Bonine pills or Sea Bands?

[amyphil]

WOW, thanks or all the advice. We're taking our first cruse, FOS in July and I was concerned about seasickness.....now I know what to take with us. Where do you buy the sea band?

Amy

[sparky-elpaso]

WOW, thanks or all the advice. We're taking our first cruse, FOS in July and I was concerned about seasickness.....now I know what to take with us. Where do you buy the sea band?

Amy

 

I think there are several on-line sites and I've seen them at Walgreens.

[abhb]

Bonine all the way. Used the RX patches and had lots of side effects-super cotton mouth, dialated eyes:eek:

[Emmysmomma9]

can't even sit in a back seat- ever! Usually I use the scopolomine patches, but because of time in the heat and sun (the insert says to avoid these) I decided to try Bonine and the bands.Get the bands at a boat supply store. I tried a Bonine three weeks before- took a pill in the morning and was a sleepy blob all day. So I decided to take half a tab and that worked. I took half a tab in the am and pm every day starting the day before the flight. If I felt the ship moving, I took another half. The bands were removed on day 2- didn't need them. My big worry was the excursion vans and catamarans- those days I wore the bands and took a whole pill. I DIDN"T GET SICK ONCE!!!!

Actually, we'd be getting dressed for dinner in the pms and my husb would say- "we've left the port", I never even knew- I never felt that! I did notice that if I looked out the window in the MDR and saw the movement of the ship, I would quickly divert my eyes and all was well! Bonine is totally different from Dramamine. Please remember to try a pill BEFORE you go, on a day where you are not driving.

 

Good Luck!

Patty:)

[akupupule]

Several independent blind tests (includung myth busters) have concluded that ginger capsules work as well or better than all over the counter medications and as well as Scopolamine patches with none of the side effects. They work quickly too but aren't as long lasting as Bonine.

[retiredonthesea]

Ginger pills, ginger gum, ginger candy---worked great for my sister who gets motion sickness from planes, cars, trains, cruise ships ect. ect. She had trouble with her eyes from using the patch and wanted to sleep all the time from other motion sickness meds!!

[tbear2762]

Have never used Bonnie but can attest to the effectiveness of the seabands. My daughter has never been sick until this past December when the seas topped over 8ft. She spent the first half of the cruise sick(a 20 year old that went to bed at 9pm). She finally went to the gift shop bought some sea bands and was much better. I have used them for the last 2 cruises. The one before that I used patches and would probably still be using them had my insurance not denied it saying it was not a necessity. Also, since the sea bands are natural and add no chemicals to your body they are often used by pregnant women for morning sickness with much success. I will add that the dot must be positioned correctly and can also have the pressure increased by your other hand if you should get a sudden bought of nausea. I say take both just in case but use the sea bands first because of the natural aspect.

[SuiteTraveler]

The bands do not work that well, IMO. My inlaws tried them on our cruise to Alaska and spent the whole first night throwing up like most of the rest of the passengers and a good part of the crew due to the rough seas. We had on Transderm Scops and were fine - in fact, kind of enjoying the whole roller coaster effects of the rough seas and taking pictures of the water shooting 30 feet into the air out of the pool up on deck and watching people try to walk around on the ship. It was so bad, you needed to use the handrails in the hallways. The ship was really rocking and rolling! LOL! Transderm Scops work great, but do dialate your eyes and make your mouth dry. If I was cruising to Alaska, however, I would wear one for the first two days of the cruise due to the rough seas I've experienced on all three cruises i've been on going up there. For a cruise in the Caribbean or Meditteranean, I take Antivert which is by prescription. It has NONE of the side effects that Bonine has and none of the side effects of Transderm Scops. In fact, I don't notice feeling any different when I am on Antivert. It works great.

[Prof 100]

Thanks, I like that idea of taking at night....good advice.

[Prof 100]

Thanks for your very thorough advice!

[pspercy]

If I was cruising to Alaska, however, I would wear one for the first two days of the cruise

 

That's my plan tho' I'm going to try one before leaving home as they're new to me.

I well remember the utter misery of severe mal de mer.

 

When I last went to sea I (ab)used Dramamine & found "my" dose but also found I gained sealegs after a couple of days, but that was a long time ago and the motion on a large ship is likely totally different.

 

Note that "The Patch" is available OTC in Canada and can be mail-ordered to US I believe.

[CptSticky]

I'm a pharmacist.

