Cruising again after being seasick

[balconyview]

We just came back from our second cruise. On our first I never felt sick at all. I've never had motion sickness at any time. This time I had that mild "morning sickness" queasiness on Fri eve and it came back Sat afternoon and kept getting worse until I finally took one dramamine with no relief , so after a couple hours I took a second.That made me sleep, but when my DH came back from dinner I got up to help pack, and moving around pushed me over the edge and I puked. I felt better in the morning, but kind of hung over and dizzy all day. Sat it was fairly rough, but our waiter said he'd seen worse. I feel like a wimp, but I'm nervous about cruising again! No way would I take dramamine as a preventitive, I'd be spaced out for my cruise. Has anyone else been sick and cruised again ?

[big_duck]

Any chance it acutally was morning sickness (or something else not motion related)?

 

Lots of people here swear by ginger pills.

[suziehmkr]

You really should take these things as a preventative, instead of waiting until you get sick. I knew we had a good chance of rough seas on our way to Hawaii and took Ginger pills until we got to the Islands. DH did not and was sick one entire day. He finally took a bonine later in the day, but basically it was too late. He is stubborn about that stuff. LOL We had rough seas that day, and I was fine except for maybe 1/2 hour at the roughest time.

 

BTW - this is the first time he was sick onboard a cruise ship (he can't ride in small boats - tendering gets a little scary when they bob out in the water too long) and as you can see, we are already booked on another. Don't let it discourage you! Seas for each cruise will be different.

[cheshyrkat]

You are supposed to take the motion sickness meds as preventative. If you get sick then sometimes it's too late for the medicine to help you feel better. I get seasick sometimes...I figured that out after I had been diving for a couple of years. My problem is primarily when the boat is not moving forward and the water is choppy, though, so I don't have as much of an issue on a cruise ship. I use ginger and the non-drowsy dramamine. The non-drowsy dramamine makes me feel strange so I only use it if I absolutely have to.

[lisiamc]

If you are stubborn and wait too long to take the bonine, then drinking ginger tea or nibbling crystallised ginger should fix you almost immediately, (if you're fixable!) The ginger capsules take somewhat longer as you have to swallow them and wait for them to dissolve. Going outside and looking into the distance for a few minutes helps a lot too.

 

Lisa

[dan40]

As a teenager, my wife took a liner to England and then back 30 days later, in winter. The winter north Atlantic had her puking all the way over and all the way back. We were married 10 years before I could get her to try a cruise. Now she's like an old sailor[talks like one too:eek::D], doesn't even take any sea sick meds along. In 2004 we cruised in Sept. Had to dodge Ivan after leaving the day after Frances, then ran into Javier in the Pacific. It was rough enough that they battened down the porthole covers. She never had a bad moment[other than the casino bandits].

 

I once upchucked on a 60 foot fishing boat and was still woozy 4 days later so I understand the worry about mal de mer. But in 46 cruises, I've never had more than a slight upset, cured by looking out to the horizon.

 

Dan

[bigoutlaw]

Someone please rush me an answer. I am leaving this afternoon. My wife has some powdered ginger. Is that as good as ginger pills? If we used the powdered ginger, how do we take it. This is our first cruise so we are totally ignorant on this sort of stuff.

[cheshyrkat]

I would just go to Wal Mart or something and pick up a cheap bottle of ginger pills. I don't know what you would do with ginger powder beside put it in hot water but I don't know how much you'd have to use.

[big_duck]

Someone please rush me an answer. I am leaving this afternoon. My wife has some powdered ginger. Is that as good as ginger pills? If we used the powdered ginger, how do we take it. This is our first cruise so we are totally ignorant on this sort of stuff.

 

Should do. Ginger capsules are just powder ginger in a gel cap.

 

I am tempted to say take it as a suppository, but that would just be cruel.

[bp traveler]

I tried ginger pills to no avail! Just returned from the Triumph on 1-28-06 and everyone was feeling pretty lousy from rough seas. I started taking ginger tablets 2 days before and they did not work for me.

 

I went to the gift store and bought some bonine and it worked like a charm!

[BND]

I got sea sick the first night on our cruise this past fall (Fantasy) and tried taking something (Bonine) after I felt nauseous. It didn't work because I didn't take it before I felt bad and I got sick. I went to bed early that night. Sleeping makes a difference too. The next am we woke up in Freeport and I felt fine and started taking non drowsy dramamine. It worked great. I also popped ginger tablets when it was a little rocky just to settle any queasiness. We had a really rough couple of hours on the morning on our day at sea and I didn't get queasy or anything. I will never cruise again without starting non drowsy dramamine the day before we leave. It made me a little tireder than normal, but just a little. I couldn't stay up much past midnight, but other than that it worked like a charm. The worst part of the trip was the first and last night when we were crossing the gulf stream.

[Curt Jerome Wild]

Bonine works great (no dramamine side effects), but only if you take it at least the day of the cruise (before getting on the ship).

It's even better to start one day early.

If you wait until after you get seasick, forget it.

Everyone in my groups always do this, and no one has ever gotten sick.

Just another option.

Curt Jerome Wild

[cheshyrkat]

I am tempted to say take it as a suppository, but that would just be cruel.

