Motion sickness is a condition that causes nausea during car trips, boat trips, airplane flights, and amusement park rides. This happens through the use of two senses: hearing and vision. The inner ear contains a semicircular canal that is typically filled with fluid, which aids in the stimulation of messages to the brain. The eyes perceive things and transmit them to the brain for interpretation.
However, during a trip, the eyes see mainly immobility, while the fluid in the inner ear canal flows due to the movement. This competing motion sends the brain into a state of overreaction, causing you to nauseate or feel dizzy, both of which are symptoms of motion sickness. This article will look at how to treat motion sickness and how to prevent it from happening in the first place.
How Do You Prevent Motion Sickness?
Here’s an example of when you could suffer motion sickness. For example, if you’re on a boat that’s clearly moving, the fluid in your ear canals detects this and alerts your brain, “Hey, I think we’re moving right now.” Then your vision takes over from there. You look around and notice that everything on the boat is quiet, and that the people are not rocking from left to right. Your eyes get the information to your brain and tell it, “Uhm… hey! I think we’re stationary. We aren’t moving, everything is fine.” This information conflicts the brain and it thinks, “are we still or are we in motion? What exactly is happening?” The brain gets confused and reacts by either making you throw up or feeling dizzy.
So in order to prevent that from happening, here are some strategies that you can implement:
Strategic seating
It is preferable to take a seat in the front of the car, where you can see the road more clearly, on road trips. This helps in lessening the feeling of motion. During a boat ride, make an effort to take a seat in the middle. This way, you avoid experiencing the full rocking sensation that comes with each wave. Your sense of movement will be lessened as a result, balancing with your vision. Finally, selecting a window seat above the airplane’s wing offers a more stable visual reference point—the cloud view—which could possibly reduce symptoms when traveling by air.
Visual focus
During rides, avoid activities that demand intense visual focus, such as reading or watching screens, to avoid conflicting sensory signals that lead to motion sickness. Instead, focusing on a distant point or the horizon helps to settle the visual field and reduces nausea and dizziness.
Dietary choices
When traveling, eating light and moderate foods can calm your stomach and lower your chances of being ill. Avoid oily, spicy, or acidic foods, as these can make you feel worse.
Natural remedies
Ginger and acupressure wristbands are natural treatments to reduce motion sickness. Ginger, whether you drink it as tea, eat it as candies, or take it as a supplement, is known to calm your stomach and make you feel less nauseous. Acupressure wristbands work by applying pressure to specific places on your wrist that are associated with feeling sick.
How Do You Soothe Your Already Troubled Stomach?
This section is for when your stomach has started to feel sick and you need to settle it down. Try these three soothing techniques:
- If possible, open a window or air vents to let in fresh air. Good ventilation can help ease feelings of queasiness.
- Close your eyes and take calm, deep breaths. This will help to relax your body and calm your stomach.
- Listen to music, talk to someone, or imagine relaxing scenery to take your mind off your stomach.
- Distracting yourself could potentially relieve nausea and discomfort.
Sometimes, even with prevention methods, you might still feel sick. In those cases, there are medications you can take:
- For milder symptoms, consider over-the-counter antihistamines like Dramamine. These can help to relieve nausea and dizziness.
- More severe cases can be treated with prescription drugs such as Scopolamine. However, you should consult your doctor before using them to ensure they are safe for you.
Summary
We learned how to avoid becoming sick when traveling by selecting the correct seat and engaging in relaxing activities. However, if you begin to feel nauseated, try eating light, remaining relaxed, and distracting yourself. Furthermore, if you continue to feel sick after trying the aforementioned techniques, drugs are available, but they should only be used after consulting with a doctor.
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Have you ever experienced motion sickness? How did you manage it? Or did you throw up all over? Share your stories and tips with us in the comments below! Your experiences can help others find relief and make their journeys more comfortable.
