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Old 03-04-2005, 12:07 AM   #1
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Default seasickness - help!

hello,

How can i get rid of seasickness or prevent it from occuring? I have not sailed for long periods of time and do not know if it passes eventually or not. What is the best treatment/preventative measures for relieving seasickness. Please help! Thanks
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Old 03-04-2005, 03:44 PM   #2
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Greeting Haiku88,

I found all of the following helpful to those who sailed with me:

- do not sail on an empty stomach

- do not have a big night out on the grog the day before sailing

- sleep on the boat overnight if possible

- do not stay down below,particularly if there are diesel fumes below

- fix your eyesight to a point on the horizon

- take the helm

- if not on the helm sit near the centre point of the boat

- eat a little crystalised ginger, ginger biscuits, ginger beer etc

- do not be afraid to take seasickness medication before you feel ill

Hope this helps,

Rod
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Old 03-04-2005, 08:43 PM   #3
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Rod's advice is good. Here are a few things that have worked for me.

I find that I create stress for myself when we are getting ready to leave a port, and by the time we're under way my heart is racing and I am thinking far too much about what could go wrong. I learned very early on that for me, the first thing I have to do after we get underway is to relax. Peter calls it my "vapors". I go below and lie down. Rarely do I fall asleep, but I find that my heart beat slows and I calm down and actually start to relax. This might take half an hour, maybe several hours, but when I come back on deck I a rested and calm, and almost never get seasick.

I do find that keeping food in my stomach helps tremendously. If nothing else, plain bread or crackers helps to settle my stomach.

I think you'll also find that as you gain confidence in your abilities and the seaworthiness of your boat that you don't have so much anxiety and will feel better overall.

Fair winds,

Jeanne
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Old 03-04-2005, 10:14 PM   #4
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I'd like to second Jeanne's point about anxiety leading to seasickness. I know it's been true for both my wife and I - and for others whom I've come to know well - that any combination of inexperience, unexpected conditions and/or the crush of demands just before leaving the dock (less sleep, more tension, more fatigue) can generate enough worry to lead to a vicious cycle: feeling emotionally 'bad', finding yourself physically sick, that preventing rest and anxiety reduction, and so it goes on. Someone reading this might wonder if it's even possible to 'not get anxious, if I'm anxious' but I'd suggest there are a hundred little things that each make a given crew leave the dock while in a good personal space, or OTOH while freaked out. Examples that pop to mind (but aren't at all comprehensive) include:

-- staying hydrated, getting lots of rest, and having that last day NOT be full of crazy, last-minute crash tasks

-- is the nav work done? will the actual piloting of the boat be dead simple? engine test run? sail covers off? jack lines rigged? I see a LOT of folks digging into all this stuff right as they are bouncing into that first swell...

-- is everything really ready down below (and topsides) that will make Day #1 as effortless as possible? (nutritious, light meal already prepared; lee cloths set up and the berth clear, so you can easily put your head down and relax; change of clothes (perhaps for a chilly night watch) already dug out and set aside; you get the picture...)

NASA did a huge amount of research on motion sickness in the 60's and 70's because they were finding almost half their space crews were getting sick while in orbit. Their conclusions didn't get lots of attention in the boating press at the time and I don't see them mentioned at all today, but they are very practical. Here's my attempt at summarizing their key finding: Meds and homeopathic remedies each work uniquely. This means that, while you can build a table of probability for what worked 'more' or 'less' often among a population of astronauts, there's no way to apply those stats to a single individual and expect success, or even a percentage of success comparable to what the stats tables might suggest. E.g. the most effective OTC med they tested was Dramamine; it was about 50% effective. OTOH that doesn't mean I will find it will work for me, nor will I find it 50% effective. [I personally think this goes a long way to explaining why someone's rave recommendation or 'sure cure' leaves the next person Ralph'ing over the side]. Best option? Each individual should experiment with each drug type and homeopathic remedy they can, make an effort to do each trial with thoroughness (varied conditions), and in time you will find what works best for you.

This takes time, effort and some diligence...but it eventually pays huge dividends. FWIW each of our family members finds something different that works best for them; in some cases, several remedies (drugs and others) are used, depending on circumstances. And you can make some interesting discoveries. E.g. the 'patch' (Scopalomine) fails to work for at all for me, yet I found a small NY drug mfgr. that was making Scop in pill form as an OTC as a decongestant, and it worked wonders. Unfortunately, it's no longer available...but that was okay too, as I also found Stugeron to work well for me and it is available outside the U.S. in many parts of the world.

Sorry for the long post, but I think the NASA lesson, boiled down, is that while there is no magic bullet, there are solutions if you do the research and make the effort.

Jack
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Old 03-04-2005, 11:32 PM   #5
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Hi Haiku,

I always get queasy the first couple days out. Transderm scop (the patch) works very well for me. I'll put on a patch a half day before leaving.

If nothing else, seasickness usually passes within two to three days.

Good luck!

Cliff
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Old 03-05-2005, 04:58 AM   #6
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Thanks, Jack, and you mentioned something that I always do, but forgot to mention.

Whenever we are setting out on an overnight or longer passage I prepare in advance a hearty meal for the first night, and several other meals and snacks that can be just quickly heated and eaten. (things like banana bread, pepperoni bread, cranberry bread, for example, require nothing but a knife to slice and the snack is almost a meal, and no matter how badly I feel, we can still keep our energy up). That way no matter what the weather turns out, or how I am feeling, we all can eat well. I firmly believe that good nutrition and adequate rest are the keys to making a passage a comfortable and safe one. well-fed, well-rested and you aren't as likely to make mistakes in judgment, IMO.

