Reliefband - Does it work?

[dbaken]

I get seasick on any sort of rolling water. Dramamine works pretty well for me but makes me feel kind of drowsy and just not great. Bonine doesn't work for me.

Thinking about giving Reliefband a try. But the cost is holding me back - $200+ is a lot to spend if it doesn't work. Anyone have experience with using Reliefband?

Thanks!

 

[Matt B]

I feel like it worked for me this summer-- my first time trying it. I got the "flex" model b/c it's a little less pricey, and yeah the price does sting a bit, but if it saves even one >$500 trip, it is probably worth it. My first time using it was that trip with you and Phil and Steve on 8/24. I was pretty well rested and ate properly before that trip and overall I felt great the whole day. I think I had the Reliefband on setting level 2 most of the day.
If you recall, I got a last second call to go out the next day. I didn't necessarily eat the best and I was not super well rested for that trip, and I ended up feeling a little queasy at times during the day. When that happened, I would turn the Reliefband up to 3 or 4 (I can really feel it tingling at those levels) and it would seem to bring me back to a steady state. I feel like it worked for me; whether it's placebo effect or not, I really don't care.
I hate all the anti-nausea drugs I've tried. The side effects are about as bad as the queasiness without 'em.

 

[Paige]

Good to know it worked for you Matt, I bought one this summer but haven't used it yet.
Maybe next yrs Halibut season!

 

[Josh]

Friend of mine bought the Reliefband Classic the other year for a cross country driving trip with her family She was pretty happy with how it worked. My son borrowed it and has used it once so far, he felt like it helped. But I'm holding off judgement until he tries it a few more times on longer drives.

 

[Matt B]

Friend of mine bought the Reliefband Classic the other year for a cross country driving trip with her family She was pretty happy with how it worked. My son borrowed it and has used it once so far, he felt like it helped. But I'm holding off judgement until he tries it a few more times on longer drives.

Yeah I also have a kid who gets carsick on longer drives. I was thinking I could try it on her, too. I mean, allow her the opportunity to use it if she would like to.

 

[krusty]

It appears to work in the same manner as a TENS (Trancutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) unit. I don't know that the wrist location is somehow specific to gastric nausea control, but there are literally dozens of good OTC TENS units on Amazon for much less than the Reliefband....and you can stick the contacts anywhere you choose.

TENS really works well relieving muscle pain and nausea....physical therapists and anesthetists often use them treating patients. It's thought to trigger the release of endorphins as well as allow movement with pain reduction...which facilitates healing.

 

[Matt B]

It appears to work in the same manner as a TENS (Trancutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) unit. I don't know that the wrist location is somehow specific to gastric nausea control, but there are literally dozens of good OTC TENS units on Amazon for much less than the Reliefband....and you can stick the contacts anywhere you choose.

TENS really works well relieving muscle pain...physical therapists use them treating patients. It's thought to trigger the release of endorphins as well as allow movement with pain reduction...which facilitates healing.

The wrist location is an accupressure thing. It aligns your chakras or something, IDK.
I didn't look deep but all the units I saw on Amazon are relatively bulky, have wires to the contacts, and overall would be a royal pain in the ass on an offshore fishing trip. No thanks.

 

[krusty]

The wrist location is an accupressure thing. It aligns your chakras or something, IDK.
I didn't look deep but all the units I saw on Amazon are relatively bulky, have wires to the contacts, and overall would be a royal pain in the ass on an offshore fishing trip. No thanks.

I see your point, though running a couple of the very thin wires down a sleeve and having the small controller in a pocket would be quite easy. We've used TENS units for years while skiing, running, motorcycling, and mountaineering.

Take care of that chakra!

 

[dbaken]

Thanks all for the input! Being about 2 weeks out from leaving for a trip that includes 5 days fishing in the ocean, I went ahead and got one. Five days of dramamine is pretty ugh. Will let you all know if it works for me.

 

[Bruce Baker]

Thanks all for the input! Being about 2 weeks out from leaving for a trip that includes 5 days fishing in the ocean, I went ahead and got one. Five days of dramamine is pretty ugh. Will let you all know if it works for me.

If you can and don't already know this, bring some ginger candy with you. I get motion sickness and I normally take Bonine and when my stomach starts getting unsettled, I start eating some and it helps settle my stomach.

 

[Matt B]

If you can and don't already know this, bring some ginger candy with you. I get motion sickness and I normally take Bonine and when my stomach starts getting unsettled, I start eating some and it helps settle my stomach.

I always mean to do this, and always forget to get it.

 

[Paige]

Ginger didn't to shit for me when I tried it.

 

[RCF]

If you can and don't already know this, bring some ginger candy with you. I get motion sickness and I normally take Bonine and when my stomach starts getting unsettled, I start eating some and it helps settle my stomach.

Does ginger ale work?

