Travel Sickness Information

Health Information On Travel Sickness

Travel sickness is a combination of symptoms associated with travel, it has quite a few names which revolve around the cause. It is also known as motion sickness, car sickness, air sickness or sea sickness. A person experiencing travel sickness may present with:

• Dizziness
• Vomiting
• Sweating
• Increase in saliva production
• Pale skin

Sometimes you could also experience:

• Rapid short breath
• Headaches
• Feeling extremely tired

These symptoms of travel sickness tend to become less intense as you get used to the condition you find yourself in that is causing it. If for example you are in a train, after some hours, as you get used to the movement, you may stop experiencing the symptoms. This however does not apply to everyone as some people just continue feeling sick.

Who Can Get Travel Sick?

It is possible for anyone to end up experiencing travel sickness although there are certain groups of people that are more prone to it. Pregnant women for example are more likely to feel sick as they travel especially in a plane or ship.

It is also common for children between 3 years and 12 years to experience travel sickness which they eventually outgrow in their teens.

Do you need medical attention?

Under normal circumstances, there is no need to see a doctor because of travel sickness. If however the symptoms continue even when you are not traveling, you can see a doctor who will find out if the symptoms may be caused by a different ailment like a viral infection of the inner ear.

Cause of travel sickness

As the name suggests, it is usually caused when you travel either in a car, plane, train or ship though other motions can cause travel sickness like roller coaster rides. The scientific explanation for travel sickness is that it will occur when your eyes and your inner ear are in conflict. (The inner ear helps with balance).

The eyes and nerves in your inner ear provide your brain with information which helps it determine your position as you move. When these two organs provide conflicting information to your brain, you will end up with motion sickness.

The conflicting information could be that your eyes are sending signals that you are traveling fast while your ears are sending signals to the brain that you are sitting still. For people who suffer from migraines, travel sickness may also occur as you feel dizzy while you travel, this is referred to as vestibular migraines.

Treatment for travel sickness

It is usually simple to treat travel sickness with these techniques:

• Find a stable position: if you are in a plane for example, choose a seat in the middle since this experiences the least movement. You can also use a pillow to keep your head still.
• Focus at a distant object or point: in most cases if you are traveling on a ship, you will be advised to look at the horizon. You can also focus on an object that is still and this will calm you down.
• Relax: Find something that helps you relax and keep calm. Listening to music may be a nice idea or even singing.
• Get fresh air: if you are experiencing cold sweats and shortness of breath, open a window or move to a place with more air.

If you know you suffer from travel sickness, it is best not to eat a heavy meal or drink alcohol as these tend to cause nausea. The bottom line is treat the symptoms and always remain calm.

Medication

In more severe cases, a doctor can recommend certain medication. Hyoscine is one of the more common drugs recommended for motion sickness as it blocks the signals from the nerves that may cause disruption.

Some home remedies can also work like ginger for nausea. If you have severe travel sickness, then by all means have a doctor attend to you otherwise the symptoms will pass, there is no need for panic.