# Should seasickness keep me away from becoming a Cruiser?



## Sailmachine (Jul 29, 2009)

I have made up my mind that I am going to sell the house and buy a boat. My plan is to spend the next year looking for a boat and getting the house ready for sale. But I get seasick uke . Should this keep me away from this dream.

Pete


----------



## Pamlicotraveler (Aug 13, 2006)

Stay off of boats.


----------



## St Anna (Mar 15, 2003)

Hiya Sailmachine,
Great decision to go cruising. A few questions for you. How seasick do you get. Many people feel sick for just a few days and then magically, they feel OK. Others are like death warmed up. Where do you fit in?

If someone could feel a bit off, I give them a job to do - like steering or 'on watch'. Having some responsibility often means they havent got time to be sick. This would be you if you are the skipper - plenty of responsibility = no time to be sick.

Also if you know you are prone to seasickness, why sell the house - you may need a place to go back to?? 

Anyway, just my 2cents worth.
Cheers


----------



## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

No, it probably should not keep you away from your dream.. Almost all of us get seasick at times. There are great meds for this. Unfortunately the best are not available in the US. Many people experience sickness in the first few days but get sealegs after a few days at sea. Others are not so lucky. 

If you are incurable you might experiment with where you choose to cruise. There are cruising grounds whose sea states are mild enough where seasickness is less likely to occur. 

One more suggestion: 1. There are people who are only affected by rapid in changes in motion. 2. There are people who are only affected by large angular changes in motion. 3. And there are people affected by both. It would be helpful if you tried to figure out which of these you were and if you are type 1 or 2, then I would try to pick a boat whose motion suits your tendancies. People who are type 1 do best with traditional designs and only very specific modern designs. People of type 2 do best with the better motioned modern designs (meaning not just any modern boat) and tend to do very poorly with traditional designs. For type 3 there is only drugs....

Jeff


----------



## tommays (Sep 9, 2008)

Well

Everbody is different i get the MOST seasick cleaning the bottom with a mask and fins as being under the boat upside down causes some issue BUt i tend to fine on the rail in a big seas and wind


----------



## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Pete, some people acclimate, some people can make do with drugs. Others never do and, hey, I'll never be an NBA star either, I can't shoot hoops.

The best thing you can do is to figure out how to start sailing regularly, to give your body a shot at getting used to it. And to look into the causes and remedies for seasickness, to minimize the effects on you. Plenty of threads on the web about that. No booze, no smoking, no greasy foods, good night sleep, general good physical shape before you go, all contribute to being more resistant to seasickness starting. A hangover and a good whiff of diesel fumes can set many folks off in no time at all.

Then there's the meds. There's a long long list of meds and gizmos, most work with different success on different people. You need to go down the list, starting with the simple ones and working your way into the rx-only ones, to see what works for you. The best way to do that is to start by taking one--and only one--at home on the weekend, see if it knocks you out or there are any adverse effects. Once you know how it feels to simply USE the med, you can use it on the boat and you don't have to worry about whether you are also imagining effects from the drugs.

Only one way to find out if you can live the dream: Step up and try it!


----------



## scottyt (Jul 19, 2008)

i say go get a boat for a few days to see if it wears off.

i am lucky i dont get seasick


----------



## zeehag (Nov 16, 2008)

try ginger pills or ginger root tea--with honey---and those wrist bands. i havent ever in my life gotten seasick--so i have no mercy or sympathy--dunno the feeling of seasick unless i take vicodin --then i get something like seasickness--LOL----but the ginger tea should help and ginger snaps --some swear by ginger pills....some wear wrist bands and feel fine...gooood luck.....


----------



## RealityCheck (Jun 2, 2007)

St Anna said:


> Hiya Sailmachine,
> Great decision to go cruising. A few questions for you. How seasick do you get. Many people feel sick for just a few days and then magically, they feel OK. Others are like death warmed up. Where do you fit in?
> 
> If someone could feel a bit off, I give them a job to do - like steering or 'on watch'. Having some responsibility often means they havent got time to be sick. This would be you if you are the skipper - plenty of responsibility = no time to be sick.
> ...


