6 Treatments for travel sickness
All travel involves motion. Do something as soon as you feel queasy.
Whether you travel by car, plane, boat or train, you can experience motion sickness. This feeling of being unwell is caused by the relationship between movement, balance and your inner ear.
Typically, motion sickness is caused by the mixed messages received by your brain. If you cannot feel the motion that you can see, or cannot see the motion that your body is feeling, you will experience uneasiness, sweats and dizziness. Nausea and vomiting are also common reactions, as are headaches and a general fatigue. The cure is obvious but not always practicable: stop moving. But, there are also other remedies that might ensure that you have a pleasant journey whilst moving in the right direction.
6 treatments for travel sickness
- Minimise your exposure to motion. The middle seats in a plane, over the wings, are the most stable. In a ship, the lower level cabins near the centre are the best for preventing sea sickness.
- Gaze at a fixed point or look at the horizon.
- Move to a source of fresh air and keep busy. On a boat, sit on deck. On a plane, turn the air vents onto your face.
- Isolate yourself from others who might be talking about sea sickness or are sick.
- Take medication such as Dramamine or Antivert. However, these drugs sometimes cause drowsiness.
- Suck a ginger (zingiber) sweet or chew a piece of the root.
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H.E.A.T. tip: Rather than breathing fast and with shallow breaths, maintain a regular slow and deep breathing rythm.