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- - ReliefBands (https://www.fodors.com/community/cruises/reliefbands-196444/)

Hase anyone tried the ReliefBand? Did it work for you? What did it feel like. Thanks,

They do not feel like anything. All the passengers that I spoke to that wore them say they do not work. The most popular drugs are dramamine and bonine but they have some slight after-effects. One is sleeping through the cruise. For any kind of motion sickness Transderm Scop (the Patch) is the best. The people that say they do not work are the ones that do not follow the directions. Yo must wear the patch at all times even in calm waters. You can not put it on when the sea gets rough. It will be too late. Call your doctor and he will phone the perscription into your pharmacy. Paul

Au contraire, M. Therault! I have an inner ear imbalance and I have always suffered from dreadful motion sickness; a couple of vacations ago, I tried a product called "seabands" and I am blown away by how well they work. I wear them when I fly, when the boyfriend & I travel to Jasper by car(app. 4-hr. drive- he drives), and when we take any type of ground transportation or ferry while on vacation, and I don't even have a hint of nausea/queasiness. They may feel, at first, like having tight elastics around your wrists, but I soon adjusted to the sensation, and now I don't even notice that I'm still wearing them hours after the plane has landed! Oh, FYI, they work on accupressure points, which has a sound basis in the practice of "natural" medicine - as a registered nurse, I recommend them.

I am not saying you are incorrect. If it works for you that is fine. I have been on 74 cruises and I have asked many passengers that I see wearing these bands "how do they work?" The ones that are sick say they do not work and the others said they did not know. I volunteer in an Emergency Department and I asked the senior physician to look into "seasickness." His report is as follows with some paragraphs deleted for brevity: To date, no one has found the magic potion that gurantees freedom from motion sickness. About one third of the population is particularly vulnerable and with minimal provocation will experience it. The human body has a system of equilibrium that relies on harmony between the messages from sensors in our skin and joints, visual assessment and the balance device located in the inner ear. These all help with spatial orientations of the world around us. Boats rock vertically and horizontally at the same time, thus creating havoc between the skin and joint sensors and the balance center. Copper bracelets, small necklaces, chains hanging from ears, wrist bands, home remedies and static belts are only a few of the tricks that people have employed to ward off this malady. Few, if any, have any scientific merit. The following prevententive behaviors may minimize the risk: Eat lightly before and during travel. Eat mailnly low-fat foods (fatty food stay in the stomach longer) and don't drink alcohol. Sit in the most stable portion of the moving vehicle ...... In the middle of the ship on deck, if possible. Face forward and look out a window keeping your eyes fixed on the horizon or a stationary point in the distance. Wearing dark glasses or shutting your eyes may reduce visual stimulation. Medications can prevent or relieve motion sicknesss. Most common medications used are antihistamine types such as Dramamine or Benedryl taken 30 to 60 minutes before travel. Another medication which works best as a preventative is the transdermal scopolamine patch which is applied to the skin approximately six hours before embarking on the journey and will last approximately three days. I will add .... why advise passengers to wear the bracelet when there is more effective medication available? I will also add .... my wife gets motion sickness in cars, planes and on ships. She tried the oral medications but it made her so sleepy she did not enjoy the trip. She tried the patch and now she does not get the least bit seasick. She does follow the instructions carefully. Paul

I am very motion sensitive. I can think about it and get sick. I have used bonine with no side effects and no motion sickness. Bonine is a once a day medicine vs. dramamine which is every 4-6 hours. I actually took 1 every 12 hours instead of 1-2 once a day. I also recommend continuing to take it the day after the trip, since I got land sick after the first cruise. Mike