Car Sickness Remedies Please!

Dramamine pills work great!!!! They are for motion sickness/dizziness, etc. My brother & I used them since we were kids (but fortunately are MUCH better travelers now) Wal Mart sells a much cheaper generic version (I think they are called Motion Sickness tabs). They may make you sleepy, but I've always had great luck with them...hope this helps!Happy Travels! :)

I have seen motion sickness medicine in rite aid. A place like brookstone may sell motion sickness bracelets. if they still do it online go to sharper images website. I used to work for them and they sold motion sickness bracelets. I bet if you went online you would find the motion sickness bracelets. my fiancee gets car sickness and anxiety sometime while on trips. he either drives or sicks in the passenger side of the car in front with the window down. May be take some ginger ale or green tea with you and see if it helps.

Ali,
the bands work for me, as well as eating ginger, and recently I discovered something for my daughter who used to get horribly motion sick: an aromatherapy remedy (go figure!) It's called "gingermint", and basically it's a mix of ginger and mint essential oils. You place a small dab underneath your nose, base of the throat, and behind the ears. Works like a charm. Also, you can put some on a cotton ball and just wave it in front of you when needed. I'm rather new to the area, so I'm not positive where you can find the oils, but I'm fairly sure you can get them at Whole Foods.

Hope this helps!

I don't know anything about Bodine, but I have tried the bracelets and they are wonderful. I too get very carsick and even get it when I drive. When I was pregnant with my son, the bracelets did the trick on a long drive. I got my bracelets at a drug store or Walmart. Good Luck!

The medication you are thinking of is called bonine. It is much better than dramamine because it does not cause drowsiness. I've used it when sailing, and it works well.

Tips from the sailor: Be hydrated ahead of time. When people get seasick, the causes are generally dehydration and overtiredness. If you eliminate those two problems, people are way less apt to get seasick.

If you take bonine, take it the night before the trip, then again when you get up that morning. If it's in your system ahead of time, you will fare much better. Don't wait until you are queasy to treat motion sickness. By then, it's a little late.

Another possbile remedy is ginger pills. (Like ginger ale -- the ginger root is really good for stomachs, and while I've never used this, I know people who have used it on cruises and like it.)

also, look out the front window, NOT the side windows where life goes by too fast. Watch the horizon, ahead of you, or just bring a pillow and take a nap when you aren't the driver. I do that, just to relieve boredom, because I really don't like being a passenger. Make sure you sit in the front passenger seat when not driving. I like to have air blowing around me (like a window cracked) or something, but that's up to you.

If you like ginger ale, bring some with you; otherwise bring a soda you do like, and drink that. Bring saltine crackers. They are really good at soaking up stomach acid when you are feeling queasy. I don't like them, but when my stomach is feeling seasick ? that's the only thing I want to eat. :-)

Seabands work for some people. They work through the use of a pressure point on the wrist -- I don't know why, and I've never used them. But I've heard people get good results from them. I believe you can purchase them at a pharmacy (over the counter, just like bonine).

Good luck ! I think if you can get past the carsickness thing a few times, you will begin to get past it and won't need medication ALL the time. I have this suspicion that anxiety plays into it a little -- we get anxious because we think we might get sick, and anxiety makes our stomachs queasy, too. I've had people tour the ship I work on, and get queasy on deck when there's absolutely NO waves -- it's in their head. It's kind of funny -- but motion does do something to our inner ears, and when at sea for a period of time, I find I can't stand still on land without feeling seasick. It's kind of funny.

Not sure if this is what you mean? but when I was pregnant I had horrible motion sickness and dizziness. I had some type of stretchy bracelets (like a thinner tennis wristband type) and they had some type of plastic circle that was to be positioned on the underside of your wrist. I think I got them at Motherhood or somewhere like that? Also, what about Dramamine? that seems to work well for me, especially if I am going on a boat. Good luck with your trip!

Hi Ali,
I can really sympathize with you! I, too, have had terrible car/ motion sickness since I was a child. The medication you are talking about is calle "Bonine" You take it 30 min. to 1 hour before travel. It does work but I find it makes me tired, so don't drive with it. What type of car do you drive in? We have a Kia Sedona mini van, and I have less of a problem riding in it than with a regular car or even an SUV. There are wristbands that have a small button that hits the inside of the wrist(pressure point), that help a little. The important thing is not turning around in the car to look back at the kids or looking down. Chewing gum sometimes helps me too. Good Luck!

We've had success with ginger capsules, acupressure wrist bands and finally just went for acupuncture and it was ok. You have to look into those things and decide if any are right for you.

Hi Ali,

I can relate - I have struggled with motion sickness my whole life. One thing that absolutely does the trick is being able to see a far away horizon. Sitting in the front seat is a must or in the middle of the back seat so you cna see out the window. Focus on the point furthest away from you.

Do not look out the side window. If you need to, hang a towel over the window (secure by winding the window up on it), to prevent you from seeing the roadside whiz by.

Avoid looking down. If you must read directions or a map, hold them up in front of you.

This trick has gotten me from PA to SC and back again many years in a row without any horrible sickness.

