Does Anyone Know of a Motion Sickness Medication for Kids?

Try holding something very cold (preferably ice) up to his neck, just over the area where is jugular vein runs. That usually stops motion sickness in cars and boats. My husband learned this trick from a physiology professor!

Something that has worked for us is having a small bottle of peppermint essential oils and putting a little on a cotton ball in a baggie and sniffing it periodically or just carrying the bottle and smelling it. Also, have some of those peppermint candies to eat along the way. If it is in the car, they have those essestial oil warmers that work in the car.

Just some added info - when i was prego I had major motion sickness problems, and it didn't go away completely for a few years! I didn't want to take Dramamine, so I researched, and lemon and ginger are both natural and they do help. I'd bring ginger snaps and water with (real) lemon with me everywhere. It didn't CURE it, but certainly helped. Still, if I read, color, dig through my purse, anything where my eyes are focused inside the car at something specific, I get carsick, so I have found that watching the scenery helps, as well as distracting games, like the license plate game, singing games, etc. I always plan frequent fun stops at visitors centers and stuff. Junk food, like candy and chips and stuff will always mess up my trip - so be sure to bring healthy snacks w/o much sugar. I've found that if I stay away from packaged foods as much as possible and eat fresh, my tummy doesn't get near as queezy. Things like crackers and sliced muenster cheese, bananas, gogurt, I often even bake a turkey or chicken before the trip and slice it up and bring it along. The kids love to eat the legs and we can make sandwiches in the car. It may be a bit messy, but it's better than having a sick kid. I'm sure you all never leave home without a thing of baby wipes and plenty of napkins in the glovebox! ;o)

Now that my daughter is a little older (4), I keep a pack of the Children's chewable Dramamine with me for plane rides (and I wouldn't step on board a cruise w/o it if my life depended on it!) It's sorta a last resort thing. It WILL work, no question, but he may sleep half the trip! It knocks my daughter right out - which is perfect for the plane, except if it's a short trip, I wind up having to carry HER, her carry-on and my carry-on off the plane! :o) Also keep in mind that Dramamine takes about a half hour before it'll hit them, so don't wait till they're ready to puke to give it to them!

I have used the sea bands myself and they work really well. My husband and I took a trip last year to Martha's Vineyard where we had to fly, take a bus, ride a ferry and then a taxi. I thought I was going to be so sick going through all of that, especially the choppy waters for the ferry ride and I didn't get sick at all. Read the instructions carefully to make sure they are on right and these should help. I would suggest the family wearing them so that he won't know what they are for and won't try to remove them if he thinks it is something you all need to wear and not just him. Have fun!!

I have been giving my kids chewable Bonine for years. They all three have motion sickness when riding in the back seat of the car. I used to take Meclizine...had to get it from the pharmacist without a prescription....when I worked as a paramedic. I would get sick in the back of the ambulance!! I took it the night before my shift and it would last the entire shift (12-24 hours). Dramamine works but it takes about 2 hours to take effect, 2 hours of coverage...and then the last two hours the effectiveness was wearing off. Meclizine lasts longer with no "down time". I give my 9 year old 1/2 tablet before we fly with no problems.

I don't like to put any kind of drug in my body or that of any family member. The side effects can be worse than the original problem.
Using natural technologies have solved many problems for me. I don't get sea sick - and I go on lots of cruises - but I always carry my magnets with me (Nikken) just in case. Positioning them on the inner wrist solves any problem with motion sickness that may arise. If you want information, I can provide you with some.
M.

Unfortunately, seabands didn't work at all for me when I was pregnant. In fact, I was admitted to the hospital for hyperemesis (severe morning sickness) while wearing them. They seem to work quite well for some people, but for others like me, there can be no effect. Good luck.

When I was a little girl, my mom used to give me vitamin B6 before we went on road trips because I used to get car sick. It seemed to work. I've heard ginger tablets are supposed to help too.

My pedi told us to use Benadryl for our daughter who even is affected by motion sickness in the car. It has always worked for her in the car and on planes. I would check with your pedi though, especially with all the stuff going on with kids medicines right now.

They make a chewable version of both Dramamine and Bonine. Both have worked well for my son since he was little. He is now 10. The only downside is that they both make him a bit groggy at first. Also, his doc says it is better to see how he does before medicating him and only use it if he starts feeling iffy because once you medicate, it is hard to take them off of it without them feeling bad/noticing a difference.

Hope that helps.

The sea bands are awesome. I have taken my kids on several cruises and made them wear the bands from the start and no one has ever gotten sick..

You know Dramamine makes a chewable for kids, right?

Hey there! Yes use the dramamine. We have a problem with car rides! If we're planning on being in the car for a long drive - we dissolve the dose in something to drink! It has always worked.

Good Luck! Oh - ours is 3+!

My husband and I both get motion sick very easily. We went on a cruise in Feb. and made sure we took our Bonine every 12 hours and had no problems at all. This past summer my almost 4 year old got car sick for the first time ever. I gave him a Bonine tablet and told him to chew it up (it's chewable and doesn't taste horrible) and then take a drink of his drink. He felt better quickly. If you get him on the Bonine routine like we did, he shouldn't have any problems at all, and they have a non-drowsy formula. Good luck and have a nice trip!

Something that makes it REALLY easy to swallow is...

Take a Small or medium size swallow of water or other drink, anything that is not HOT. While the liquid is still in your son's mouth, have him tip his head back and pop the pill in, and swallow it all together!

It's still the way I take my pills!

Wal-Mart also makes their "Equate" version of Dramamine, and the formulas are identical. (One of my cousins is a pharmacist, and he used to work at a Wal-Mart, as their Lead Pharmacist.) Haven't heard of any other "motion sickness" formulas, and I used to get car sick a lot when I was little. I just turned 42, and have been using Dramamine my entire life.

Hope y'all have a GREAT cruise!
~J.~

I tried the Bonnie brand that is sold in Wal*Mart, but I found one called Meclizine Hydrochloride (25 mg.) that was recommended by my pharmacist as the best.

I found a pharmacy (in Utah) where they sell this OTC in 100 chewable tablets for about $10. You could ask the pharmacist the dosage for children. I have lost the lable so am unable to tell you what it says.

Look for motion sickness wrist bands. They are stretchy bands that have a plastic bump on the underside that you place over a pressure point on the wrist about three fingers down from the palm of your hand (the box will tell you how to locate this point). I used to work on a cruise ship and the crew used these rather than taking medicine long term (some people get motion sickness even when they've been at sea for years).