E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSBarf bags: They’re not just for kids anymore.
Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images file
Are we there YET? Adults are often unpleasantly surprised to discover they can develop the queasy stomach, cold sweats, dizziness and headaches of carsickness, even if they never had it as a kid.
In fact, they never were. When we think of motion sickness, the picture that most often comes to mind may be that three-hour car trip to Grandma’s with a heaving child and no change of clothing.
Yet some adults are unpleasantly surprised to find themselves coming down with the unforgettably bad symptoms of queasy stomach, cold sweats, dizziness and headaches, even if they never got them as kids. From vision changes to pregnancy, a number of triggers can upset our finely tuned internal balance system and set sickness in motion, so to speak.
Here how it works: Humans use our eyes, ears and feet to estimate of our location and movement through space. You get a conflict when the signals disagree, which can happen to any of us if the conditions are bad enough.
“Let’s say your eyes are reading in the car, so they think you should be still, but the bouncing of the car tells your ears you’re moving,” says Timothy Hain, M.D., an otoneurologist and professor at Northwestern University Medical School.
Kids may be more prone to motion sickness simply because their ears work better; as we age we lose inner ear function, along with the tendency to hurl on a swaying boat.
Yet other hazards await adults. One often overlooked cause of persistent motion sickness may be a visual disorder -- also known as “see-sick syndrome,” says Dan Fortenbacher, O.D., who treats the disorder at his practice in St. Joseph, MI. In these cases, an eye problem such as decreased depth perception or muscle control sends miscues to our vestibular system, a part of the inner ear and brain responsible for keeping us in balance as we go about our lives.
In many cases, patients have had vision issues since childhood, but age-related changes make it harder to compensate, Fortenbacher says. It doesn’t take a car trip to set things off; patients may feel sick watching a movie, scanning the aisles while grocery shopping, even looking at stripes on a shirt.
“Sea sickness wasn’t an issue. My problem was being vertical. I would stand up and have to hold on because I would feel like the room was moving,” says LaReine Gretzky of Bridgman, Mich.
A stroke or bump to the head can also disturb the balance system. For Norman Greene, a television executive producer from New York, a head injury from a bad taxi accident at age 36 led to later miseries in any moving vehicle, particularly the helicopters he flies in to film.
“I discovered this when I took this little, baby roller coaster with my kid at Sesame Place. I had to sit down; I was horribly sick. I felt like I’d been tossed into a burlap bag and thrown off a bridge,” he says.
Inner ear problems like an infection or a circulatory problem can also affect the vestibular system. Seems reasonable, but experts are still puzzled as to why pregnancy and menstruation make women more prone to motion sickness.
Another double-whammy: Migraine sufferers, who are more sensitive generally to external stimuli, are also about five times more likely to also suffer from motion sickness, Hain says. Peak ages for both maladies are parallel in females: Girls usually start getting migraines around age 12, when puberty kicks in. There is another peak at age 35, then a second peak at age 52, around the time of menopause.
Treatment for see-sick syndrome involves eye exercises and special lenses. For the rest of us, avoiding bumpy seats, a pre-trip heavy meal and reading can ward off the occasional travel queasiness. And if you can, drive.
“Drivers have a big advantage in avoiding motion sickness. Because they know where they are going, there are fewer surprise motions,” Hain says.
Do you suffer from motion sickness now -- even though you never did as a child? We'd love to hear from you. Leave a comment here or on Facebook; we may use your story in an upcoming msnbc.com post.
Related:
Want more weird health news? Find The Body Odd on Facebook.
Leave a Comment:
I never used to get car sick as a kid. I could read in a car for hours - curvy roads and all. Now, I can't even look at a map without getting queasy. Swings can set me off, and sometimes even roller coasters, which I love to ride. This started in my mid to late 30's - right around the time my vision started to deteriorate (I now use readers).
I started getting motion sickness in my twenties. I'm now almost 50 and it's to the point where I can't switch from wearing my contact lenses to my glasses. I get so sick to my stomach and dizzy that I've stopped wearing my glasses all together and only wear my contacts.
Recent research has identified low serotonin levels as a trigger for motion sickness in adults. That helps explain the nausea/vomiting reaction since the majority of serotonin is used by the gastrointestinal tract - not the brain. However, low serotonin is also associated with depression and migraines, so adults with motion sickness should consider these angles. Treatment with antidepressants that increase available brain serotonin may reduce or eliminate motion sickness symptoms in adults.
