Dramamine/other motion sickness cures

[chw57]

I took Dramamine as a preventative measure when we went whale watching off San Francisco, and it absolutely wiped me out. I took it at 7 am and was completely exhausted from about 11 AM through that night. It did help keep the motion sickness at bay but all I wanted to do was sleep.

[panicked]

I use the non-drowsy Dramamine and it's just fine. No tiredness whatsoever.

[Wines Not Whines]

I'm pretty sure dramamine works by making you so tired that you sleep for 8 hours straight, which prevents you from having motion sickness.

Non-drowsy dramamine is just ginger... which does work to a certain extent, but you could probably just pick up some ginger candy as an alternative. 

ETA: How bad is your motion sickness? Ginger and peppermint help me to a certain extent. One weird thing kind of works is the combination of Unisom and Vitamin B6. My OB recommended it during pregnancy. Obviously it will make you sleepy (hello, unisom is a sleep aid), but the combination of those two products also works for anti-nausea. I think a lot of the anti-nausea drugs are anti-histamines, so they have the side effect of sleepiness. 

[panicked]

Apr 24, 2015 17:48:46 GMT -5 Wines Not Whines said:

I'm pretty sure dramamine works by making you so tired that you sleep for 8 hours straight, which prevents you from having motion sickness.

Non-drowsy dramamine is just ginger... which does work to a certain extent, but you could probably just pick up some ginger candy as an alternative. 

It's not ginger; it's meclizine.

[panicked]

Apr 24, 2015 17:54:51 GMT -5 @vtcupcake said:

Apr 24, 2015 17:48:46 GMT -5 Wines Not Whines said:

I'm pretty sure dramamine works by making you so tired that you sleep for 8 hours straight, which prevents you from having motion sickness.

Non-drowsy dramamine is just ginger... which does work to a certain extent, but you could probably just pick up some ginger candy as an alternative.

So the ginger can handle the nausea, but how would it do with combatting the dizziness? My vertigo is a very real thing when it crops up :/

The less drowsy Dramamine is meclizine and is prescribed often for vertigo. You're good!

[Wines Not Whines]

Apr 24, 2015 17:56:55 GMT -5 panicked said:

Apr 24, 2015 17:54:51 GMT -5 @vtcupcake said:

So the ginger can handle the nausea, but how would it do with combatting the dizziness? My vertigo is a very real thing when it crops up :/

The less drowsy Dramamine is meclizine and is prescribed often for vertigo. You're good!

Ah, I see there's "less drowsy" and "non drowsy" versions of dramamine. The less-drowsy is meclizine and non-drowsy is ginger. 

[panicked]

Apr 24, 2015 18:02:31 GMT -5 Wines Not Whines said:

Apr 24, 2015 17:56:55 GMT -5 panicked said:

The less drowsy Dramamine is meclizine and is prescribed often for vertigo. You're good!

Ah, I see there's "less drowsy" and "non drowsy" versions of dramamine. The less-drowsy is meclizine and non-drowsy is ginger. 

I've never seen the non-drowsy! Interesting!

[bostonmichelle]

My mom used to have really bad vertigo, she would have spells going to the dentist/hair dressers. What worked for her was this watch like thing that sent electric shocks up her arm. This one actually www.mypilotstore.com/mypilotstore/sep/10433. She also got prescribed some anti-naseua meds that they give to chemo patients. I usually just use less drowsy dramamine on planes but not that I found that electric watch I may buy one, that thing was amazing.

[Deleted]

Call your doctor and see if you can get the patch that gets stuck behind your ear. Those work very well for me.

[panicked]

Apr 24, 2015 21:28:08 GMT -5 @sessalee said:

Call your doctor and see if you can get the patch that gets stuck behind your ear. Those work very well for me.

Scopolamine. It does work very well, especially if you need it for an extended period of time.

[mandiespharm]

See if you can get the patch or maybe try the sea-bands. They work on pressure points in your wrist. All of the OTC anti-nausea meds will cause drowsiness.

