What is Motion Sickness?


Motion sickness starts with a mild feeling of nausea while you're traveling in a car or on a bus, boat, train or plane.If you don't deal with it, it will progress to a bad case of the sweats while your tummy feels worse and worse; eventually, you'll be vomiting - perhaps nonstop. That will lead to dehydration and utter misery. Not a way you want to spend your traveling time - and you don't want to arrive at your destination completely whipped from motion sickness' side effects (fatigue since you can't sleep while throwing up,sore throat from constant vomiting and a general feeling of malaise as you haven't been able to keep down food).

What Causes Motion Sickness?
Your inner ear.
According to WebMD.com : "Motion sickness occurs when the inner ear, the eyes, and other areas of the body that detect motion send conflicting messages to the brain. One part of your balance-sensing system (your inner ear, vision, and sensory nerves that help you keep your balance) may indicate that your body is moving, while the other parts do not sense motion.
For example, if you are in the cabin of a moving ship, your inner ear may sense the motion of big waves, but your eyes don't see any movement. This leads to a conflict between the senses and results in motion sickness.
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Motion Sickness Prevention
How to stop motion sickness before it starts?
For starters, you can try several over-the-counternpreventative drugs and devices . Fellow travelers have reported great success with scopolamine patches , worn behind the ear.
About Guide to Alternative Medicine Cathy Wong, N.D., has some homeopathic suggestions if drugs don't appeal to you.

*. Eat before you travel; starting out with something in your tummy will help. If you do vomit, you'll at least be able to expel something besides stomach bile, which hurts (bad) as it comes through your throat by itself.
If time permits, plug your nose before you throw up.