I'm about to go on a 4 month patrol here in 3 weeks. I have had a bout of mild seasickness in the past and wouldn't like to repeat the occurance. I've heard of ginger, the pills/patch, and Relief Bands as some of the measures to prevent seasickeness. Are they any other PROVEN methods? More to the point, I've been looking into those Relief Bands (they're expensive so I want to do my reseach) as a viable option to the drowsiness inducing pills and patches. Are they as effective as claimed? I really want to be at top performance on the patrol, and spending my time over the rail (giving our nice white ships a green streak down the side) or drowsy in my rack from a medication induced slumber, is not the best way to kick tail and take names. Thanks for the help.

Matt

Set your Tivo to get one of the recent Mythbusters episodes! <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

My wife has used the elastic band with a small plastic bead method before. It really helped during her pregnancy when she had an upset stomach. She had them from our flight to Australia. The did help some on that as well. The meds work better, but obviously with side effects.

As I recall the set of 2 bands were at the pharmacy for like $12. Just elastic with a marble sewn into them. I can anecdotally recommend based on her experiences.

My experience with the elastic bands was it stopped the nausea but did not stop me from getting sick. This was in rough seas in Thunder Bay off of Lake Michigan.

20

25+ years ago I worked for an offshore construction company and once had to go out to a pipelay project north of the Yucatan—a six hour trip. On a flat sea with the only motions of the crewboat being its riding its own bow wave, I got queasy. So I sought someplace where I could see the horizon—this gave me relief. Later working for an oil company out of Venice, LA, taking the crewboat meant that weather was terrible and helicopters were not running. Then, I’d take Dramamine and try to go to sleep below near the center of gravity where the motions were the least. Bonine seems to work too.

Magellan travel sells a BioBand strap with a button imbedded in it-- http://www.magellans.com/store/Health___Hygiene___First_AidIF376?Args –13USD for a band and button. They say just one strap is needed and to switch it between wrists occasionally. The strap is basically the same as those that come with a SUUNTO® CLIPPER CLIP-ON COMPASS, LUMINOUS WHITE BEZEL except the buckle that the Velcro band slides through is plastic (nonmagnetic) on the compass while the BioBand’s buckle is metal. But, in the profession you have chosen, you may not want to advertise you problem. Why not just fasten a pressure button inside your watchband? I have not been fortunate enough to try the strap yet.

Also, I have read that there is not much magnesium in our diets. Magnesium has been absorbed from the soil by crops over the years and not replaced in fertilizers as it does not make crops larger, grow faster, or more attractive. Thus, you might want to take an Mg supplement (along with a multivitamin/mineral) with you. I believe that Vitamin (organic catalyst) B6 helps the body put the Mg where it is needed. I think B6/Mg is prescribed to expectant mothers: Is there a doctor in the house to correct me if I am wrong?

I know numerous folks who have had excellent results from the ReliefBand, including my wife. It isn't 100%, but in my experience it helps most. It's also the only one I've found that works after it starts. Some places offer a money back guarantee.

Well, as I recall, the only thing that worked for everyone was ginger.

Giner altoids, anyone?

The marijuana slang 'smoke a rope' came from sailing ship days when line was hemp and men were- seasick. The hemp line had mild levels of TCP and short nubs were smoked like a cigar for relief from nausea. I imagine this accounted for a few vessel's rigging coming up short and why we now chase down bales of the stuff. Seasickness is a fact of life and as much a right of passage as eating Purple K fire retardant after crossing the Equator and joining Neptune's realm. We used to take the FNGs ( fresh new guys in polite terms) out in the 'glory hole' of the old 36' MLB ( a trashcan sized cockpit at the bow used as a emergency station in tight manuevers) and bounce them around. There will be days underway when EVERYONE form the old Man to the newest apprentice seaman will be sick to some degree. I used the ginger Altoids, rebuilt my intestinal flora with cultured yogurt and SOS and kept a ready set of clean work dungarees <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I am definitely predisposed to sea sickness. An easy test is try to look down and read a magazine while someone else is driving your car and see if you get instantly queezy like me. Any how, I go out deep sea fishing all the time and I take over the counter BONINE tablets. I think you only have to take it every 12 hours. It works like a charm for me, I never get remotely queezy when I take it. I also take it before flying.

I was in the Coast Guard for 14 years and 10 of them afloat (7 in Alaska during which we took 2 trips to Hawaii) and never got sea sick.

One thing that I seen was the guys would wait until they were puking...it was too late then for most meds including the "silver bullet".

Get plenty of rest, go easy on greasy and spicy foods, avoid alcohol and keep hydrated before the trip and nibble on saltines.

Only one shipmate ever used the bands but it did work for him.

Ahh, everybody's favorite old salt. I was expecting your reply, even thought about PMing my question to you first, but I was also interested in the group consensus (I even got Doug to reply, that doesn't seem like it happens all too often).

Just to clarify, I don't get as sick as some people might have thought, I did toss my cookies (actually the "tasty" sausage and french toast that I so joyfully scarfed down before getting underway - bad idea) right after we got underway. There was only 3 ft seas that day, so I feel like a lightweight, but I guess I just had to "get it out of my system" because later in the week, with 12+ ft seas, I was fine while my shipmates were over the rail this time. I felt better as the week went on, but I'm just trying to avoid the experience altogether this time around.

Ginger sounds like a good, cheap way to go, so I'll probably try some of that. Maybe try a homemade pressure band. If it gets bad, I'll get a Relief Band at a port of call, but I'm betting that after that first week or so I'll have my sea legs.

Eating PKP when becoming a shellback? I bet that'll put some hair on your chest. Why not snort some Halon while you're at it? (not really, I'm merely joking around, I just can't believe that you ate PKP!!)

Thanks for the tips, keep 'em coming if you got 'em.

Matt