Fighting Motion Sickness When You Weren’t Prepared?
While many of us know how to prevent, minimalize, or eradicate the uncomfortable symptoms that accompany motion sickness, most of those tactics probably involve some kind of remedy or medication and sometimes travel pops up unexpectedly. How would you cope with motion sickness at a time when there is no remedy available? Fortunately, there are several things you can do to ease the discomfort if you’re ever in a pinch and find yourself without your usual treatment.
Try These to Alleviate Motion Sickness in a Pinch:
- If you are the passenger in a car, switch to the driver’s seat.
- If you are riding in the back seat, make the move to the front.
- Keep cool and fresh air flowing either via open windows or vents.
- Keep your eyes on the horizon. Avoid reading!
- Avoid eating/drinking foods that are spicy, heavy, rich in fat, alcoholic, and others that can make you feel over-full and uncomfortable.
- Switch to an airplane seat over the wing in the middle of the aircraft.
- Move to a lower-level area near the center of a ship when out at sea.
- On a train, move to a front-facing seat.
- If possible, lie down to help your sensory systems align.
- Talk yourself out of it – seriously! Naval cadets practice the self-fulfilling prophecy (SFP) in which their mindset helps them overcome sickness. Set your own expectations and say out loud that you are “not going to get sick this time.”
- Sit down with your head tucked between your knees, enabling more oxygen and blood to flow easily throughout your body.
- Breathe deeply, and rest your head back on a headrest.
- Try acupressure: Use your thumb to press your inner arm two inches down from the crease in your wrist. Hold for a few minutes while symptoms subside.
- Isolate yourself from anyone who may be talking about or suffering from motion sickness; being around them when they are ill can make you feel ill, too.
Although not all of these are going to work for every person, chances are excellent that at least one of them will help. When you’re in a tight spot and need to find relief fast, try the above solutions when you’ve no motion sickness remedy to turn to!
