When I was younger, I never used to get motion sickness. I was able to ride all of the rides at the amusement park or local fair. As I got older, I was no longer to ride the spinning rides such as the tilt-a-whirl, scrambler, etc. For some reason they made me extremely motion sick. I really didn’t think anything of this because I have heard that most people have a problem with these rides as they get older.
However, the further along I am in my Gastroparesis diagnosis, the more I get motion sick on everything. I get motion sick in the car, I get motion sick on a train, I get motion sick on a plane. I’m not sure about boats, because I didn’t have any boats to go on. This latest time flying was really bad. I was popping my Zofran like it was candy. (Probably not the wisest decision & definitely talk to a trained medical professional before copying this tactic.) Now when I fly, I can feel every tiny little speed bump that we go over. My head starts to spin, the pressure builds up tremendously and I just can’t wait to get out of the plane.
All of this complicates the fact that I really enjoy reading on flights. It is a solid 2-3 hours of undisturbed time and I can get through several chapters of a good book in that time. It always makes me more determined to carve out time to read when I get home. Even though I am extremely motion sick, I still read. I will not let Gastroparesis steal something else from me, so I powered through and read my book.
This time I developed yet another symptom. When I got home, I felt like I was still moving. It was the same sensation as after a long day at an amusement park. I’ve never had this happen before with flying, but I guess it is something that I will now have to add to the equation.
I’m just thankful that the GP Elves helped give the plane a push and turned my 3+ hour flight into a 2 hr 15 minute flight. It got me out of the motion sick environment faster and gave me plenty of time to track down some Gastroparesis friendly snacks in the connecting airport!
~Millie
What tactics do you do to limit motion sickness?
I use something called “Sea Bands” you can find them at most local drug stores. They use acupressure to decrease nausea. Between those and my Phenergan I’m able to make it through the day 🙂
Thanks for the tip!
I wondered if “Sea Bands” were legitimate and actually worked. Looks like I’ll be picking up a pair. 🙂
~Millie
I recently have been having problems with motion sickness. I didn’t realize that this might be from the GP. I have used Sea Bands for when out on the boat at time and they are great.
Hi Susan,
My speculation is that it is magnified by Gastroparesis, but I am definitely not a licensed medical professional. If it persists I would inquire to your doctor about it.
Although I have heard others with Gastroparesis noticing motion sickness being magnified.
~Millie
Trying sea bands today for first time as recommended on another website for gp. So far, so good!
Are the sea band still working?
~Millie