[chitownbelle]

For me personally, I'd rather be tired than puking.
I took the less-drowsy Dramamine about 30min before a rough boat cruise in Hawaii and am so glad I did. By the end of the 4 hr cruise, 80% of the boat was puking over the side, and I felt great ;-) Many couldn't even jump in and snorkel, which was disappointing for them. I remember being tired on the drive back to the hotel, but I can contribute that to jet lag, early morning wake up call, and general vacation relaxation, as opposed to the pill in itself.
I'm getting nauseous just thinking about vertigo/motion sickness, so I really hope you find something that works well for you so you can have a great time while feeling good enough to enjoy it!
Also, where did you find a husband that plans surprise trips for you?! So fun!

[emilyj]

I started out taking Bonine. I tried Dramamine once after that, and HATED it. I immediately went back to Bonine. You can get it at CVS/Walgreens/Any drugstore. Non-drowsy. I get terrible motion sickness in cars/buses, and this takes care of it completely.

[shellfish26]

If you do decide to go with the Meclizine (that's what I used on a cruise, since I am super sensitive to Benadryl!) you should make sure to take it a couple hours before you need it. If you pop it just as you are boarding, it's not going to kick in for the flight.

(You are going to have SUCH an awesome trip! )

[libbygrl109]

I have nasty air-sickness issues. On top of the nausea, vertigo, my ears plug so badly that if feels like someone is stabbing me in the eardrums with screwdrivers. I've been using Dramamine (both regular and non-drowsy have worked for me), and Sudafed. I take them at the prescribed times, and have not had a problem, other than nasty dry mouth, so I always make sure I drink a ton of water.

Whatever it is, have an amazing time!! You definitely deserve it!!!

[clseale]

I have nothing to add, but whhhheeeeeeeee!!! Long red-eyes mean FUN destinations! I can't wait to find out where you are going!! Do you have a guess? Nice job, Mr. Cupcake! Nice job.

[clseale]

Apr 27, 2015 14:59:04 GMT -5 @vtcupcake said:

Apr 27, 2015 13:26:58 GMT -5 clseale said:

I have nothing to add, but whhhheeeeeeeee!!! Long red-eyes mean FUN destinations! I can't wait to find out where you are going!! Do you have a guess? Nice job, Mr. Cupcake! Nice job.

I DO NOT WANT TO GUESS! I have a couple of ideas though, since so far he's asked me to look through my warmer weather clothes to make sure I have enough to pack for a week. (Hence the new bathingsuit post on Friday, lol). My guesses include California, Hawaii, Mexico, Costa Rica, Vegas, ummmm, maybe someplace across the Atlantic? Zero clue. Apparently every one of my friends knows here, and he couldn't NOT tell shellfish26 when we met up with her for lunch when we were in DC, and I am still entirely clueless and probably will be until we get to our gate wherever it is we're going.

So shellfish26 can PM all of us, yes? You better post as soon as you know, to end our suspense!! How fun!

[shellfish26]

Apr 27, 2015 15:09:12 GMT -5 clseale said:

Apr 27, 2015 14:59:04 GMT -5 @vtcupcake said:

I DO NOT WANT TO GUESS! I have a couple of ideas though, since so far he's asked me to look through my warmer weather clothes to make sure I have enough to pack for a week. (Hence the new bathingsuit post on Friday, lol). My guesses include California, Hawaii, Mexico, Costa Rica, Vegas, ummmm, maybe someplace across the Atlantic? Zero clue. Apparently every one of my friends knows here, and he couldn't NOT tell shellfish26 when we met up with her for lunch when we were in DC, and I am still entirely clueless and probably will be until we get to our gate wherever it is we're going.

So shellfish26 can PM all of us, yes? You better post as soon as you know, to end our suspense!! How fun!

LOL. I AM NOT TELLING!! 

OK, here's a hint:

@vtcupcake is going to have a fabulous trip!  

I love surprises and Mr.Cupcake is so excited about this!   I can only hope that we end up at the same place, haha!