Seasickness

[Toxman]

Hi all. I'm a very new diver, having done my Open Water cert and a Club Dive. Out of the five dives I have done, two have ended in seasickness and vomiting. I really enjoy my time while I'm not sick. I'm keen to hear what advice you have for preventing and dealing with seasickness.

[mark01]

Are you becoming ill while on a boat or while diving?

[buddhasummer]

Im sorry if this questions sounds stupid but do you mean you got seasick from the diving or a boat ride? I've spent a bit of time in Perth, what LDS do you dive with?

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Are you becoming ill while on a boat or while diving?

Snap...

[ScubaTodd77]

I get the pukes everytime. Tried everything over the counter, herbs like ginger etc, wrist bands at pressure points n still turned green n puked. Then I got the prescription patches that you stick behind yer ears. They 100 percent work...at a price. They make me feel very drugged and drowsey. I've since decided to just get sick on the boat and then once in the water hang on the line till I feel better and enjoy me dive. The ride back is hell, but I'd rather be sea sick on the boat and avoid the effects of Scopolamine on top of being narced at depth. It may affect other people differently though. My tips for being sick on the ride out and back is to keep your face in the wind...but be planning a route to puke overboard. Also listen to the conversations going on between the other divers...distract from the sick feeling is a key. It may save you a few miles before the hurling begins :)

[Toxman]

Are you becoming ill while on a boat or while diving?

In both cases, they were shore dives and occurred at the end of the dive. In the latter case, I noticed the swell as we were heading back and the condition was exacerbated by looking down at my computer (the DM I was buddied with suggested to feed the hose through the inside of my cumberbund clip on my BC to stop it dragging through silt - a good idea, but I found it hard to see easily). I was also having some buoyancy issues, which wouldn't have helped.

I could feel it coming on, so signaled to surface, surfaced, inflated BC and hurled. I feel better after, but feel wiped out for the afternoon. I took a TravelCalm before the dive, but took it late and only took one.

I'm hoping that you guys say - it will pass, so stick with it. :S

[blue steal]

At the DAN website under articles, there are 2 good articles on motion sickness.
They may offer up some help.

[Toxman]

At the DAN website under articles, there are 2 good articles on motion sickness.
They may offer up some help.

Thanks.

Here's the link for those finding this topic via Search.

http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/articles/article.asp?articleid=57

[Toxman]

And the other one...

http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/articles/article.asp?articleid=60

[Maredsous]

This product has worked great for me. I take one tablet about an hour before the first dive; lasts all day. Haven't been sick since.

BonineŽ | Travel WellŽ (http://www.bonine.com/)

[Dsix36]

I use triptone.

If I know the seea will be rough - I take 2 the night before as I go to bed and another one when I get up in the morning.

If the water will be calm - I just take one the nighe before.

I can still get a little quesy if it takes to long to get in the water at the dive site, but I have not hurled yet.

[SheilaRee]

Hi Toxman, I've used everything. I'm the person who gets motion sick in a car, fair rides, snorkeling from the beach...you get the picture. So the Scopolamine patches are the only thing that's worked for me. Be sure to apply the patch a day or so before diving. That works for me.

[RonFrank]

There are lots of sea sickness remedies but most people that get seasick take prescription drugs. I know my father does as its the only thing that works well. I went fishing a while back and 50% of the folks on the boat got sick. A drug to prevent that is worth gold! :blinking:

[SheilaRee]

The patches are prescription drugs here in the U.S. I'm not sure about other countries but your doc shouldn't mind giving you one.

[windapp]

I would avoid shore diving in surge if I was you. Diving should be fun, not miserable. I am personally willing to suffer a little sea sickness to get to a dive site but I wouldn't want to dive sick. Also, remember that you can throw up through your regulator. Just switch to your octo and shake the chunks out when you are done.

[PanoramaDivers]

Very funny windapp :)
I would recommend you to use a tablet called dramenex. very efficient and non drowsy effect. maybe not the easiest to get your hands on but very efficient.

[Toxman]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have 5 dives planned for this weekend, so will let you know how I fare.

