Sea sickness patch

[KevinNM]

I tried the patch and lost my near vision. One of the possible side-effects is narrow-angle glaucoma. I couldn't see my gauges underwater or even read a menu on dry land. It was very scary. My near vision came back in a day or two after I removed the patch but I will never use it again. Be careful, some folks don't have side-effects, but when you do they can be nasty.

In addition to that uncommon side effect you can get screwed up vision from touching your eyes after putting on the patch without thoroughly washing your hands first.

 

[BreeAbyss]

I tried the patch once because I didn't know if I'd get seasick and didn't want to take a chance but it gave me such horrible dry mouth. It was torture, drinking water wouldn't help, I felt like I was choking on cotton balls. On scuba, the dry mouth was even worse, I couldn't stop coughing. I only did one dive with it then took it off. Turns out I don't get sea sick so that's good. I would never use the patch again even if I needed it.

 

[Kris Reynolds]

I get seasick a lot, so the Scopolamine patch was fantastic for me...... or so I thought. I used it on several dive trips, dives were great, I didn't notice any negative side effects.

After about a year of using it, I had at some point noticed that i couldn't read my computer well. I was using a very small wrist computer, so I figured that was just my eye sight getting worse. ( I wear contacts while diving). I bought a bigger computer, and all was good, until my next dive with the patch. I did some research. Many people experience blurred vision as a side effect, which is not a great one for diving.

The Scopolamine patch worked far better than any oral medication I have tried, but I suggest trying it a couple times in a safe environment before you go diving and see if you have any negative effects.

 

[lbussell]

Maybe I'll get a prescription for the patch now, way in advance of my 2 big dive trips. That way I can just try it out here with no risk of ruining a trip.

 

[kelemvor]

I have used it, but due to side effects I won't use it anymore. I had the blurred vision after a weekend of diving on the patch. It definitely WORKS for seasickness. However, after diving we were at a restaurant and I couldn't read the menu. I was like WTF is wrong with me? My buddy jokingly handed me his glasses which I put on to continue the joke. They worked! Thought I'd be heading home to an optometrist. Went home having taken off the patch and everything cleared up.

A pharmacist friend told me that scopalomine can lead to permanent problems, so I haven't used it again.

 

[KathyV]

...A pharmacist friend told me that scopalomine can lead to permanent problems, so I haven't used it again.

The loss of near vision that I experienced cleared up in a day or two after removing the patch, but I do have some permanent changes due to the patch. I developed "floaters" in my eyes from using the patch. They don't affect my vision but they can be annoying. I usually don't notice them except on bright, sunny days - but they're never going to go away.

 

[billt4sf]

My wife uses it because nothing else is sufficient, and I have used it on occasion without problems. She complains of dry mouth. Once she used it for a couple weeks, it was fine but then she got double vision which took half a day of quite a bit of discomfort to resolve. So she only takes it for no more than a week at a time now.

But nothing else works for her, so in that sense it's a godsend.

- Bill

 

[JulieM]

I have used the patch with success but with dry mouth and vision side effects. Our insurance does not cover the prescription. Last week the price was $20 per patch so not cheap.

 

[Manneca]

I am very sensitive to any sort of antihistamine which most of the OTC sea sickness meds are. I will sleep for hours (I once slept for 36 hours after taking a Dramamine). Scopolamine patches are the only things that work for me. I'd suggest, depending on how sea sick you get and how sensitive you are to antihistamines, you try a patch at home and see if you have a reaction. (My son gets blurred vision from the patches but wears them anyway.)

 

[BRT]

I am very sensitive to any sort of antihistamine which most of the OTC sea sickness meds are. I will sleep for hours (I once slept for 36 hours after taking a Dramamine). Scopolamine patches are the only things that work for me. I'd suggest, depending on how sea sick you get and how sensitive you are to antihistamines, you try a patch at home and see if you have a reaction. (My son gets blurred vision from the patches but wears them anyway.)

The patch is an antihistimine too