Good Advise...

I have also found that when people first start getting sea sick do much better when becoming actively involved in the boat such as at the helm. It seems to me that the hand / eye/ ear work better with each other when at the wheel. You get feedback and I think that helps your systems counter the initial ear problems that result in sickness. If an anchor take a dip and cool the body off, don't get too physical swimming just float a bit.

I do not care for drugs except for short term use in hard cases. The First Day and Night Out are OK to have newer or unsure people on some form of sea sickness prevention medication. However most will have side effects such as being sleepy and not as alert. Always be a LERT! Dry mouth is another problem common with many medications.

Ginger in many forms appears to work well. I particularly like Ginger Beer nice and cold. Much better than Ginger ale or cookies. I know many who take Ginger tablets but they seem to take too long to work effectively.

It is almost impossible to help sea sickness once it passes a certain point.... best to put on a harness and barf over the sides until your tummy is empty rinse mouth & have a cracker and do not drink or eat for a few hours.

If I'm having to so something below with the engines while underway in rough seas I start getting a bit weesey particularly when it is hot. Getting back up to where wind can cool me and taking a moment allows it to pass quickly for me.

If your on a Catamaran and get sick... well just die... you deserve it!:laugher


----------



## peikenberry (Apr 26, 2000)

So far all good advice. Very few people suffer from chronic seasickness, which is being sick all the time when underway. I am retired Coast Guard. I spent about 4 years of my career on ships and I was only seasick for the first few days, the first time we went to sea. I haven't been seasick since. But I served with a Captain, my C.O., on a ship who was chronically seasick. He had 34 years of sea time. So I suppose we can all live through it. 

There are meds and other ways of dealing with it as stated. Buy the boat and go have a good time.


----------



## Sailmachine (Jul 29, 2009)

I sail a Venture 22 now and do fine. I also do fine on small power boats. But that's all inshore. My last big boat experience was a ferry ride at Cape May. I did not get sick but had felt better. When I was younger I hated to ride in the back seat of a car, and a whale watching trip when I was 7 or 8 did not go to well. I don't get on fair rides. Worst case it would limit me to coastal cruising.


----------



## jacktarmagazine (Aug 18, 2009)

I've been working/living/sailing on boats for 13 years and was always seasick for the first three days of any rough water until 2005, when I began taking meclizine. Sometimes being sick offshore makes you feel like it'd be better to just die, but then you eat, barf, and get over it. A lot of the folks who say they never get seasick actually feel queasy but never barf. I'm glad I can get it out of my system and move on. It's important to just keep eating and drinking, even if it seems like a waste. Pedialyte, sports gels, and dried meat that you can suck on and eventually chew always helps. Sublingual vitamins help as well. My friends say the prescription Promethlizine is now the drug of choice.


----------



## zeehag (Nov 16, 2008)

promethezine is phenergan and is a med that will make you drowsy----is also used with analgesics like demerol to potentiate them into working better ---and with some pre-op meds for surgery---makes pain meds "better" and keeps nausea down.....ginger is good--half strength gatorade makes the hydration not become water intoxication, which is even worse for you than seasickness---need to stay hydrated so the stomach doesnt compound the sickness---dehydration causes nausea and vomiting----is a difficult combination to really fix well..need the fluids and the electrolytes---pedialyte is a good choice--if get cramping from drinking it--half strength it also-can half strength it with juice--is good that way--kids even drink that combo!!-will not cramp you as much...have fun and good luck.....


----------



## Paul_L (Sep 16, 2004)

This is why God created Stugeron. It makes a world of difference for me offshore.

Paul L


----------



## thesnort (Jun 2, 2007)

> i am lucky i dont get seasick


I thought I was immune too.... until that one really big storm....going up, coming down, up, down, horizon up there, horizon down there.....looked at my face in the mirror and noticed I had a green complexion. The rest is history.


----------



## knothead (Apr 9, 2003)

Pamlicotraveler said:


> Stay off of boats.


Why would you say that? Are you just kidding?

