Motion sensitivity and motion sickness: causes and what helps

Motion sensitivity is an everyday term for being easily made unwell by movement. In most cases it means motion sickness: the nausea and dizziness many people feel as passengers on a bendy road, a ferry or a long train journey. It is common in children and often improves with age, though anyone can be affected under the right conditions.

The NHS explains the mechanism simply. Repeated movements, such as going over bumps in a car or moving up and down in a boat, plane or train, mean that the inner ear sends different signals to your brain from those your eyes see. The brain reads this mismatch as something being wrong, and you feel unwell.

Some people find they are sensitive to visual movement as well, for instance scrolling on a screen or watching a moving crowd. The NHS advice to avoid reading, watching films or using electronic devices when travelling reflects the same sensory conflict.

The NHS lists the following symptoms of motion sickness. They usually fade soon after the movement stops.

• Dizziness.

• Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick.

• Headache.

• Feeling cold and going pale.

• Sweating.

The NHS suggests reducing motion where possible: sit in the front of a car or the middle of a boat, look straight ahead at a fixed point such as the horizon, get fresh air by opening a car window, and close your eyes and breathe slowly while focusing on your breathing. For children, it suggests distracting them by talking, listening to music or singing, and breaking up long journeys to get fresh air, drink water or take a walk. Ginger as a tablet, biscuit or tea is also suggested.

It advises not reading, watching films or using electronic devices, not looking at moving objects such as passing cars or rolling waves, not eating heavy meals or spicy food or drinking alcohol shortly before or during travel, and not going on fairground rides if they make you feel unwell.

According to the NHS you can buy remedies from pharmacies to help prevent motion sickness. These include tablets (dissolvable tablets are available for children), patches that can be used by adults and children over 10, and acupressure bands, which do not work for everyone. A pharmacist can recommend the best option for you or your child. Tell the pharmacist about any other medicines you take.

If you feel unsteady or dizzy without travelling, or sensitivity to movement is getting in the way of daily life, the cause may be a balance problem. The NHS describes vertigo as feeling that you or everything around you is spinning, enough to affect balance, and lists inner ear problems such as BPPV, labyrinthitis, vestibular neuritis and Meniere's disease, along with migraine and some medicines, among the causes.

The NHS advises seeing a GP if dizziness or vertigo will not go away or keeps coming back, or if you also have worsening hearing, ringing in the ears, double or blurred vision, numbness or weakness in the face, arms or legs, fainting or a changed pulse. Ask for an urgent GP appointment or call NHS 111 if vertigo comes with a severe headache, being sick or very high temperature, and call 999 if there is double vision or loss of vision, hearing loss, trouble speaking or weakness, numbness or tingling in a limb.

For long-lasting balance problems, the NHS says vestibular rehabilitation, a series of exercises supervised by a physiotherapist or audiologist, can help with dizziness, nausea and anxiety. People with vertigo who drive must tell the DVLA, according to the NHS.

Motion sickness is usually managed through self-care and the pharmacy. Persistent balance symptoms are assessed by a GP, who may refer to ENT, audiology or a balance clinic. The NHS notes that waiting lists for NHS physiotherapy can be long and that some people choose private treatment, and that most private physiotherapists accept direct self-referral.