Very interesting information. I never suffered from motion sickness until the age of 40, but now I absolutely cannot go offshore in a boat unless I am wearing "the patch" behind my ear (inshore seems to be okay). I also suffered from migraines from the age of 7 to 35. About 10 years ago, I attempted to participate in a clinical trial for a new anti-depressant, but although I met the standard to participate in the study, I was excluded because it was discovered during the physical exam that I had Long QT Syndrome (abnormal heart rythym). Anti-depressants are a no-no for people with this condition. But still, it's very interesting to find that low serotonin levels may be connected to three different conditions that one might otherwise think were unrelated.
I'm 41 and I've suffered this all my life. I ride the bus to work and I would love to use that time to read, but I can't. Interesting about the migraine connection. I also suffer from frequent headaches.
Actually, a friend says his wife found that marijuana helps her car-sickness. Makes sense if it works for those dealing with chemo-therapy and other stomach-impacting illnesses.
Important to note, some people with this issue may be suffering from a rare syndrome... Mal de Debarquement Syndrome... See - for more information.
Link for previous post... mddsfoundation dot org
I used to be able to ride any kind of fair rides, but at the age of 19 I suddenly developed motion sickness and have suffered with it on and off since then. I can ride roller coasters that don't loop, but can't even watch a merry-go-round, much less ride it. Nor can I watch credits roll on a screen or (I know I'm dating myself!) records rotating on a turntable. I was diagnosed with vertigo by a doctor 35 years ago, but I haven't been treated in years. I don't get migraine headaches, although I do occasionally get the visual auras. I also don't suffer from depression. I do know my limitations, however, and avoid situations that I know will cause motion sickness.
I havent been able to ride a carnival ride since the birth of my 3rd child (23 years). Thankfully, car/plane ok for the moment.
Interesting article. If anyone wants to read more on the origin of the thinking about oculomotor contribution to motion sickness, you can Google Scholar the name "Ebenholtz" (although he did not use the phrase "see sick").
If you want to read more on the migraine aspects, there are a number of articles about "labyrinthine migraine," e.g., search under "Clark" and "Rupert."
For more on MDD, search under "Hain" (there is also a nice recent "review by someone else).
If you want to dig into the theories attempting to explain motion sickness (but be careful what you wish for), you can search for "sensory conflict/rearrangement" ala' Reason or Oman; "Triesman's evolutionary hypothesis," the postural instability theories of Stoffregen, or one of my faves, Guedry et al, '98 ("Motion sickness and the development of synergy...")
If you want to read about why a knock to the head might cause you to have vestibular symptoms, there is much you can read by lead author names like Sherer; Hoffer; Balaban; Herdman; Gottshall; and myself, Lawson. You might want to simply start with the excellent lay reading on Hain's website, though.
Ladies and Gents: please beware of non-academic sites trying to sell you various miracle cures for motion sickness which do not require any medication or adaptation strategies. There is only one thing these sites all agree upon -- they will be glad to take your money.
I was never car or motion sick as a child and young adult as long as I didn't read when the vehicle was in motion. Amusement park rides? The scarier, twisty and twirly, the better! Roller coaster that went upside down and had terrorizing drops were what I lived for. In my thirties that all changed. You couldn't get me on the teacups at Disney World for all the money in the world now. A bad cold will result in weeks of vertigo and I avoid air travel at all costs unless the trip would take weeks by ground - and if I am in the air, I am medicated!
My severe motion sickness started when I was pregnant. I used to love roller coasters, the tilt-a-whirl, you name it. Now I can't even watch someone else play a first person shooter game without nearly passing out.
Also, that old saying about riding a bicycle? Not true. I can't do it anymore. Every time I stand up, I feel like I'm walking on a boat deck.
Another huge bummer is that I'm allergic to the motion sickness patches. None of my doctors seem to think my symptoms are interesting or important. I guess that's what I get for moving to Oklahoma.
"Yet some adults are unpleasantly surprised to find themselves coming down with the unforgettably bad symptoms of queasy stomach, cold sweats, dizziness and headaches, even if they never got them as kids." These are the exact symptoms that I have when in a car. I had associated it as panic/anxiety attacks rather than plain motion sickness. I've been taking anti-anxiety medication to help me with my car issues (which do work) but now I'm stuck on the meds. Then again, I'm prone to get these symptoms in loud places too so I guess it's not just motion sickness. And I do wear glasses so maybe I could go get my eyes checked out since it's been awhile.
