Seasickness: What Actually Helps

Seasickness stops more people sailing than lack of skill does, and it is one of the few obstacles in the sport that most people can genuinely manage.

It is also widely misunderstood. It is not a sign of weakness, it is not permanent, and experienced sailors get it — including some very well-known ones.

Why it happens#

Motion sickness comes from a conflict between what your inner ear senses and what your eyes see. Below deck, your body feels movement while your eyes see a fixed cabin, and the mismatch produces nausea.

That single mechanism explains most of the practical advice: anything that reduces the conflict helps, and anything that increases it makes things worse.

What genuinely reduces it#

Stay on deck and look at the horizon. The most effective thing available, and it works because it removes the sensory conflict entirely.

Take the helm. Steering makes you anticipate the motion rather than react to it. It is remarkably effective and it is why helmsmen rarely get sick.

Stay amidships and low. Motion is least in the middle of the boat and worst at the bow.

Eat something. An empty stomach makes it worse. Plain carbohydrates before and during are better than nothing, and better than a heavy meal.

Stay hydrated. Dehydration amplifies nausea, and being on the water in Australia dehydrates you faster than you notice.

Get sleep beforehand. Fatigue makes susceptibility considerably worse. This is why offshore crews are often worst on the first night.

Stay warm and out of the spray. Being cold and wet lowers your threshold.

Avoid below-deck tasks early in a passage. Navigation, cooking and rummaging in a locker are the classic triggers.

Avoid alcohol the night before. It is the most common avoidable cause of a bad first day offshore.

Medication#

Anti-nausea medications work for many people, and they generally need to be taken before you feel unwell rather than after — once nausea starts, absorption is poor.

Options and suitability vary, several cause drowsiness, and some interact with other medications. This is a conversation to have with a pharmacist or doctor rather than to take advice on from a sailing website, particularly for children, during pregnancy, or alongside other medication.

Wristbands and ginger help some people. The evidence is mixed and they are harmless to try.

What to do when someone is sick#

Get them on deck, warm, and looking at the horizon. Give them a job if they can manage one — the helm, if it is safe. Keep fluids going in small amounts.

Clip them on. This matters more than it sounds: someone who is being sick over the side is at real risk of going over with it, and impaired judgement is part of the condition.

Do not tell them they will be fine. Do tell them it passes, because it usually does — most people acclimatise within a day or two of continuous motion.

Acclimatisation is real#

Most people adapt. The classic pattern offshore is feeling awful for the first twelve to twenty-four hours and then being largely fine for the rest of the passage.

That is why a single bad experience is a poor basis for deciding sailing is not for you. Many people who are miserable on their first offshore passage are entirely comfortable by their third.

Choosing sailing that suits you#

If you are prone to it, the practical response is to choose conditions and boats that reduce exposure rather than to avoid sailing.

Flat-water venues — lakes, rivers, estuaries and protected harbours — produce almost none of the motion that triggers it. Dinghy sailing rarely causes it at all, because you are outside, active, and the motion is different. Short races in sheltered water are a very different proposition to an overnight coastal passage.

Plenty of people sail every week for decades and never go offshore.