I love to travel, but I hate getting there. When teleportation finally exists, I’ll be the first one in line up to try it out. In the travel bloggers circles they find it very amusing that I get so motion sick. I’ll be heading to New Orleans this summer and putting the new Dramamine® Non-Drowsy Naturals to the ultimate test during our roadtrip. Motion sickness is a common condition that affects millions of people, including more than half of women (54%), but many sufferers don’t do anything to treat it, or treat it with the wrong products and ineffective methods.
What causes motion sickness? Every day, our bodies send cues from our vision, touch, and vestibular or inner ear systems to the brain to interpret using chemicals called neurotransmitters. Motion sickness occurs if one of these cues does not match. There are several modes of transportation that can cause motion sickness to occur, such as cars, airplanes, trains and boats. Even playing video games or watching IMAX or 3D movies can cause motion sickness.
I’ve found that my oldest daughter gets motion sick only if she is reading or watching something in the car. She does best if she’s napping the whole way there. There are some great option in helping during these long road trips though. Here are a few that I find the most helpful. 
Preventing Motion Sickness
- Pick the best seat – On a plane, that’s by the window. In the car that’s in the front seat, even better if you’re driving.
- Watch the horizon – If you’re in a boat, it helps to focus on the horizon or the shoreline. Try not to turn around or move your head a lot. This can be hard if you have kids in the back seat you need to help from time time to. I always prep my kids and let them know that they are going to have to wait until we stop the car for the next round of snacks and picking up the things that they have dropped.
- Pit Stops – If you feel like the motion is becoming too much, stop and walk around for a little bit. Stretch your whole body to promote good blood flow.
- Eat light – Don’t consume heavy meals and avoid strong foods like spicy or fried foods. Eat a small amount ever hour to keep you from feeling hungry but not nauseous.
- No reading or writing – Keeping your eyes fixed on something close while your body feels the motion makes the body nauseous. It makes for a long boring trip but it’s better than being sick the whole trip.
- Fresh Air – Keep a vent fixed on your face or open the window. If it’s too cold for this, get a personal fan to keep cool air on your face.
- Sleep – when all else fails, I just fall asleep.
Easing Motion Sick Symptoms Naturally
Easing Motion Sick Symptoms Naturally - Ginger – This is the #1 way that I have found in feeling better once the motion sickness hits us. Dramamine® now makes a Non-Drowsy Naturals with the active ingredient being Ginger. Dramamine® Non-Drowsy Naturals contains the clinically-tested ginger dosage required for preventing and treating motion sickness, unlike many other sources of ginger that motion sickness sufferers frequently try, like ginger ale, candies and gums. It’s a great natural way to relieve the nausea and sometimes vomiting that occurs from motion sickness. Just take it 30 minutes before you travel or start an activity like riding a roller coaster to make sure that your stomach. I love that it doesn’t knock me out and it’s the perfect amount of ginger. I’m normally chugging ginger ale or searching for ginger candy, which not a lot of places carry. To me, it’s easy on the stomach and fast acting. This is always my first choice.
- Acupressure Bands – These are bands that you wear on your wrists and put pressure on spot on your wrist that can ease the nauseous feeling.
- Peppermint – Snatch a handful at the restaurants you stop at and keep them in your pocket. It will help ease the queasiness. Plus, you’ll have fresh breath when you arrive.
- Crackers – Keep crackers on your journey to munch on when you start feeling sick.
For more information about Dramamine® Non-Drowsy Naturals and other Dramamine® products and to download a coupon, visit www.dramamine.com
photo credit: A Long trip and Independance of the Seas and Flying Cairns to Brisbane via photopin (license)
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
Thankfully I have never experienced this before but I do have a dog that experiences motion sickness. Makes it really hard to take her out to the parks.