PaulChristenson
Contributor
H2Andy:
Give the Ginger pills a try...Mythbusters did
Paul in VT
Dramamine
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Give the Ginger pills a try...Mythbusters did
Paul in VT
Personally I've found shore dives to be a sure cure for seasickness ... at least 95% of the time 
While this may not apply to the original poster (it may be overkill, since over the counter meds will probably help), other divers should be aware that scopalamine also comes in pills as well as patches. The pills are sold under the name Scopace and last 8 hours rather than the 3 days per patch. You obviously don't have to worry about a pill coming off, either.
I'd never been seasick except during exceptionally high seas, but had my doctor prescribe Scopace for me before my first liveaboard. I also took some Ginger Chews with me just in case. Within two hours of casting off, I was supremely nauseous, despite calm seas - perhaps because we were sailing, rather than motoring - who knows? I tried eating Ginger Chew after Ginger Chew for about 2 hours, then went ahead and did my first dive - the nausea went away IMMEDIATELY on hitting the water - like magic! However, once I reboarded the boat after the dive, it also came back like magic.
I decided to take the Scopace right then and there and while it took about an hour and a half to kick in over the nausea, it worked beautifully. I took it regularly every 8 hours for the next 3 days and never suffered again. My only side effect was dry mouth, which I combatted by drinking lots of water - not a bad thing when diving anyway
. By day 4 (when I forgot to take it), I didn't need it anymore - I'd apparently gotten my "sealegs" and was fine.
I'm going on another liveaboard in a few weeks and will start my Scopace prior to boarding so I don't suffer at all - just in case. With Scopace pills versus the patch, I can vary my dose and quit when I want to, rather than being tied to 3 days at a time and a fixed dosage.
Just another option for those of you who suffer on boats...
I'd never been seasick except during exceptionally high seas, but had my doctor prescribe Scopace for me before my first liveaboard. I also took some Ginger Chews with me just in case. Within two hours of casting off, I was supremely nauseous, despite calm seas - perhaps because we were sailing, rather than motoring - who knows? I tried eating Ginger Chew after Ginger Chew for about 2 hours, then went ahead and did my first dive - the nausea went away IMMEDIATELY on hitting the water - like magic! However, once I reboarded the boat after the dive, it also came back like magic.
I decided to take the Scopace right then and there and while it took about an hour and a half to kick in over the nausea, it worked beautifully. I took it regularly every 8 hours for the next 3 days and never suffered again. My only side effect was dry mouth, which I combatted by drinking lots of water - not a bad thing when diving anyway
. By day 4 (when I forgot to take it), I didn't need it anymore - I'd apparently gotten my "sealegs" and was fine.I'm going on another liveaboard in a few weeks and will start my Scopace prior to boarding so I don't suffer at all - just in case. With Scopace pills versus the patch, I can vary my dose and quit when I want to, rather than being tied to 3 days at a time and a fixed dosage.
Just another option for those of you who suffer on boats...
Diveral
Contributor
Used to take the original dramamine. I didn't like the drowsiness and side-effects. Went to the transderm scop patches. They worked well, the main side effect was dry-mouth. I did notice that if I wore the patch on a deep dive that I got a high pitched whine in my ears. If I removed the patch before the dive this didn't happen. Strange.
Ginger ale and ginger snaps wook pretty well to settle my stomach. My wife swears by raw lemons with salt. I've never tried Bonine or Dramamine-ND. I may give them a try on my next boat charter.
Ginger ale and ginger snaps wook pretty well to settle my stomach. My wife swears by raw lemons with salt. I've never tried Bonine or Dramamine-ND. I may give them a try on my next boat charter.
Diveral:
If you use limes instead, you are ready for the post dive tequilla shots!
Fred R.
Contributor
You didn't say, but if you are diving outside of the US, there is a truly effective, low side effect anti-seasickness medicine sold under the brand name of Stugeron Forte.
The active principle is a drug called cinnarazine. While it comes in many stregnths, the effective dose for sea sickness is 15-20 mgs. Since it only is available locally to me in 75 mg tablets, they need to be quarted. One quarter the night before, one quarter the morning of, and keep that up for the trip.
Stugeron Forte is available over-the-counter in many countries, from pharmacists in others and by doctor's prescription in a few. It is NOT available in the US at all.
For those into pharmacologics, cinnarazine is a calcium channel blocker, it does not cause drowsiness, and does not interfere with the calcium channels that heart meds do. It works in a completely different manner than Dramamine, Triptone, and Bonine, affecting the inner ear, where sea sickness starts, instead of the smooth muscles of the gut, where sea sickness progresses.