Fair winds,
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Old 03-05-2005, 11:51 AM   #7
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I get seasick too when I've not been out for a while, but what cures it is to go down below and go to sleep for four hours or so. When I come up again, I find that my body has adjusted and grown sealegs in my sleep, and because I was asleep my discomfort was minimized. If you're close to shore, it helps to have an assistant helmsman.

I sold my old Cal 24 in Hawaii 4 years ago.. I sailed her every day usually until late at night.. I'd come back into the channel at 2am or 3am usually.. but anywya.. the day I sold her, I took this couple out for their sea trial, the man's wife complained about sea sickness before she got on board.. I told her I had those presure point bracelets, but I didn't know if they really worked. She agreed to wear one. During the sea trial I was embarressed as I puked! The wife of the buyer, however, was quite comfortable.. The guy's name was Neil, and he said that it was probably my nervousness regarding the sale of my boat. They still bought her too..



Robin
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Old 03-05-2005, 08:39 PM   #8
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Only twice have I ever had anyone seasick on board. On both occasions I had the afflicted sit in the cockpit, focus on the horizon over the stern and wear the pressure bands (I think they are called Acubands). The dreaded mal-de-mer was relatively quickly tamed in each instance. One of the sickies, who claimed she always got seasick, sailed with me on many occasions and would wear the bands form dock to dock and never got crook again. I have also heard that the old 'clamp-on' style ear rings do the job, but I have no experience of this.

David.
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Old 03-06-2005, 11:17 AM   #9
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What about seasickness in cats and dogs? My cat gets sick for an hour or so on each trip... he goes below and his eyes get all glassy.. he's never vomitted on board, but if I sit him up by the mast he usually recovers pretty quickly.

-Robin
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Old 03-07-2005, 10:11 AM   #10
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Thanks to everyone who replied and all you who thought about replying. Sounds like rest and relaxation and a full belly are good starts. Sailed around the south point of the Big Island and the whole crew was sick. No fun. Don't want any repeats. Thanks everyone!

Haiku

And good luck Robin!
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Old 03-08-2005, 05:20 AM   #11
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I’ve registered just to help you out. I think I have cookied on everything save a Yak ride. Never been on a Yak. And when I get sick, keep the gun away from me.

And now? Beer and sardines, sloshed down with a maple syrup frap. How? I dope up about three days before I go out. And also on the secound day of and the day before a voyage. I don’t do anything the day of leaving or there after as I seem to have a few days of the stuff in the blood and after a few days I have my sealegs. Works great from me and I have tried everything before.
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Old 03-08-2005, 09:02 PM   #12
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Hi,

"Stugeron" was trialed and used by the Royal Navy as a seasickness preventative. Its big advantage is that it doesn't make you drowsy, an obvious and essential plus. It may be available in the States but could be under another brand name. Normally people gain their "sea legs" after a few days at sea and the effect does wear off with time. If you only sail infrequently then you will have to regain your sea legs each time you go to sea but if you are voyaging then hopefully you will gain them at the start of the voyage and then feel no adverse effects after that.

However, the advice about a good rest and a good meal is worth its weight in gold. If you do vomit then make sure that you eat something, dry crackers are a good bet or if you can some soup.

It may not be of much comfort when you are feeling absolutely like death but Lord Horatio Nelson was sick everytime he sailed but he managed to carve out a reasonable career as a seaman!! Charles Darwin too wasn't a good sailor but he stuck at it and made something of a name for himself.

Fair winds

David
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Old 03-09-2005, 04:30 PM   #13
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Just to follow up on David's post - and because it's often wondered about by North American sailors - Stugeron is not available in the U.S., either OTC or by script. The mfgr. chose not to participate in the FDA trails and submission process. However, those cruising in the Bahamas will find this med stocked in Nassau pharmacies, as you also will in Trinidad, Bermuda (St. Georges & Hamilton) and elsewhere in the Caribbean (Georgetown, Grand Cayman is one example).

Jack
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Old 06-06-2005, 12:44 AM   #14
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Hard to believe that nobody knows about the newest greatest motion sickness prevention on the market! http://www.motioneaze.com/

It's a miracle!!!

Larry

s/v JULIA
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Old 06-06-2005, 01:16 AM   #15
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I bought motion eaze for my sister-in-law, who gets motion sickness in every form of transportation. She said it worked, but she hated the smell of it so much that she doesn't use it.
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Old 06-06-2005, 09:03 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by name='Converted Post'
Originally posted by Auzzee

Only twice have I ever had anyone seasick on board. On both occasions I had the afflicted sit in the cockpit, focus on the horizon over the stern and wear the pressure bands (I think they are called Acubands).[snip]

David.
I've had a few people on board who get seasick. I also get them to sit in the cockpit and stare at the horizon, I find that after they've been there a few days they are either over their seasickness or comatose:P

Seriously, I'm almost certain that seasickness has both a physiological and a psychological element. Anxiety certainly plays in there. Our last trip across Bass Strait was unusually benign. Yet we had a woman on board who was seasick from go to whoa. She was not pregnant (our medico asked her) and claimed never to have been seasick before. It got to the stage that we kept her horizontal down below with a bucket and the watch woke her every hour to feed her Gastrolyte (electrolyte replacer). This was the only way we could deal with quite a serious situation.

Neither we nor the unfortunate could work out why she got seasick. But gastrolyte or equivalent should be part of every on-board first aid kit.

Mike
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