Motion Sickness

Motion sickness is nothing but illness caused by motion during travel. Travel by car, air or boat, and amusement park rides can all cause motion sickness. Motion sickness usually goes away when the motion stops. Some people get a kind of motion sickness while playing video games and virtual reality games (virtual motion sickness or VMS).

 

Symptoms of motion sickness include:

  • Dizziness
  • Fatigue
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Headache
  • Paid breathing
  • Cold sweats
  • Salivating more than usual

 

Why does motion sickness occur?

Motion sickness occurs when your eyes, inner ear and body send conflicting messages to your brain. When these senses disagree, your brain becomes confused, leading to symptoms like nausea, dizziness, and fatigue. This often happens in vehicles, boats, planes, or even virtual reality experiences

 

How do you prevent motion sickness?

Though there are no fool proof ways to prevent motion sickness, below measures can help by delaying the onset of motion sickness, or by subsiding the symptoms:

  1. Get some fresh air - If you’re in a vehicle, roll your window down. If you’re in a plane, direct air vents to blow cool air in your direction
  2. Avoid reading - If you’re reading, put your book, phone or tablet away and look at objects in the distance or the horizon
  3. Look at distant objects - If you’re on a boat, look at the horizon. If you’re in a car, look through the windshield
  4. Choose seats with less turbulence - Sit in the front of a car or bus. If you’re flying, choose a seat over the wings of the plane. In a train, take a forward facing seat.
  5. Avoid smoking and consuming alcohol
  6. Use flavored lozenges, such as ginger candy

 

How do you treat motion sickness the natural way?

  1. Ginger acts as a remedy to fight nausea.
  2. Stimulating an acupressure point along your wrist called the Nei Guan may give you quick relief. Place the index, middle, and ring fingers of your right hand on the inside of your left wrist, starting under the crease. Your Nei Guan point is underneath your index finger, between the wrist tendons. Apply firm pressure on one or both wrists for a few seconds or until the symptoms pass.
  3. Aromatherapy - Certain essential oils help reduce motion sickness induced nausea.
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