I’ve suffered from motion sickness ever since I was a kid… I still remember trips to the cottage (over rough dirt roads!) that left me sick all afternoon. And I’ve tried plenty of different strategies to overcome it. Some worked better than others…
One of the first things I noticed, is that I’m more likely to get carsick in the back seat than in the front. Of course, I only discovered this once I was an adult. But I’ve used this strategy in recent years on the rare occasion when I end up in the back of a car. If I avoid looking out the side window at the landscape rushing by, I can usually avoid getting queasy. I often volunteer to ride in the middle (the least desirable seat!) so I can look out the front window. Or I simply try to look at my lap or the floor (boring but it helps!).
I’ve also learned that reading makes me nauseous in a car very quickly, even in the front seat. I can notice it starting even if I try to read the mail on the ride home from the community mailbox at the top of our road! So I avoid any activity in a car that requires close concentration, like reading or a complicated knitting project (although I can usually handle simple knitting). Fortunately, I can concentrate on driving without getting ill!
What causes it?
Motion sickness is thought to be caused by a conflict between the movement detected by the balance mechanism in the ear (the vestibular system) and the motion the eyes are seeing. For me, the worst conflict is scenery rushing past while my vestibular system is telling me I’m just bumping around a little from the vehicle vibrations. Luckily air travel doesn’t bother me, and only once did I have a problem on a boat, and that was caused by strong winds the last day of a cruise we took. I managed that by pretending I was being rocked to sleep…mind over matter!
Strong smells, like cigarette smoke or spicy/greasy foods, can make the nausea worse, too. I once “lost my lunch” when we pulled into the parking lot of a fast food joint, just at the thought of a greasy burger and fries…
Treatments
Of course, anti-nausea medications, such as Gravol (dimenhydrinate), Dramamine (meclizine) or Transderm-V (scopolamine) patches can help prevent the problem, but they cause side effects, like drowsiness and dry mouth. And they take a while to kick in, so are really most useful for a planned trip. Unfortunately, non-drowsy antihistamines and ginger are not considered as effective in preventing or treating motion sickness, although some references suggest ginger can be tried.
Fresh air can also be helpful. Opening the car window (or putting the top down!), using a fan or directing the air vent in a plane toward your face can sometimes be enough to reduce nausea, especially if you do this at the first sign of the problem and also stop any aggravating activity. Although not often available to you when travelling, peppermint and chamomile teas relax the digestive system and can reduce nausea as well.
Another strategy, is an accupressure device called “Sea Bands”. These are small elastic bands with a knob on the inside. The idea is to place the knob so it puts pressure on an accupressure point on the inside of the wrist. These have been clinically shown to reduce nausea. The point is located about 6-7 cm (2-2.5 inches) or 3 finger-widths above the inside fold of the wrist (palm up), between the two large tendons in the center of the arm. You can also just massage this accupressure point with the tip of your finger if you don’t have the bands.
A new preventive strategy…
This week I read about a small experiment where researchers found “visuospatial training”, manipulating 3D objects in one’s imagination for 15 minutes a day for 14 days, helped reduce motion sickness by over 50%. This involved identifying which 3D shapes matched when rotated, paper folding, and analyzing patterns.
The researchers got the idea for the study from previous research that had noted a link between visuospatial abilities and motion sickness. This research also found that males are less likely to have motion sickness than females and, correspondingly, also tend to have better visuospatial abilities than women.
My 3D talents are close to zero… I was hopeless at trying to solve the Rubic’s Cube puzzle, and I remember being totally frustrated by trying to print and assemble a multi-page folded pamphlet that my pharmacy student was able to whip up in no time! So, this connection makes sense to me…
I also like the possibility that this might permanently reduce the risk of nausea when travelling, as you never know when motion sickness can strike. With the development of self-driving cars, researchers suggest the technique may become more useful in the future. They envision it being used before test-driving a new autonomous vehicle, or by the navy or cruise passengers.
Brain training games are available on Google Play or Apple App stores. I’ve decided to try out one called Train your Brain—Visuospatial Games and another called Mental Rotation looks good too. I’ll be interested to see if playing the games helps to make my next road trip more pleasant!
Surprisingly, my first game session left me feeling a little disoriented, almost queasy. It seems likely to me that 3D games and motion sickness must use the same area of the brain. Exercising this area by playing a video game probably helps to develop improved function, resulting in less chance of motion sickness. Cool. Isn’t the brain fascinating?
Let me know in the comments if you try this technique or any of the above ones… and whether any of them work for you…
References:
Prevention and Treatment of Motion Sickness – American Family Physician
Motion sickness: First aid – Mayo Clinic
Top 16 Ways to Get Rid of Nausea – Healthline
Can we ease motion sickness through mental training? – Medical News Today
Worksheet packet – Cognitive Therapy Worksheets for Visual & Spatial skills
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