lazygeckos

Oh, My Tummy Hurts!

Added 2018-05-11 19:18:17 +0000 UTC

Being seasick has come up a lot lately through conversations with our Patrons. First off, seasickness has never been an issue for anyone in our family until recently. We’ve been in rough seas on our monohull with no problem. Rough seas on the cat, however, got me very sick.

I do ok with it until we start to hobby-horse which is usually when we are beating into the wind with the seas on a quarter or the beam (side). It's a strange motion on a cat. This motion isn’t fun for anyone and once I’m sick, I’m absolutely worthless when it comes to doing things on the boat. I lose all ability to perform. Not to mention that I feel the effects for days later. Jeremiah is pretty good at recognizing when he’s starting to feel some effects, as soon as he does he starts to stare at the horizon. It usually doesn’t turn into a problem for him although he’s only felt this way aboard the cat. He’s pretty much a machine lol…As all Marines are, he’d tell you!

After reading an article about different ways to beat it, I thought I could combine what I’ve done along with what I've read and share my tips with you!

The actual name for seasickness is Kinetosis and was referred to “plague of the sea” by Ancient Greeks. It’s been a problem dating back as far as the history books go, including for Christopher Columbus. We won’t let it stop us though! I’m not the only one that chooses to stay on the water even though I have this little problem!

Seasickness is actually pretty simple to understand. Your brain becomes confused when the balance-sensing system senses your body is moving but other parts of your body, like your eyes don’t sense the same movement.

My symptoms of seasickness include, dizziness, drowsiness and nausea. You can also have headaches, cold sweats, and vomiting. So lets figure out how we can kick the Plague of the Seas butt!

1. Make sure you are well-rested before you begin your passage. The lack of sleep will weaken your ability to fight off seasickness.

2. I’ve always heard that salted crackers and Ginger ale work wonders with seasickness. It is also smart to have a full stomach before the passage but not to stuff yourself. Don’t forget that hydration will help immensely too! Also, try to avoid any type of unhealthy foods that may be spicy or high in fat. Stick to only the healthy options until you at least drop that anchor!

3. I know this one will be hard but avoid alcohol at all costs even up to 24 hours prior to departure. I would say that this one is probably the hardest for me as sundowners are one of the best parts when it comes to cruising.

4. Patches and pills work great for some people. I usually try to avoid these types of remedies but that’s just me. I will say that I did try the patch once and it went terribly wrong when I put on my second patch. My vision went completely blurry, therefore I was no help to anyone as I could’t see anything clearly. It did clear up a couple hours after taking the patch off, thank goodness!

5. Recently the Captain of Calypso offered me Ginger which is known as the all natural way and it really did help! I’ve also heard that Vitamin C will reduce the effects of Seasickness.

6. Wristbands are supposed to work too, but they do not work for me.

7. The “Sleep it off” method is one of my all time favorites but then again if your needed for crew, others are forced to pick up your slack.

8. The "Ride it out" method is what I used to do...It pretty much sucks lol

9. I’ve heard that ear plugs work great but I haven’t tried this one yet. I think it will be on the list for sure!

10. I would avoid any type of task that causes you to focus on a stationary target like reading, computers or games. This seems to be hard for me since we like to keep LGS up to date on social media and I do a lot of crafts with Rhys while underway!

So there are a few ideas! Have you ever been seasick? Do you have another method to fight it? Comment below!

Love,

Brittany