OS travel sickness tips please!

amiaspden

Gin Gins are lovely, even if you're not feeling sick!

When I was very little I had terrible travel sickness, and the only thing that seemed to help was singing. So the whole family had to join in, and we sang most of the way from Bedfordshire down to Cornwall (pre-motorway days!). I don't know if it was the distraction or the jaw motion that helped.

These days I've luckily found a medical remedy that helps, called Avomine. I find it useful during migraine attacks too when I feel dizzy and sick. Can't find it in the high street pharmacists any more so I buy it from Amazon.

kittiwoz

I find crystalised ginger helps. Especially if I chew at it gently and suck it. Also strong mints, I find XXXX extra strong mints are better than Trebor. Also sniffing cologne on a hankie or lavender and rosemary essential oils. Also having the window open and using a hand-fan, preferably that has been sprayed with cologne, because it is worse when the air is hot and stuffy.

building_with_lego

Gosh, such a lot to try! The square of newspaper and the 2 pence coins are the sort of thing I was looking for (:rotfl:) but I now feel completely armed with dozens of ideas for our next journey.

THIRZAH, thanks for the ice cream tub tip- it's not easy to hurl into a bag but that will simplify matters. She can have Stugeron instead of the Joyrides/Travelease we've been using, and I'll stock up on gingery, lemony, minty sweets.

Many thanks for all the input- this thread is a real treasure- trove of ideas.

rosie383

As the mother of a child who gets awful travel sickness, I have to say that the seabands are the best thing ever!
She can now manage journeys of 12 hours with no problem.

cyclingyorkie

Owl wrote: »

Sounds stupid, and don't know how it works but sitting on a sheet of newspaper helps!!! (Tried and tested with a coach load of children on school trip!!!) I think it's something to do with the smell of newsprint when it gets warmed by little bottoms!!!

Tried and tested on many school trips! It's never failed yet!

But it was hilarious when we took a coachload of kids on a fairly long journey a couple of years ago - I supplied the papers and I turned round after 30 mins to see half the kids trying to read them...

pigpen

kittiwoz wrote: »

I find crystalised ginger helps. Especially if I chew at it gently and suck it. Also strong mints, I find XXXX extra strong mints are better than Trebor. Also sniffing cologne on a hankie or lavender and rosemary essential oils. Also having the window open and using a hand-fan, preferably that has been sprayed with cologne, because it is worse when the air is hot and stuffy.

Trebor make extra strong mints.. remember the ad.. 'trebor mints are a minty bit stronger! .. The problem with mints is their 'laxative' effect.. and one of mine has diabetes so can't have the sweets without calculating insulin etc and is also affected adversely by vomiting.. we have to be rather careful with everything for everyone now .

For us lot strong smells make it worse.. we have a bottle of water each and the windows open... concentrating on trying to keep your hair out of your mouth is very distracting!

sonastin

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

Believe it or not a lot of travel sickness is actually anxiety attacks

The nausea from unnatural motion is definitely real but it can most definitely be magnified and made a whole heap worse by anxiety if you're afraid to or are not in a good position to throw up.

I provided great entertainment to my skipper when I crewed a 32ft yacht across the irish sea in huge waves. I was monstrously seasick but had to steer the boat as he needed to go below decks to navigate and the auto-steering gear couldn't cope with the waves. He came back up on deck to see me steering with my knees whilst hurling over the back of the boat :rotfl:He reckoned he'd never seen anyone so seasick function so well It definitely helped that I've never been the kind of person to be stressed by vomiting and the irish sea was washing everything away so there was no disposal/cleaning issue to fear.

My biggest problem now is air sickness from the descent/landing. Always makes me feel really rough. I think I'm the opposite of someone who fears flying - I look traumatised on my way home from the airport rather than on my way there!

LameWolf

I've always suffered horribly with travel sickness, the things I find help are:

• Half a slice of DRY toast before the journey, otherwise a single PLAIN cream cracker
• Ginger nibbles or Polo mints on the journey
• Have the car window open a crack
• Have the air-vents fully open and directed at my face
• Lots of comfort-stops, an absolute maximum of an hour between them, and preferably every 30 minutes
• Pleasant music on the CD player (personal choice - Damh the Bard)
• AVOID reading or anything that requires close scrutiny (not fun when I'm supposed to be navigating)
• If desperate, put the passenger seat flat and close my eyes

Obviously, these only work in a car - I have not solved traveling by public transport; also, these are just what work for me - other people will have different preferences.

I have yet to find an OTC anti-sickness tablet that works for me; usually they don't stay down long enough to do any good (sorry if TMI).

kippers

pigpen wrote: »

My children are horrifically travel sick, I can't even go into town on the bus (15 minutes).. The only thing we found that works are the stugeron-15 tablets.. they work differently to most travel sickness pills by altering the pressure in the inner ear.

.

That is exactly how my two DD's were until my sister (who also suffers) recommended sturgeron tablets. I have got to say, they worked brilliantly and we have had no more sickness since.

We were the same when dd was small, we managed 5 minutes in the car once before she was sick:(

ciderwithrosie_2

We all suffer from travel sickness in this family, to varying degrees. OH is like pigpen's children and struggles to make it to town on the bus without going green :lipsrseal

Stugeron is the only thing that works for us. Sips of cool water, going to sleep, fresh breeze coming in the window help too. I have very vivid memories of going on holiday with parents, grandparents and siblings all crammed in one stuffy car and being horribly sick. I always tried to be prepared when the boys were small with sick bags/small bucket/wet flannels but my mum said 'it puts the thought of being sick in their head, stop asking them if they're alright'.... I'd rather be over cautious!

We found it depends a lot on the driving as well, not saying you're a bad driver OP but some people swerve, brake suddenly etc and it makes it 20 times worse. OH had to get out of a taxi halfway home the other day as the driver was flinging us around so much and it's only a 10 minute journey.