FWIW, I would never take scopolomine, do a search for it combined with 'witchcraft', or 'toxin' or 'poisonous plants'. It is a tricky medication at best, and it is small wonder that someone reported seeing devil's horns on someone at a party. Scopolomine is one of three ingredients reportedly used by medieval witches to attain 'Black Mass'.
The active principle is a drug called cinnarazine. While it comes in many stregnths, the effective dose for sea sickness is 15-20 mgs. Since it only is available locally to me in 75 mg tablets, they need to be quarted. One quarter the night before, one quarter the morning of, and keep that up for the trip.
Stugeron Forte is available over-the-counter in many countries, from pharmacists in others and by doctor's prescription in a few. It is NOT available in the US at all.
For those into pharmacologics, cinnarazine is a calcium channel blocker, it does not cause drowsiness, and does not interfere with the calcium channels that heart meds do. It works in a completely different manner than Dramamine, Triptone, and Bonine, affecting the inner ear, where sea sickness starts, instead of the smooth muscles of the gut, where sea sickness progresses.
FWIW, I would never take scopolomine, do a search for it combined with 'witchcraft', or 'toxin' or 'poisonous plants'. It is a tricky medication at best, and it is small wonder that someone reported seeing devil's horns on someone at a party. Scopolomine is one of three ingredients reportedly used by medieval witches to attain 'Black Mass'.
Steve Egner
Contributor
Those who are using scopalamine to combat motion sickness might be interested in an article by Michel Tagliati, M.D., appearing in the most recent issue of Wreck Diving Magazine, 2005 Winter Issue number 8.
He experienced "hallucinations, fear, and stress" while diving the von Steuben in the baltic sea, a wreck resting on a 236' bottom with her hull at 164'.
In a separate article, "Medical observation using the transdermal patch at depth",
he states:
I realize that few of us here, expressing our concerns about motion sickness remedies, will be doing 70 M penetration dives on trimix. Still, it could be of concern to anyone taking the drug.
I'm prone to motion sickness, but found that Dramamine and Bonine made me drowsy, and Scopalamine left me downright foggy. I abandoned all of those treatments in favor of Ginger, which has no apparent side effects (for me). With ten boat dives on a recent trip to Oahu, I had no inkling of discomfort, and dove with full alertness. I recounted my experience here: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=124436
It seems that a lot of folks have found success with this herb.
Safe diving!
Steve
He experienced "hallucinations, fear, and stress" while diving the von Steuben in the baltic sea, a wreck resting on a 236' bottom with her hull at 164'.
In a separate article, "Medical observation using the transdermal patch at depth",
he states:
I realize that few of us here, expressing our concerns about motion sickness remedies, will be doing 70 M penetration dives on trimix. Still, it could be of concern to anyone taking the drug.
I'm prone to motion sickness, but found that Dramamine and Bonine made me drowsy, and Scopalamine left me downright foggy. I abandoned all of those treatments in favor of Ginger, which has no apparent side effects (for me). With ten boat dives on a recent trip to Oahu, I had no inkling of discomfort, and dove with full alertness. I recounted my experience here: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=124436
It seems that a lot of folks have found success with this herb.
Safe diving!
Steve
Diveral
Contributor
scubapolly:
Now I've got to clean the milk out of my keyboard :lol2:
Diveral
Contributor
Steve Egner:
That might explain the high pitched whine in my ears at deeper depths when I was using transderm-scop. I never went below 120' on any of the trips wheree I used it.
Yes, ginger works. But I never had problems with any other motion sickness medicaments and to this day I never dove without using one first. I easily get sick while at the sea and have to use them.
If I ever felt sleepy it's probably because I wasn't getting enough sleep the night before. I fix that with some coke, tea or coffee - anything with the caffeine in it.
And I've also noticed that I only need the medicine to help me with the initial adjustment to the boat rocking. I get used to it and avoid overuse of the stuff. Yet, rough seas might make me take some extra dosage.
Better to be safe than sorry. Sea sickness can ruin a perfect day of diving.
If I ever felt sleepy it's probably because I wasn't getting enough sleep the night before. I fix that with some coke, tea or coffee - anything with the caffeine in it.
And I've also noticed that I only need the medicine to help me with the initial adjustment to the boat rocking. I get used to it and avoid overuse of the stuff. Yet, rough seas might make me take some extra dosage.
Better to be safe than sorry. Sea sickness can ruin a perfect day of diving.
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