Pete, 
There is no way that seasickness should keep you from cruising if that's your dream. 
I get car sick, air sick and sea sick. I've even gotten queasy while working on a boat tied up to a dock in the intracoastal on a windy day. 
I have also been sailing since I was a child and never plan to stop. 
There are all sorts of remedies. You will find the one that works best for you and there ya go. Problem solved. 
If you are doing a crossing or a long passage, even the worst afflicted, like myself, will gain their sea legs in three or four day and then you can stop the meds. 
Don't let anyone tell you that you shouldn't sail because you get sick.


----------



## peikenberry (Apr 26, 2000)

Hey, get one of those transderm patches you stick behind your ear and go sailing.


----------



## XTR (Feb 28, 2007)

As some have said earlier, getting seasick can be temporary. I've been really sick 3 times, sub on a 12 hour surface transit out of Hong Kong in a typhoon (very happy to get to the dive point), three day ride on a sea going tug in the South China Sea from PI to Hong Kong with 20ft+ seas on the Stbd Bow the whole way. Was bad. First day of a delivery from USVI to the US (Hang over + greasy berakfast burrito + 20kt winds and a confused choppy swell=bad, very bad)

In none of those cases did I use meds before I got sick. The scop patches I had in my bag would have been a good idea for the USVI trip. Even the capt. who had just come off of a couple of weeks of chartering was feeling pretty bad that day. I finally got a nap and felt better quickly. 

You really need to get out and see what makes you sick and how long it lasts, do you recover or are you sick for days on end. If you are one of those who never recovers you may have a problem, but then again, Lyn Pardey indicates that she hasn't got the strongest stomach on the ocean and she's lived out there for decades.


----------



## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Stugeron works just like a placebo on me: Not at all. And it is not legal for sale or use in the US. Phenergan was used by NASA at one time in their "cocktail" for astronauts. Scope patches work great for most folks--as do the scope pills, which have quietly been back on the market for at least 10 years now. But like any heavy duty drug, there's a strong list of serious possible side effects. And *none* of the meds works well for more than 1/3 of the people that try them. Not my opinion--NASA's extensive and repeated test results. For them, motion sickness is quite literally a killer, they've done a lot of investigation into it.


----------



## casioqv (Jun 15, 2009)

Pete,

How much sailing experience do you have? Seasickness seems to affect people differently, but I have found that I get seasick really quickly on a boat that is adrift or under motor power, but a boat making good headway under sail has a different type of motion that doesn't make me sick, even in strong winds/waves. Also, being at the helm will prevent me from getting seasick.


----------



## LWinters (Nov 16, 2006)

Do NOT let anyone tell you you shouldn't go sailing because you get seasick. As someone else said I also get horribly seasick, car sick, and any other kind of motion sickness. Always hated roller coasters. When I started my circumnavigation I heaved my guts over the side for 48 hours and hated every second of it. By day three I started feeling human, and by day four felt like a rock star.

Seasickness is manageable in every one of it's forms through general preventative measures to stronger medications. You can find the balance that works for you. The best news is that 8 months into my cruise I haven't been seasick for five months and have been in large seas. You will adapt especially if you go out for an extended period of time.

The best and most comprehensive plan for addressing seasickness comes from John Mahina and can be found here: Mahina Expedition - Offshore Cruising Instruction If you follow his advise I am positive you can go cruising if you want too. Considering all the challenges to be met before cutting the dock lines seasickness is pretty near the bottom of the list. Fair winds.

Lee


----------



## jacktarmagazine (Aug 18, 2009)

I just spent 3 months sailing, motoring and bobbing down the West Coast between Seattle and Cabo. I've honed my anti-seasickness method and tried it out on others successfully:
1/2 pill meclizine (aka bonine) 2 days prior to departure
1/2 pill in the AM 1 day prior
1/2 pill the night before
and then 1/2 pill in the morning and again at night for the first three days of your voyage, UNLESS... your voyage has been very calm, and in those first three days you started to get rough weather. In that case, keep taking it until the rough weather passes. You will likely be "acclimated" for the next bout of rough weather and not need the drug. 

Meclizine has a strange way of making me drowsy about 4 hours after I take a whole pill. The 1/2 pill dose solves this altogether. 

