Take Free Sensory Profile

Login/register

7 Things You Didn’t Know Were Causing Motion Sickness


What Is Motion Sickness?

We get motion sickness when there are repeated movements like going over bumps in cars or moving up and down in a boat.

Because your inner ear sends different signals to your brain from your eyes your brain gets mixed up and it makes you feel sick.

The inner ear is part of your vestibular system and is essential to our sense of balance. So if you have difficulties with your vestibular system you may find that your motion sickness goes way beyond that of moving up and down on a boat!

Vestibular Migraine

Vestibular migraine attacks can be triggered by external motion such as moving vehicles, movies or computer screens. Read more here

Now let’s look at 7 things contributing to motion sickness that you might not have known about!


Visual Clutter

If you have sensory difficulties you may find bright colours or visual clutter very overwhelming.

It can cause you to feel dizzy, sick and disorientated.

Packing

Packing your suitcase and sorting your travel documents can be visually overwhelming as it usually involves some form of clutter.

Stations, airports, buses and trains are colourful places that can be visually overwhelming. Train and bus seats are usually brightly coloured with bold patterns and the floors and walls of the stations and airports can be bright and disorientating.


Rushing

7 Things You Didn’t Know Were Causing Motion Sickness

I don’t know why but we always seem to do it. Leaving packing to the last minute or not leaving enough time to get to the airport. These are things that will make you feel disorganized and this can make you feel sick, dizzy and disorientated.


Busy Airports & Stations

Airports & Stations are full of people so this means big queues and not much room to move freely.

The way we move around an airport or station can cause vestibular issues and this can add to motion sickness. These places usually have lifts, escalators and travelators and whilst there will be an option to use steps this can be difficult if you have lots of luggage.

Getting Through Security

If you are travelling out of the country you will need to go through security. This can be disorientating for many reasons.

If you’re rushing and running late you’ll be panicking that you’ll miss your connection.

Human Nature

I’m also pretty sure that most people who go through security panic that they won’t get through. It doesn’t matter if you’ve done nothing wrong it’s how the human mind works!

So you are already feeling stressed just getting to the front of that queue.

Then depending on where you are or what you are travelling you may have to remove your shoes or some items of your clothing and then unpack your bag just to have to pack it back up at the other end where there is no room and very little time. This is stressful!


Where You Sit

You might not have realised but where you sit can cause motion sickness. Most people know that sitting in the back of the car or travelling backwards on a train causes them motion sickness but what about where you sit on an aeroplane?

Where Your Seat Is

If you’re sitting at the front of a plane getting up to walk to the toilet at the back can cause a loss of balance which contributes to motion sickness. However, if you sit at the back of the plane you may find the rows of people in front of you visually overwhelming.

If you’re sitting in the window seat or the middle seat this can also cause issues as you are unable to escape feeling blocked in.


Embarkation & Disembarkation

This is more of an issue if you are flying as sometimes to get to your plane or back to the airport from your plane you will need to take a bus. These buses aren’t like regular buses as they have very limited seating with most people standing holding onto a pole for safety whilst the bus whizzes around the airport causing people to topple over.


Take Off & Landing

Taking off & landing or just moving in and out of a station can cause disorientation. If you’re on an aeroplane the change in altitude can make your ears pop and make you feel sick.  This can cause a headache and sickness. This is usually the point where you need to close your eyes and you think your motion sickness is starting.


7 Things You Didn’t Know Were Causing Motion Sickness

But if you look back over all of these points you’ll see that you’ve been getting overwhelmed, disorientated, sick and dizzy from the moment you started packing your bag. Every step of the way until that moment where your journey physically starts has contributed to your motion sickness.

So what can you do?

Think of ways you can adapt and change how you travel or check our out tips blog here

Popular links

Sensory Profile