 

:eek: Bad Duck!!! :p

[SAYHEYRENEE]

I sailed out of Tampa and was fine. Sailed out of NYC on a CTN in the Gulf Stream in October-horrible. Went out of NYC in August to Canada and was fine. Go figure.

[pppiglet]

We took the Bonine too....no problem, no side effects! I have heard that eating green apples helps too. Don't know if those are available on the ship though!

[bonstersd]

Last year on the Spirit I did not fell well one day, so I stuck to the middle of the ship and not up too high. My cabin was the second one from the bridge, so I stayed away from it. I also started drinking...once I got the first one down, the others just followed and that kept my mind off feeling quesy!

[sallyb]

balconyview,

I had the same experience last week on the Miracle on Saturday. We decided to do our packing in the afternoon. It was the roughest sea day I have experienced and was actually suprised that I got sick, since I'm used to spending weekends on a small boat. I finally realized I should go to deck 2, get a ginger ale, and look out the window. I missed dinner (except the mango ginger soup!) and felt good enough to enjoy an evening at Frankie & Johnny's later. Next time it is that rough, I will immediately head to the lower decks! Hope you enjoyed the cruise, we did all except those few hours and the one spent on the bus back at the port!

[AudioFilly]

On our first and only cruise we got terribly seasick. Thankfully I had brought along Bonine as a "just in case" for my husband. I was shocked when I got sick and needed them. Only problem was once we took them we couldn't stay awake. We would try to go to a show and order our drink and before the waiter could get back with it we'd be sitting in our seats sound asleep. I will say it was the best sleep I have ever had in my life.

 

After talking to lots of people since then that have been on cruises we have been told that this was a complete anomaly. And after receiving a nice letter from Carnival with a few perks thrown in, we are booking our second cruise this week. This time we will be bringing along different preventatives "just in case" that hopefully won't leave us asleep all week.

 

But mostly it is the people that are drawing us back. On our land based vacation last year we met one great couple. So I thought, "Oh, it was just us being stand offish before! Since the cruise we learned to open up more." Then at the airport at the end of the week we ran into the couple again and talked about our different vacation experiences. She told us that this was their first land-based vacation, they are die-hard cruisers!

[balconyview]

Thanks for the suggestions and pep talks! I hated to think I was turned off cruising, because everything else was great, including our wait staff, room stewards, dinner partners, and whoever we happened to meet at breakfast or almost anywhere. Everyone was so pleasant and friendly! I'm not giving in!! I'm getting ginger next time!

[Cracker Ken]

Both of us are prone to motion sickness. I've been sick at Disney World, riding in cars, on fair rides, and even have felt weird on a float in a pool. We have been on 9 cruises together, and haven't been sick to the point of puking yet. Both of us take Bonine or Meclazine (the generic found in Bonine and less-drowsy Dramamine), starting in the morning on the day of the cruise. We stop it when we get off. One time, headed to Hawaii out of San Diego, we had 17 ft seas. We had went to a CC get-together up in the forward observation lounge, DW lasted 5 minutes, I made it 15, and we both had to go to our cabin down low, midship. Took a nap, and it went away. Doubled up on Meclazine for a day or so until the seas calmed. For the most part, this stuff has always worked, and we stay awake too. Neither one of us does alcohol, so the mixture of the Meclazine w/alcohol isn't a factor for us. You can buy generic Meclazine tabs for a fraction of the cost of Bonine or less-drowsy Dramamine. We get ours from an internet pharmacy, like www.otc.com . We also take patches as a backup, and have never used them. As others said, if you wait until you are sick, you've had it.

 

Ken

[hightownCO]

I have awful motion sickness and started using meclazine a few years ago for trips to Disney World! Worked great and while I still stay away from some rides, can do most things!

 

The only reason I even attempted a cruise is because I won one at Disney World. I found on the cruise (three night Wonder), I needed to do the meds one in the morning and one at night. Just one a day didn't do it.

 

So with that experience, am looking forward to a real 7 nighter but not without a trip to Walmart first to get a fresh supply! (100 25mg tabs for about $6.00)

[Buffettfan 225]

OK- I am a total Bonine person , Trying to figure out most effective dosing as just a ride in back seat of car gets me sick.

Need opinions--is it best to take a few hours before dinner, 1 in morning one at night? Do most people take one or two?

 

This ginger thing--how much in capsule form?? and how often?

Can it be taken with Bonine?

[Cracker Ken]

We usually take one in the morning, and one at night. Wife always does. If it is smooth sailing, I'll take one in the morning. Even if two a day gets me a little drowsy at the late show after late seating dinner, I feel it's a good tradeoff, since I'd rather be sleepy than hugging the comode.;)

 

Ken

[papillonpuppies04]

i cant believe no one is suggesting the Patch. I get very very sick even when riding in a car, but I will be taking my 6th cruise in April. Have your doctor write you a prescription for Transdermscop. It's a small patch that you put behind your ear. Works like a charm. The only side effect is cotton mouth, which usually goes away. Also, if you leave the patch on for the whole trip, you might have slightly blurry vision. I usually take the patch off when we're at port. Anyways - I wont travel without them!