 

[RCF]

My wife gets motion sickness on a deck swing. Got sick on curvy road too. . Nothing helps her. Nothing!

I have been across several bars going salmon fishing. No issues. ONLY time I had an issue was on ferry to Victoria. Went outside and saw the horizon
Fine after that.

Not going on any cruise ships after that experience.. My wife agrees wholeheartedly.

 

[Cabezon]

Does ginger ale work?

There probably isn't enough ginger in ginger ale to have the desired "settling of the stomach" effect. There is a compound in ginger, gingerol, that encourages emptying of the stomach. While I normally am a big fan of a scopolamine patch to prevent sea sickness, I did have some relief from the feeling of throwing up after consuming several ginger tablets on a really rough day while motoring the 20+ miles to / from the Great Barrier Reef for a day of scuba diving. I did not have any patches with me on this trip. The ginger pills were helpful in keeping me from vomiting (as was not eating all day), but I still would have preferred to have applied a scopolamine patch.
On the other hand, if the ginger ale is mixed with enough Canadian Club (a highball, my parents' favorite mixed drink), you might not care... [Actually, seasick and drunk would NOT be a happy combo.]
Steve

 

[Brian Miller]

Mrs Brian has a digestive condition that causes nausea. She uses Scopolamine skin patches and says they can help if she remembers to use it early enough. I told her about this thread but she didn't sound too interested.

I am not terribly prone to motion sickness but have been seasick in a small rental boat out of Neah Bay that was leaking from a missing seal on the bow eye and had to take my eyes of the horizon to bail water. I once got airsick on a business trip in a commuter turbo prop while passing through a thunderstorm. It was tough to have to service Customers that day.

But the worst was while I was a weapons avionics tech assigned to a NORAD fighter squadron for 7 years. I was reenlisted by the Squadron Commander during a ride in the back seat of a T-33 Shooting Star 2-seat jet fighter trainer. After I swore the oath, he asked if I wanted to do aerobatics. I hadn't been briefed and checked out for aerobatics by life support when getting my flight gear so it was a BIG mistake to say...
"Lets see what this baby can do." Hoo Boy, Wrong answer!
I didn't pass out, maybe because I was wearing a g-suit. I did puke my guts out and felt sick all through the next day.

About 4 years later I did go up again with the Squadron Maintenance officer for an NCO award "attaboy ride".
Once airborne he asked "Do you want to do aerobatics or fly vectors?"
My response was immediate... "Vectors Sir." He gave me the stick and coached me to fly vectors around the Olympic Peninsula until we had to return to base. No airsickness that day! Fun time ✈

But I may buy Mrs Brian a Reliefband anyway because while she does not have dizziness with the patches it could have some cumulative side effects. Plus I can "borrow" it if I go out with a guide.

 

[krusty]

I've only gotten seasick one time...on a small boat that was subjected to huge swells under the Golden Gate Bridge.

While I haven't been seasick since that event many years ago I find a couple of days afloat with constant motion a bit disconcerting for a few hours on land AFTER I come ashore. ...which I've been told is quite common.

One thing that will make me somewhat nauseous and feel shitty for a few days is spending time using an immersive VR system. What I'm seeing doesn't jibe with what my inner ear is telling my brain is happening. Also quite common with the use of such systems

 

[Scslat]

There's a product called Gravol that is sold in British Columbia, and maybe the rest of Canada. My wife says it works for her, and she is very susceptible to motion sickness.

 

[Otter]

Gravol is a brand of dimenhydrinate, as is Dramamine. Gravol company also makes another product made of ginger, called Gravol Ginger. It’s the only thing my nausea-prone daughter takes. Nothing else helps her.

Fast, Effective Nausea Relief Products I GRAVOL™

Check out GRAVOL™ products for a variety of symptoms like nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, fever & cold. Certified Organic Ginger products available.

www.gravol.ca

Dramamine (dimenhydrinate): Motion Sickness Medication

Dramamine prevents and treats motion sickness symptoms like nausea, vomiting and dizziness. It works by helping your body maintain its sense of balance.

my.clevelandclinic.org

 

[Scslat]

Gravol is a brand of dimenhydrinate, as is Dramamine. Gravol company also makes another product made of ginger, called Gravol Ginger. It’s the only thing my nausea-prone daughter takes. Nothing else helps her.

Fast, Effective Nausea Relief Products I GRAVOL™

Check out GRAVOL™ products for a variety of symptoms like nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, fever & cold. Certified Organic Ginger products available.

www.gravol.ca

Dramamine (dimenhydrinate): Motion Sickness Medication

Dramamine prevents and treats motion sickness symptoms like nausea, vomiting and dizziness. It works by helping your body maintain its sense of balance.

my.clevelandclinic.org

It's the ginger version that my wife takes. Thanks for clarifying.