 

Bonine (and Less Drowsy Formula Dramamine) is not recommended for kids under the age of 12 (this is because nobody ever did clinical trials with meclizine in children)... so while it may work, it's not recommended by the FDA.

 

There is a Children's Bonine (cyclizine) which is recommended for kids 6-12, but it may cause more drowsiness than the meclizine version of Bonine.

 

Original formula Dramamine (dimenhydrinate) can be used in 2year olds to adults. You have to break the tablets into 1/4's for toddlers. Of all the motion sickness medications, it causes the most drowsiness

http://www.dramamine.com/chewable-formula#directions

Of course, there's always ginger.

 

Ginger is a natural anti-emetic. It seems to work for motion sickness.

Sea Band makes a ginger gum

 

but you can also find candied ginger at Whole Foods or something like that, or even ginger Altoids.

 

All motion sickness medications are in the same family of drugs. They are anti-cholinergics, like Benadryl (which, by the way, can also be used for motion sickness) and have the very similar side effect profiles.

http://www.drugs.com/benadryl.html

 

 

 

 

edit:

Oh... for the Sea Bands... I think it depends on the individual. They never worked for my wife when she was experiencing morning sickness... and I've never tried them for motion sickness. Some people it works, others it doesn't... I wouldn't want to be the guinea pig on that one... You could bring them along... and worse comes to worse.. go to the ship's gift shop and get a box of Bonine.

As a pharmacist, I would have expected a warning about Bonine and glaucoma. Please correct me if I'm wrong. Would love to be able to take them.

[eskz4me2luv]

I don't use anything but DW uses Bonine. She takes one before we fly and then one every morning on the ship. FYI, Bonine is free if you ask for it on the ship.

 

First time cruiser here. We'll be sailing out of Norfolk to Bermuda on the Enchantment at the end of May. Where on the ship do you get the Bonine and is it available 24 hours a day?

[octagonmike]

Just make sure you ask for Bonine and not Bromide

[cantwait2cruise926]

I am very prone to motion sickness whether i'm in a car, plane or boat . On my first cruise to Bermuda out of NY i was a nervouse wreck about getting sick. I used the motion sickness patch and the sea bands and never got sick (i felt a little quesy the first night at sea but i believe it was due to my nerves). I did the same on my last cruise on EOS. I was able to drink and have fun without any worry. I"ve used the sea bands while pregnant with my son for morning sickness. They are wonderful!!!! I have recommended them to others and I have been told that they work. I would buy them and try them out first before using them on a cruise just in case they dont work for you.

[Tim,n,Sue]

I get motion sickness quite easily. Two weeks ago today we had 6m-8m waves just west of Cuba and I got caught a little short as I did not wear a patch after leaving Grand Cayman. I ate a green apple from the Windjammer and my stomach settled down withinh 15 minutes. The pectin works wonders. I ate another green apple later in the day and still felt great.

 

I looked up seasickness and pectin and there is a lot of information confirming that pectin works on seasickness.

[blonde375]

I swear by the sea bands! I, like a few other posters here, suffered horribly from motion sickness when I was a kid. Now, it's really only on a rocky boat/ship or if I face backwards while riding in a car, bus, or train.

 

I also make sure that whenever I am sitting on the ship that I face forward whether it be in the dining room or lounge, etc. I also make sure that the bed is facing forward.

 

Remember that when you start to feel that way to keep your eyes on the horizon (ship's crew member told me that several years ago on a rough Mexican Riviera cruise) becasue the horizon never moves! It really helps to stabilize things.

 

Happy Sailing!

[aggie1]

On our first cruise, Carnival Celebration, my DH and I were in the casino. All of a sudden he said that the slot machine was moving. Took him to the cabin and went to the shop on the ship and bought the wrist bands. Went back to cabin put them on him and he went to sleep. I went back to casino, came back after about two hours and put 5 $100 bills on his chest. He jumped up, feeling fine and said lets go to the casino. They worked great. Another time on the Aloha of Hawaii, our waitress got really seasick and went to the freezer and ate a green apple and came back fine. Then on the EOS the last day it was awful. 30 ft. swells, rain, wind and DH was feeling awful and me too. Ordered room service, hamburgers and ginger ale and I went to casino and won!!. Also on this trip we did a day sail on a sail boat and DH got very seasick. Didn't bother me, but one other passenger also got sick. I will also make DH take Bonine on our next cruise every day.