I have been irked recently by one of these ads that says if you suffer from motion-sickness all you have to do is take one of their tablets. Yes, well, there’s a couple of problems with that. One is that in small print, it says – right down at the bottom of the page where most won’t notice it – that you shouldn’t be driving after using the stuff, as it may cause drowsiness. VERY helpful if you are a driver.And some people who DO read that, are going to assume that if you are doing something else, it won’t affect you. IT WILL! But that isn’t mentioned.
Then there’s the other problem – If, like me, there is a physical reason for motion sickness then all the fancy tablets in the world won’t help. But does this ad suggest that you see a doctor? A specialist? Noooo, why would they do something so commonsense as that? Yes, I can get very badly sick, (On one occasion when I was about 11 and put on a train from Palmerston North to Auckland, I had to be carried off, too weak to stand or walk.) in my case I have motion-sickness from a physical reason that was established in the 1970s, when I took part in a study.
The fluid in my inner ear is thinner than is usual, hence on a winding road if the vehicle is moving fast, the fluid ‘sloshes’, causing nausea. (I am not affected by air travel, or in a boat since the motion, being at a different angle, doesn’t seem to provide the same reaction.) And how may you diagnose this problem very easily? Ask if the person has very good hearing too. If so, then that may be the problem. Can you do anything about it? Nope, although I find that growing older has improved it. I no longer get sick in cars or trains, but I still can during a long-distance bus trip. (And yes, my hearing is still far better than most my age) So this ad which promises to fix all forms of motion-sickness, is both wrong and misleading. And, IMHO, dangerous too.
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I used to get motion sickness when I was a kid. At age 10 it was pretty bad. I got progressively better. Now I only feel it when trying to read on a bus or in a car. Even then it is mild and goes away when I stop reading.I haven’t really tested myself aboard ship. On a lake or a river in a small craft I am fine. In an aircraft large or small I am fine. The last time I got a really bad bout of it was when I was being tossed around by one of those whirling machine you have at fair grounds. I haven’t been on one of those since. Yes, the pills they say are for motion sickness do make you drowsy and there is that certain acceptance, right or wrong, that the illness is all in the mind.