Things that also work for me is eating. Seriously, if I am getting sick I find that eating non-stop helps.

I have also heard that lollipops can help.

I sooo feel your pain. I alwasy drive, becasue I would rather be tired than sick. We learned that this problem is genetic when my daughter began having troubles in the car. Since she cannot drive, we have tried everything. The bracelets are a waste of money. They are supposed to push on the wrists, but they hurt and never worked. We have found no medicine to work for either of us. I would suggest you take a sleeping pill and when you are not sleeping - drive.
Good luck!
ER

Ginger root. Works like a charm! We are sailors and give it to everyone that has seasickness. Our daughter loves the boat, but gets seasick as soon as the waves kick up over 2 feet. This works for her.

Take two ginger root pills with breakfast and two with lunch. It is very inexpensive - just 3 -4 dollars at Walmart for a bottle. It is natural. It is what ginger ale and ginger beer is made from, generally won't interact with other things, won't make you drowsy and best of all works. We discovered it on Mythbusters of all places and have had it on board now for 4 years. Other people who get seasick have also used it with great success. We have also recommended it to others on our dock, again, with success. I don't see why it won't work for the car.

Bonine will knock you out. It did our daughter. She slept for a least 8 hours when she took it. Wasn't seasick, but not much of a sailor either. She swears by the ginger. By the way she is 22. Bracelets didn't work either. Good luck.

S.

PS

Barbi W. has great advice! Hydration is the key. Soda however is DEhydrating so be careful. Anything with caffiene will dehydrate. Be careful if you put the seat all the way back - it isn't safe if there is an accident. Be sure to check with your doctor if you are pregnant to see what is appropriate for you.

I have had horrendous motion sickness all my life. I have used Benadryl and Dramamine, both make me very sleepy. There is Bonine and Dramamine 2 which are both supposed to not make you drowsy. My only sure fire solution is to be the driver. But Dramamine and Benadryl work well for me.

Hello-I had the same thing with my first. As soon as we started the 45 minute drive to work I was horribly sick. Those motion braclets were a life saver, they put pressure on a point in your wrist and lessen the feeling. You can get them at any drug store, Rite Aid, etc. I have even seen them in groceries stores by the prescription counter. They didn't take all the feeling away completely but def helped. My sickness got so bad I had to use supositories(ugh!)about a half an hour before I left for work. Last resort of course, this may help for such a long trip. Good Luck!

m.

my husband has this problem especially if his parents drive:) He has found that the anti-nausea bracelets you get in the drugstore work. they use accupressure. good luck! It's cheaper and ouwon't have to take meds!

My mother in law uses something called motion mate. Says it works real well. And depending how sensitive some people are even non drowsy Dramamine could knock you out. Good luck :)

Hi Ali,

If your trip ends up like me recent one, you'll end up sitting in back with your two year old. Besides the advice from other posters, if you do have to sit in the back, recline the front seat down as far as it will go. This should allow you to still look out the front window. Front window access is crucial to me in avoiding car sickness.

Have a nice trip.

When I was a kid I used to get motion sick all the time. My mom gave me dramamine for longer trips - that worked for me.

The bracelets you mention are probably "sea bands". I haven't used them for motion sickness but did use them for 24 hour morning sickness with my pregnancies. They worked like a charm for me. Although they didn't make me feel 100%, I was able to get out of bed and function at work without any problems. You can find them at drug stores with other motion sickness aids. They look like seatshirt sleeve cuffs with nubbies that puts gentle pressure on the inside of your wrists. I bought mine 5 years ago for about $10.

When you are the passenger in a car try to look out to the horizon rather than at objects close to you. That should help. Also if you can have the air condition blowing toward you or can cool yourself with a cold water bottle or damp washcloth (forehead, neck, wrists) that may help as well. Good luck and have a great trip!

Ginger--ginger snaps, candied ginger, even sipping ginger ale--may help. Good luck!

Bonine and Dremamine are both great for motion sickness. Also anything with ginger in it. I've used gingersnap cookies and gingerale before and it's helped me a lot. I used to get motion sickness all the time when I was little and I thought I grew out of it until I was in a car accident and got whiplash. Now I get motion sickness on long car rides, sometimes even if I'm the one that's driving.

I also get very carsick, always have and it is miserable. Ive used those bracelets and they worked for me on boats but not in cars. I have never used bodine, but dramanine (sp?) does work. although it makes you tired, so if you want to do driving its not the best. There is some sort of patch you can wear i think behind your ears. I havent tried them myself but my mom used them on her cruise and loved them

I get really severe motion sickness too, and I've tried about everything.

The drug you're thinking of is bonine and it works better than dramamine, in my opinion. Just make sure you start taking it at least 12 hours before you leave, and keep it in your system through the entire trip.

The patch behind your ear (scopolamine) works fabulously - it is the best for me. You have to get a prescription from your doctor for it, but I very highly recommend it. The major side effect for me is dry mouth, so I keep a bottle of water around all the time when I have it on.

Everyone is different, but for me - neither ginger or the wristbands did anything for me. I've tried them both with no success.

For the record, you're not pregnant now, right? The patch isn't safe during pregnancy, so that would change my advice considerably.