Maia Well Being

MEDICATION… such an innocent, convenient purchase.

My pain killer use was huge up until my mid 20’s, until I decided to stop hiding from myself.

What is the effect of taking seasick tablets?

Check the end of the blog for inspiration on how to support your system gently and pharmaceutical free… And keep using these supports in conjunction with any medical advice you take.

This blog is about feeling, it is not about science says, facts or figures, so I hope it inspires you to pay more attention to the impact of the choices you make… and whilst allowing others their choices, you reach for that which is best for you on all levels.

Seasick tablets, motion sick, however you call them… I was going scuba diving, and was offered, and encouraged to take a seasick tablet or 2… and as a seasick type person, considering the boat, the conditions & my experience, I said yes! (an informed decision that I own, and I cannot remember taking seasick meds previously…)

So we get out to the dive site, and all is going well, I am in the second group of divers that will be entering the water, which meant I was sitting on the bow of a single hull hunk of aluminium, bobbing atop the choppy seas like a cork. And I was fine. Into the first dive, then lunch.

Lunch was hard to eat & totally unsatisfying… a sad situation for a food lover like myself… what was wrong with me? Well, considering the year (and yes here I believe my writing will be around for decades to come, and history will be covering the current social & political rollercoaster) all hell could have broken loose from this loss of taste, but as a smart human I knew that wasn’t the reason… _{see 2020 global pandemic}.

My loss of taste was due to the seasick tablets I had taken, as I turned my observation to my body, I realise that seasick tablets work by drying up the fluids in your entire body… so the inner ear is now unable to slosh around in response to the bobbing boat, the nervous system does not register the chaos & the sea sick does not get projected over the side… Genius.

But, what does this actually mean, what is the total effect on the body, and how long does it last. Well, a timeline of significant events…

Saturday morning… I took the tablets, boarded a boat and went diving
No seasick on the dive… delightful
Dinner out, a couple of drinks, early to bed
Sunday…Breakfast, coffee… nothing unusual, back home to the doggos… I am dry, can’t get enough water (is this a diving sickness)
Monday morning… my weekly singing lesson, which I cannot do with my usual ability, not enough saliva, I cannot feel movement in my soft pallet, my jaw & ears are thick.
And on this went… until later in the week when I started to return to my normal ability to function… singing in my car told me so.

How can I manage seasick without medication?

Well, personal experience of many times is a water bottle filled with water (genius), add peppermint & ginger… either essential oils, or pieces of the peppermint plant & ginger root. Have a snifter bottle of stomach calming essential oils… and go with the flow of the boat… getting off as quick as you can after stopping. Don’t have a hangover.

Really, my seasick memories can mainly be attributed to the good old days when people were allowed to (and did) smoke on the boat, next to the diesel fumes… And I only remember throwing up when I had a hangover… but I am sure there were other times. My point is, my seasick has never been that bad, that couldn’t be connected to another situation or choice… so with full responsibility of being coerced (for good reason), I found myself under the influence of pharmaceutical drugs for many days.

Other over the counter medication experiences I have had…

I took cold & flu once, when I was 19… 23 years ago! woooooooooo… goodness.

I was working as a scuba diving instructor when I was 19, so I needed a clear head that wouldn’t explode during working hours… so I got some Night & Day tablets, popped the night tablet before bed & off I went, tripping through the night, not an ounce of sleep had… some crazy dreams, rushing trips in and out of consciousness… quite the opposite of the healing sleep I needed.

What do I do now?

Alcohol! I make hot toddy’s… If I am feeling ill, or in need of a good healing sleep, I boil the kettle, squeeze a lemon into my mug, add a hefty spoon of raw honey & then a hefty splash of good liquor like, good whiskey, or home distilled grappa, real Italian Grappa. Drink it, go to sleep!

This only works if you are sick… and only if you are in need of sleep… if you are just doing it because it tastes good & you want a nice sleep, chances are high that it will have the opposite effect…

The hot toddy is for when you have worked yourself hard enough to be starting to exhibit illness… popularly called colds, flu etc and regularly blamed on contact with someone… so remember, you can only become ill when you are susceptible to becoming ill… if you are well, you can walk among the ill without becoming ill… I have personally experienced this many times as a massage therapist, in an enclosed, small, airconditioned room, with a client naked on my table, as I am massaging their back, they say… OH THAT FEELS SO GOOD, I’VE GOT THE FLU AND EVERYTHING IS ACHING… not once did I get sick because of them.

Gargle… warm salty water, often, every hour or so, bring the phlegm up & spit it out. Get tough & gargle apple cider vinegar, diluted in water so you can handle it… add honey if you want extra healing powers.

Blow your nose… nasal sprays are pharmaceutical and will dry your fluids up… you want the snot out, it is bringing toxins from your insides, it is not just annoying snot. Phlegm & snot are a way your body detoxes.

Steam… hot steaming bowl of rain or filtered water, add sprigs of rosemary, lavender, basil, oregano… the fresh herbs are gentler than essential oils, be gentle with the mucus layer in the nasal passages and around the eyes… you want healthy mucus… it is healthy.

Soups, full of fresh leafy greens, asparagus, garlic, ginger, chilli… bone broth, sea salt, cayenne pepper or warming spices of your liking & taste.

Fermented vegetables, raw, active, a teaspoon every hour or more, to boost your good bacteria, minerals & vitamin levels… USE REAL FOOD!!!

REST! Get some sun on your skin and then rest some more.

Real foods as medicine, clean alcohol in small amounts… water… rest.