Help - I am feeling seaaick on land

Kayt

In the past I have read posts on this forum from people who are obviously well-travelled. Can you give me some advice please. We are in Sweden and have been travelling round at a fairly slow pace - six days on a canal boat and some trains and buses. Now I am finding that when in (solid?) buildings I feel slightly but persistantly seasick. In confined spaces it is very much worse. We have been mainly on dry land for a few days, but the queasy feeling is getting worse. We are now well off the normal tourist route. I am not saying this to show off or anything, just that it may be tricky finding a pharmacist who speaks enough English to know what I am sufferung from. Will taking a anti-seasickness tablet, if I can find some, help or will that just make me feel worse. if it makes me feel sleepy that would be even worse. it does not help that the food here it quite rich - lots of IMO undercooked fish or meat and strong cheese, very few vegetables etc.

i know that some people on this site may have a very good sense of humour, but I would just like some sensible advice please. I am planning a very quite day tomorrow. I now know how to type in heavy weather in open sea.

SteveR_100Milers

The only sensible advice is to go to the nearest doctors surgery and ask for some help. Failing that you could ask a pharmacist, many to be found in the town centres all over the UK. Finally, if the other two are not possible, go and visit a hospital accident and emergency department, though I suspect you will have a very long wait if you do. Good Luck.

DavidBelcher

SteveR_100Milers wrote:

The only sensible advice is to go to the nearest doctors surgery and ask for some help. Failing that you could ask a pharmacist, many to be found in the town centres all over the UK. Finally, if the other two are not possible, go and visit a hospital accident and emergency department, though I suspect you will have a very long wait if you do. Good Luck.

It sounds somewhat like labyrinthitis (a type of middle-ear infection) to me, which I actually suffered from myself about 2 1/2 years ago and it was downright unpleasant - I was constantly experiencing the sensation of being almost but not quite about to fall over even if walking or standing on level ground. Oddly, it didn't affect my sense of orientation when riding a bike! Agree with the medical advice, it can (from memory) be either viral or bacterial in origin so a GP or hospital specialist should be able to advise the best course of action once the cause is diagnosed. All the best, hope you're feeling well again soon.

David

ut_och_cykla

I've had the seasick feeling after days on a boat but it should go after a day or two. DOing lots of walking - of the more demanding sort might help to refocus your brain but if its still a problem after a few days perhaps as other people have suggested you are ill.

Motionsickness tablets from the Apoteket are available without prescription but might make you sleepy. Don't worry about the English bit - they'll all speak enough to help you !

A doctors time will be very difficult - the best is Akuten/Jourhavande distriktsläkare ie A&E with a GP section. You won't need an appointment but you will have to pay 150-300 SEK :shock:
Theyll speak good english too - or at least will find a colleague who can!
Hope you feel better soon
From a rainy southern Sweden....

Kayt

Thank you to those people who were able to offer advice - especially about Apotekets in Sweden. We are going to Göteborg tomorrow afternoon.

I have had this very odd sensation before when travelling, so I think my best thing to do is get some seasickness tablets for now and get my ears checked in England next week. The strange thing is that when on the boat I was fine and only felt wobbly on land. No, I have not been drinking too much rhum. Yes, I can usually spell "seasick" properly, but perhaps I am better at anomaetopia than I thought I was, it is my ears that are unwell, not my brain.

I was pleased to read that other people have had similar symptoms. We are in Grythattens, 80 km north of Örebro, and travel by train to Göteborg tomorrow, and yes, southern Sweden is very wet today. But very scenic in the beginning of the autumn colours.

Thanks for the help. Do you know any good bars in Göteborg. We were pointed in the direction of the Scheepsbar in Stockholm (by our absolutely wonderful Captain Larsson) and thought that was very good.

abi26

DavidBelcher wrote:

SteveR_100Milers wrote:

It sounds somewhat like labyrinthitis (a type of middle-ear infection) to me,

i agree, the fluid in the middle ear helps to regulate balance. so if you have an ear infection you will feel sick and disorientated. if you go to a doctor they can precribe anti biotics.
i hope your not flying anywhere soon. it would be dangerous.
hope you feel better soon

magibob

As the world's worse sailor who worked for many years on ships, (4 times a week through the Bay of Biscay in Winter anyone?) I have some advice on this.

Firstly the best travel sick tablets I ever found were boots own brand in a blue-ish pack. Work well and don't make you drowsy.

General tip. Ginger biscuits, or indeed ginger in general are good for nausea in general, and seasickness in particular.

I agree with the earlier posters, nausea whilst on dry land should be checked out with a doctor.

Finally, Remember that there are two stages of seasickness. the first stage when you are afraid you are going to die, the second stage when you are afraid you're not. Believe me, Before I discovered the Boots tablets and the Ginger nuts I went through both!

Andy

Kayt

Thank you for the further advice. The general unbalanced feeling is now going away.
I have been travelling again for most of the day. Ut och "cycle" mentionned refocussing one's brain. The long bus ride this morning seemed to help in a funny sort of way, as it reinforced the fact that I am on dry land. My appetite has now returned to normal.
Perhaps it is not just the boats that make me feel off-balance, but also the constant travelling that we have been doing for the last two weeks. Perhaps I need longer holidays with gaps in between the travelling.

HJ1976

You would be suprised how many people - especially professionals such as Pharmasists - speak english in Sweden. We never have any problems even up into the arctic regions when visiting family.

nicklouse

i found that even after 24-25 hours on a boat in reasonable seas it would take 2-3 days before my land legs came back 100%

the locals in Goteborg tend to have pretty good English.

was good weather today.

jellybellywmb

I spent 5 years in the Navy and if I had been at sea for a while would be wobbly for 24hrs or so.
I used to find a good long walk somewhere you could contantly keep a view of the horizon helped, Failing that get very drunk so if your going to feel wobbly it is worth while and you will not worry about the cause.

Kayt

Now back home. The wobbly feeling wore off after three or four daysoff the boat, so I think it was muddled messages between ears and brain.

We visited a Maritime museum in Goteborg yesterday. I had not realised that the entrance to the museum was through a floating, very wide ship. I thought it was a very wide cabin (on land). Very confusing then, when I felt extremely wobbly, until I was told it was a boat

The Maritime museum was brilliant, and we were even able to go down (a ladder about 15 feet long) into a submarine. As well as freely exploring a freighter and a battleship. Why is there such a difference in the Health and Safety interpretation in England and Sweden? You can imagine the obstacles on the deck/floor and objects at head height that you have to negociate in the submarine. The ladder that we came up on, was not securely fixed (it seemed) and there was restricted foot room when you got near the top of the ladder. I am very glad I braved the ladders and felt well enough to do so.

Thank you to those who offered advice or were able to tell me about their similar experiences. As it turned out, lots of people in Sweden spoke very good English. I would definitely visit Sweden again. Can I ask those who live in Sweden, what is Malmo like. I think I prefer Goteborg to Stockholm, as it was easier to find our way around and is much smaller. I might plan another (third) visit to Sweden: Goteborg, Malmo and possibly Copenhagen, as it is so close. I would be interested to know your "first hand" knowledge.

ut_och_cykla

Malmös ok (80 kms away - nearby for me) but Copenhagen is a capital city with all teh prices and trappings. Gothenburg is more down to earth than Stockholm, where the inhabitants often think they are a cut above the rest of Sweden especially those in the south! Oslo was a great place 20 years ago but haven't been there since. Denmark & Sweden are both great for cycling but Denmark is probably more accepting of cyclists.
Teh west coast of Sweden between malmö & Gothenburg is worth a week or two's 'crawl' in itself - and in the summer ie not this year!!
Glad your better