And remember that most "ginger ale" has no ginger in it at all. READ the labels! Reeds Extra Ginger is the best if you can find it.


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

One point I don't think that was made.... what kind of boats do you get seasick on? There are some people who get seasick on a monohull, but do better with the quicker motion of a catamaran or trimaran...and others who get sick on multihulls, but are fine on monohulls... try a bunch of different boats to see if any specific designs are better or worse.


----------



## zeehag (Nov 16, 2008)

sometimes besides the kind of boat ---could be the hull shape and depth of keel--each and every boat moves a bit differently---depending on cargo trim/weight distribution , displacement, rig type....cruising ketches move differently from racing sloops, for example---one might be a good motion for you the other a bad one--
-have you tried making tea from ginger root and keeping fresh ginger on board?? 
have you tried the wrist bands??
good luck--may you find a remedy that keeps you able to sail.....fair winds


----------



## MikeinLA (Jul 25, 2006)

I've been sailing for about 25 years and the only time I ever got sick was on a sunset cruise in Maui on a big catamaran. I knew they were evil.:laugher 

Mike


----------



## SPONGE (Nov 11, 2009)

I have lived on a boat for 6 months now and have been seasick only once. (28' Cape Dory, sailing down the eastern US seaboard in October/November, challenging seas.). I used tobe the one throwing up over the side of the boat. Transderm, dramamine, and then you just get used to it. Unless you have an inner ear condition I have been told that you can overcome almost any kind of seasickness. Find out what triggers it and avoid those things. I can't dig around 't dig around in lockers for very long in anything but calm calm water. I can't go below when we are sailing in rough seas. Otherwise I am quite comfortable BEst of luck to you, if this is your dream go for it, IF IT DOESN'T WORK OUT YOU CAN GO BACK TO LAND.


----------



## Garffin (Oct 22, 2009)

I commericaled with a guy swore he never got sea sick. I never once saw this guy feed the fish. One day in some heavy weather to say the least he decides to try and cook us all some fried spam. Now we were all in the wheel house at this time no kidden. As he is down below trying to cook. I smell somthing weird. I make my way down and what do I see. I see Jim filling up the sink with it. So yeah everyone and I mean everyone will get sick some more than other but to try and help you make up your mind about selling your house and moving onto a boat. I would say start small, live on the boat for 1 month. If after that you think it would be nice to have more room sell the house. Good luck and I say don't let your motion sickness keep you from sailing. Pick the right days and all is well.


----------



## wind_magic (Jun 6, 2006)

At least there is a bright side, seasickness is a sign of good health, it is a natural reaction to the body thinking it has been poisoned. We didn't evolve on the ocean, but we did evolve to toss whatever is in our stomach if our sense of vision doesn't match up with what our inner ear is telling us, something that usually doesn't happen unless we've eaten something we shouldn't have.


----------



## mintcakekeith (Nov 5, 2009)

I have a crew who is prone to seasickness but stugeron started 2 days berore sailing and continued for 5 days sorts him out.(why is it not available in US and we in UK can buy it over the counter. K


----------



## jmolan (Sep 5, 2009)

I have been going to sea (as a fisherman) for 34 years. I have spent so many days, with so many different people, it must be a few hundred anyhow. But from all that I learned this:
I still get seasick now and then. My rule of thumb is easy. Most people get sick, one out of ten people never get sick, and one out of ten never get better. The rest of us get sick and get over it. The ones that never get better are the ones who get woozy at the dock, or in calm conditions. The only cure is to get to the beach. Other than that...I never let seasickness stop me from my dreams. 
Funny but true hint: Eat apples if you suspect you will throw up. I kid you not, it tastes like apple juice when you puke... Try it........ A whole lot better than a fatty acid barfuke


----------



## Rimbaud (Dec 9, 2009)

I wouldn't sell your house until you've tried a two week non-stop cruise on the high seas. Chances are that the first week may be bad but the second very good. If you stop off all the time you may never get your sea legs--hence the "non-stop".
If at the end of week 2, you are still being sick--maybe think again.


----------

