10 Tips to Aid Children with Motion Sickness

You may have planned a nice long road trip for a vacation, relocation or something along those lines, or you may be in the process of planning. Yet you feel uneasy, your child doesn't do very well on long trips due to motion sickness.

Well I'm here to tell you fear not, there are plenty of ways to avoid turning an enjoyable trip into a nightmare. I'm going to share 10 of my favorite ways of dealing with motion sickness, so that you can have an enjoyable time with your children and have something memorable to look back on.

First let's take a quick look at what motion sickness really is. Simply put, your eyes, inner ear, skin and muscles send bits of information to your brain, just like a satellite sends radio waves to your television if you have a bad connection the picture becomes scrambled, when this happens your brain can't determine what your body is really experiencing which in turn cause you to get the signals jumbled up and then you become sick, and feel the effects of motion sickness. For a more in depth explanation I recommend you check out: http://www.drgreene.com/21_1145.html

Tip 1: Ginger

This is an old remedy that some folks swear by for nausea and motion sickness. There is not much scientific data to prove how effective this really is.

But my own personal experience shows a huge improvement on my child and even my dog that also gets carsick! I let my kids drink about 4 to 6 ounces of ginger ale and 2 the 3 ginger snap cookies 20 minutes before we go on a road trip. (Be sure to read the ingredients some don't use real ginger) you can find either of these in most grocery stores.

Tip 2: Chamomile

This is an age-old flower that's been used in teas; it has a very long history of being used in over 100 medical treatments, there is little scientific evidence to back up the healing power of this plant, but anyone who drinks a cup of chamomile tea will feel its relaxing properties, not only does this help my kids sleep at night, but in a pinch it can be very effective for motion sickness I use the Organic Nighty Night tea formulated for kids, you can purchase a box from here: http://www.herbspro.com/70323/JustforKidsOrganicNightyNightTea.htm

Tip 3: Empty Stomach

You should never attempt a long road trip if your child is running on an empty stomach, nor a full stomach this can help with avoiding nausea. You should have your child drink about 4 to 6 ounces of liquid, Then eat a few crackers or ginger snap cookies if you wish to try this method, try to leave a 3 to 4 hour time gap for their stomach's to digest any previous meals you might have prepared, prior to starting your trip if possible.

Tip 4: Find Your Balance

Try to sit your child toward the front of your vehicle or in the center if they must ride in the back seat this will help prevent them from bouncing around as much, doing this will keep the signals to their brain a lesser amount.

Tip 5: Eyes on the road

You should always keep your child's focus outside of the vehicle doing so will help keep their eyes and mind focused on other stuff outside of what's going on inside the vehicle.

Tip 6: Take your time

Try to take your time, don't rush and enjoy the scenery. Stop every 50 miles and let your children out to run around, get some fresh air and stretch. This alone can help a lot on a long road trip.

Tip 7: Fresh Air

If it's not too hot or to cold you should crack or put the windows all the way down, the fresh air can assist in preventing motion sickness.

Tip 8: Road Games

This works well with tip 5, make up some fun road games you can try the classic I spy game, like "I spy with my little eye a yellow school bus", and it is up to your child to find what your describing. Or you can do something from your own creation like I do personally, I like to play treasure hunt with my kids, I make a map of objects they need to find along the way, and when they get to the final object I give them some treasure, this can be anything from a new toy, a healthy snack or just another dose of ginger snaps the kids will truly enjoy this.

Tip 9: Smooth Driving

Try to press the break as little as possible, keep off of back and bumpy roads if at all possible, it would also be a good idea to have your local garage, or someone you know who is mechanically inclined take a peak at your suspension system to make sure its still in good condition if this don't go over your budget.

Tip 10: Sleeping

This works best if you can leave during the middle of the night or close to your child's normal bedtime combine this with step 2 for the best results. When your child is sleeping they are unaware of what's going on around them, therefore its impossible for their senses to send jumbled up signals to the brain and completely removing all symptoms of motion sickness leaving you in for a few hours of peaceful driving.

Well this is it for now; I hope you find these tips helpful.