[diverzach]

@toxman

My first dive from a 40 ft boat in 6ft seas was a failure because of sea sickness, and this was my first time. The first problem was that the ocean was way too rough. Only go in calmer conditions with good visibility. Don't fiddle with your equipment at the last minute whether on a boat or not. Don't get hot. Be well hydrated

And be relaxed. Anxiety over the dive will make sea sickness worse. My second trip was successful but I still felt sick under water the first dive and it was because I was so nervous. By dive 4 the same day, my air consumption was halved, I felt calm, and the nausea disappeared.

[nimoh]

on your shore dives, you might try swimming along the bottom instead of surface swimming if the dive spot isn't too far away. This might help by reducing the amount of time you spend going up and down in the surge (assuming there is less action at the bottom)

[freewillie]

Over Memorial Day my daughter and I took a boat out of Dana Point. We had been on boats before and never had any problems. Well, the seas had some swells and chop and we both got a little queasy by the time we reached the dive site. We tried to get into our gear as quick as possible and hoped the nausea would improve once in the water. It didn't. I actually fed the fishes for the first time ever.

Non-prescription recommendations.
1.) ginger. usually raw root itself. some like to smell the ginger, others like to chew on it. my daughter sipped ginger ale on the boat.
2.) Bonine/Dramamine. over the counter motion sick pills available without a prescription. they are antihistamines and help with the sensation of motion sickness. best taken 30-60 minutes prior to travel. most common side effect is sleepiness and sedation especially with higher doses.
3.) pressure band wrist. they use gentle compression and have a hard plastic area designed to stimulate what is actually an acupuncture site used to treat nausea.

Prescriptions
1.) Scopolamine. is available in both patches and tablets. can cause dry mouth and blurry vision. you should definitely try one before diving to see how the med affects you and what the side effects are.
2.) Promethazine (also know as Phenergan and used in cough meds). in studies not as effective as scopolamine but better than meclizine(Bonine)

Also, fixing your gaze on fixed point like the horizon helps as well. Your eyes are more important to your sense of balance than you think. Ever been in the car and feel like it moves only to discover the car next to you moved? By looking at non-moving point like the horizon helps minimize the sensations.

[golfette44]

My partner and also get seasick quite easily and we've learned through the years what works for us. We take one tablet of scopolamine at bedtime and another when we wake up. If you are doing three or more dives and there are waves or strong current then you might take one tablet in the afternoon. I usually only take one at night and one the next morning and I'm fine. It's having the drug in your system at all times that helps us. You know your body better than anyone. Try the tablets and see how you feel with them. If it works then you have a plan for your next dives. Good luck.

[OzGriffo]

Timely thread. I've never really suffered from sea sickness. Maybe a little bit quesy, but that's it. Last night I got violently sea sick. I had no idea it was so incapacitating. I actually can't believe that people would put up with that on a regular basis to dive.

Lots of ideas in this thread to try out today !


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[mark01]

Here's another point regarding seasickness I just learned...if you wear bifocals or especially trifocals, take them off when you're on the boat. The pitch and roll has your eyes continually trying to focus which is not a good thing if you're prone to motion sickness. I've also taken to hanging out at the stern and certainly out of the diesel fumes. The other points mention in response posts are good advice as well.

[Toxman]

As an interesting aside for the guys, my Mrs tells me that seasickness feels just like morning sickness. Respect for the mums out there. I couldn't imagine 3+ months of feeling like that!

[DiverGirl1972]

+1 for Bonine. I take two the night before and then another two in the morning as soon as I get up. If I'm on a liveaboard, I then take one at each meal period for "maintenance" until the end of the trip. For me, one does not last the whole day. Fortunately, it doesn't make me drowsy. My first boat trip was to Venice, FL, for shark tooth diving. I got sick before the first dive of the day and was stuck on the water for 8 hours or so while everyone else went diving. The dives were shallow and lonnnnnng. Painful.

