (or better yet, go onto the deck and to the centre of the ship, facing forward) at a distant, stable object, like the horizon. The center of the ship, close to the waterline, is the most stable part of the ship.
2. Use a fan or listen to some music… this will get your mind off things. (This is the whole Think about the Chicago Cubs)
3. Eat some salty snacks with regular intervals to help dry up your stomach.
4. Relax if you can - lying down and closing your eyes might help. I prefer to lay on deck instead of in a cabin… the fresh (salty) air seems to help.
5. Ginger is a natural remedy to general nausea and sea sickness. Drink ginger beer or tea, or eat fresh ginger, a cookie or suck on a ginger sweet (like Gin Gins) to help combat your green cheeks. Try Sailor's Secret, a branded ginger capsule or Quesy Pops, popsicles containing essential oils from natural herbs and aromatherapy in ginger flavor but also others like lavender, peppermint, etc. Any ginger product is most effective if taken before boarding.
6. Some motion sickness medicine (e.g. Dramamine patches) may help to reduce the nausea at this stage. Maybe one of the most effective if you're severely seasick and vomiting, is heavy duty Phenergan Suppositories.
7. Bitters, mint, citrus, apricot juice, carrot juice, unroasted pumpkin or squash seeds, parsley and peppermint tea are also said to help combat sea sickness but there doesn't seem to be much proof out there.
Don’t:
1. Read or watch television once the sea sickness has kicked in, it will make you feel worse.
2. Drink big gulps of water. Tiny sips at intervals are better.
3. Face backwards. So true… face into the wind, having it cool your face while you breathe in your nose and out your mouth helps a TON!
Options for a Cure
There are a TON of medicines and devices are available to fight sea sickness. Some work well for some people and not so well for others. I’ve tried them all… and it’s all a matter of finding your fit. If it's your first trip it might be a bit of a "hit and miss" situation, but one of these should do the trick:
1. Diet - to start off with, eat "safe" foods for about a day before boarding (nothing acidic, spicy or fatty) … and don't over indulge (food/alcohol). Eating a light "safe" meal before you board will also help reduce the risk and/or effects of seasickness. Ginger a great choice! We’ll have ginger snaps and ginger ale on the boat.
2. The motion sickness patch is probably the most popular these days - to be placed behind your ear 4 hours before boarding and changed if necessary after 72 hours. This is quite an effective way to prevent seasickness but causes things like a dry mouth and blurry vision. Better to be thirsty than sick, though! The active ingredient, scopolamine, is absorbed through the skin. The best place to get the patch if from your doctor. He or she will be able to control the dose you receive. Also, if you’re a tiny girl or have a high metabolism, think about cutting the patch in half. It will still help and with ½ the side effects.
3. Over the counter medication (usually causes some drowsiness) - to be taken 1-2 hours before boarding. The most recommended are pills with the active ingredient meclizine (less-drowsy Dramamine, Bonine, Antivert), then pills with the active ingredient Dimenhydrinate (Dramamine regular). Marezine (cyclizine) and Stugeron (cinnarizine) seem to be less sleep inducing than all of the above. Other popular antihistamines (Benadryl - diphenhydramine based) also work for some people. (Money saving tip: ask your pharmacist for the generic version of the medication you wish to take.) Not that I know everyone in the world, but I’ve yet to find someone who swears by this method. And personally, it just makes me more sick and I sleep my trip away (even with the “non” drowsy stuff).
5. Acupressure bracelets - a drug-free product causing no side effects - the motion sickness band is worn one on each wrist for the duration of your trip. Some contain small magnets, others just a stud, which should be aligned with a pressure point (P6) on your wrist and pressure applied periodically. This won't work very well if you "miss" the pressure point.
6. Motion Eaze natural oil - to be applied behind the ear and is absorbed through the skin. Also effective if feeling nauseas already. No side effects.
7. The electronic, drug-free motion sickness ReliefBand® is worn on the wrist, a kind of motion sickness watch. It emits low-level electrical pulses to avoid and treat motion sickness by calming the stomach.
*For children, elderly folk, those using other medication, pregnant or breast feeding women - it's best to consult your doctor before taking new medication.