The thing about loud noises could indicate either a problem with your ear or how your brain processes what it hears.
If I hear certain notes played loudly, I have these episodes where I lose all sense of where I'm situated in relation to everything else (I can't tell if I'm standing, sitting, right-side up, up-side down, etc.). It isn't anxiety-related. It started around the same time as my motion sickness. If you have a good neurologist in your area (I don't), go and see him/her.
Sorry to hear about the extent of your motion sickness. Yeah the same with me, my doctors can't figure out why I am the way I am so they put me on multiple depression/anxiety meds and I've had an MRI and plenty of blood tests but in the end I gave up and just figured out it's just all in my head. I've been doing good with lorazepam for awhile now but I'm starting to get sick in cars again. Last week I went to my god daughter's bday party at Chuck E Cheese and it was noisy as heck from all the little kids and I felt nauseus and anxious so it may be an ear thing. Thanks for your input! If I start to worsen I'll go see a neurologist.
This is my life. I suffer from vasovagal syncope as well as migraines. My doctors worry because I ride horses, but surprisingly I never experience any symptoms while riding.
While I was pregnant with me second child I got a whole host of unpleasant symptoms one of which was motion sickness and another one was migraines They have never gone away ( 24 years ago) and I also developed Fibromyalgia. During my first pregnancy none of this occured. I have been suffering ever since.
I got motion sickness as a child in cars, on carnival rides, riding horses and in boats. As an adult, I still cannot ride in the backseat of a car without getting sick. I cannot even watch someone playing a video game where the screen moves.
I have an odd experience every time I drive for several hours. I recently drove from Atlanta to Boston. Whenever I stopped to get gas, I felt like I was still moving. When I finally got to my hotel in Boston, I felt the bed was moving forward in the same motion of the car. I've had this problem for many years, but recently it's become more pronounced and unpleasant.
I think this is pretty normal, actually. A lot of people have that response to long periods in motion. Sailors used to talk about having to get their "sea legs" and upon returning, their "land legs." Best thing to do is, don't make such long drives. Atlanta to Boston is quite a car trip.
I started getting motion sickness in my early twenties. Now 20 yrs later, I get sick on cruise ships and can't even read or type an email or text message when someone else is driving.
I just recently had a "dizziness" experience so bad that I had to be taken to the emergency room. I spent a number of hours in ER, at the cost of my deductable and no specific diagnosis was given to me even after I saw both my own Dr. and and ENT as well.
Inner ear infection, and vertigo were some things mentioned but no Dr. mentioned "adult" onset motion sickness. My experience caused vomiting and lasted several hours and came on quickly during lunch after I stood up.
Thanks for the article.
I have never been able to drink, I did try to when I was a teenager about 18 to 21. I always threw up, and the hangovers were terrible lasting a couple days. What I was told and it was be more than a couple Ear, Nose and Throat Doctors over the years is that I have Hyper Active Middle Ears.. What that means is that if you stood next to me and turned your head back and forth, your inner ear would stop when you stopped.. Mine do not. So I do sometimes feel if I have a slight cold coming on my inner ear is very in tuned with what happens with the rest of my body... For that fact I do not Drink, can not handle it, not missing a thing I think. I do drive a good 99.9 percent of the time or I do so sit in the front seat..I do have sinus issues so I just got done with the getting up from bed and the head spinning so I did have to take care of them asap..I also can get the same woozy feeling sometimes because of extreme colors, extreme heat, if my food upset my tummy, watching a belt or something going really fast, it can make me turn away so I do not try to put myself in certain situations which I can live with easily.. I also have Tinnitus and have had my hearing tested and it is really good so that is a strange kind of thing going on.. But my issues are definitely caused by my ears... so keep that in mind..
I've always had motion sickness issues - can't read in the car, get nauseous riding up a ski lift, and my favorite so far was getting that dizzy queasy feeling when attending an aerial yoga class. I guess the anti-gravity was just a little too much for me!
So why do I get seasick if I read in a car, but not on a train? And why can't the intellect stop it? Why can't the conscious brain override the conflicting signals from the senses?