The good news is, as soon as you get back on terra firma, the nausea goes away :D

[chipb]

Toxman,
I have trouble on the boat, but once in the water, no problem. The Scop patch works well, but the side effects are pretty bad (very dry mouth and dilated pupils). The good thing is you can't puke them up like pills. Try the regular dramamine and the less dowsy fomula dramamine which is meclizine. I use the later and it works great for me. My wife tried it and it put here to sleep. So try them around the house to see how they effect you.
Good luck. Don't give up yet.

Chipb

[RJP]

I'm keen to hear what advice you have for dealing with seasickness.

Eat bananas for breakfast.

Won't do much for seasickness... but they are the only food that tastes the same coming up as they did going down.

[thumbsup!]

[katepnatl]

I have been on boats where half the occupants were green and puking left right and center and I have never had a problem.

BUT - I have always preventatively taken one Meclizine the night before (if I remembered), one the morning when I got up, and another as the boat was leaving. LIveaboards, always take it the first day or two, then no need. Two weeks ago, going offshore in NC, was the first time I forgot to take it, and coincidentally it was also the first time I spent the better part of the boat ride out struggling not to regurgitate. I highly recommend the preventative doses.

If I am not mistaken, Meclizine contains the same active ingredients as Bonine for much less $$. At Walmart, you can get 50 25mg tablets for about $6 - you have to ask the pharmacist for it, though.

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Eat bananas for breakfast.

Won't do much for seasickness... but they are the only food that tastes the same coming up as they did going down.

[thumbsup!]

Eat them before you get on, though! Most of the captains I know won't let you bring bananas ON the boat!

[nimoh]

I was on a cattle boat in Australia (about 30 divers, 30 snorkelers), and it was a little cool on the ride home, so everybody was sitting inside, then one person got sick and started a chain reaction. Needless to say, I spent the rest of the ride home toughing it out in the cold. The rear of the boat was a little dangerous though, since every few minutes someone would come running out, not quite make it to the railing and throw up all over the deck. So I spend the 45 minute ride back topside in the wind, but was dressed for it.

One thing I like to do when I'm feeling queazy is to get outside (or at least by a window) and stare at the horizon. These people that were huddle up inside were not doing themselves any favors sitting inside rolling with the waves. I also find that there is a point, where you realize that vomiting is inevitable, and just a matter of time, in which case you need to be outside on the leeward side.

[Toxman]

eat bananas for breakfast.

Won't do much for seasickness... But they are the only food that tastes the same coming up as they did going down.

[thumbsup!]

lol!!

[HenrikBP]

Being seasick is absolutely miserable.

I've tried Bonine and Scopolamine tablets. For me, both seem to have *some* effect, but not a complete cure. If the swells are both long and high, I still get seasick.

If you try Scopolamine either patch or tablets, be sure to test on land first, at a time where you don't need to do something or go anywhere. It's pretty odd feeling: dry mouth, a bit woozy feeling, sometimes feels like my eyes don't quite follow when I turn my head. It gets better after a bit though. As others have mentioned, I take one tablet the night before and one in the morning, and on long days another tablet mid-day.

[Toxman]

AOW completed and didn't get sick. Took 2 travelcalm in the morning, 1 in the afternoon and 1 for the night dive. The only issue was a dry mouth, but compared to the alternative, I'll take the dry mouth. One of the guys n the course who *never* gets sick, had to surface, feed the fish and return to the boat.

Also, a girl on the course told me she always gets sick. She had wristbands and said she was fine.

Diving is much more fun without the spectre of getting seasick.

[acteg]

I feel your pain. I went diving last weekend on Friday and Saturday and puked both times. Seas were rough though. If seas are calm I am usually fine. I've tried dramamine, bonine, and the wrist bands with no effect.

Getting sea sick is the worst. It is completely incapacitating. I can't even keep my eyes open once I get sick, and I stay sick, even after puking.

I've almost accepted the fact that I will get sick no matter what. Additionally, the side effects of dramanine, etc are almost as bad as the sea sickness. I just need to get used to being on a boat I think.

[Sheri SGR]

There is something called the relief band, it is like the seasickness wristbands excepts it is battery operated and taps on your pressure point. You can adjust the level higher or lower my dive buddy swearsby it. you can use Apollo bio seals to keep dry before, during and after dives.