Motion sickness

[ALR1023]

I have a friend I am trying to convince to cruise. I have seen her car sick, plane sick and sea sick-along with her 2 kids on one rough fishing boat out of Galveston. I have had her use a scopolamine patch in the past and she did fine on a 45 min fast ferry ride in Belize, snorkel trips there, and plane rides but she is afraid to get on a cruise ship for fear of being sick for 7 days. I have no experience in this-never been sea sick at all. Anyone else with severe motion sick ness cruised before?

[crystalspin]

My husband cannot read in moving vehicles, and gets seasick on fishing or small tour boats (like you ride between Galapagos Islands). He has Transcope patches but has not had to use them ON CRUISE SHIPS since at least 2010. He got a little queasy on the Statendam in Bay of Alaska in 2009; don't absolutely know that it was motion sick could have been food sick.

 

We sailed in November 2014 on the Zaandam (about the same size as Statendam) around Cape Horn, and while we did not encounter particularly rough seas, he never had the need to use anything for seasickness, even spending quantities of time in the Crow's Nest (high and on the fore of the ship, historically the worst movement). On the Nieuw Amsterdam transatlantic -- no movement felt at all.

 

Modern cruise ships' stabilizers are SO effective! Adding the fact that your friend has a physician to prescribe scopolamine patch (and she did not have contra-indicating side-effects), I would reassure her. Pick a good-sized ship and take the patches along (apply at FIRST twinge -- many will say put on before you get on the ship, but my DH, who IS a physician, does not do this with cruise ships, only smaller boats).

 

OTOH, if the particular cruise has tender ports, she might want to pre-medicate (patch) before those days. Tenders have not effected my DH (and we had a rough one, too!), but better safe than sorry.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Have your friend talk to her doctor and see what he recommends for her. He knows her better than we do. He knows what medications, if any, she is taking.

What works for one person may not work for another person.