Common Ailments Library: Travel Sickness

Patients can take preventative measures to stop motion sickness occurring. It is often hard to stop motion sickness once it has started.

• Tablets - Usually suck-able, chew-able or dis-solvable and suitable for children. Taken 20 - 30 minutes prior to travelling
• Motion sickness patches - (Scopolamine) Placed behind the ear, 4 hours before travel, lasts for 3 days.
• Acupressure bands - These don't always work for everyone but work by being placed on the wrist

You can advise the patient to do some of the following if they experience motion sickness:-

• Try to minimise the motion by sitting in the front of a car or middle of a boat
• Focus on a fixed point
• Take deep breaths of fresh air
• Distraction techniques such as singing songs or talking
• Avoid any strong or spicy foods
• Avoid drinking or eating whilst travelling