For as long as I can remember, I’ve never been able to do anything in the car except sit. I can’t read, I can’t text, I can’t crochet, I can’t cross stitch, I can’t look at a map (back when we actually used paper maps) or my map app—nothing. And sleeping doesn’t go too well either. My mom and sister and some of my kids and John can read and do things in the car, and I was always a bit envious of this. Maybe this is why I often offer to do the driving because that’s definitely not as boring as just sitting there. For hours.
I can do things on the plane, as long as it’s not bumpy, which is super nice. And John and I got that awesome patch for our cruise, which worked wonders. But in the car? Nada, zippo, nothing.
A couple of Fridays ago John and I needed to leave in the early afternoon to drive to Tennessee for his sister’s wedding, and since I’m still in the midst of that huge work project, I woke up that morning thinking about how I sure wished there was a way I could work during that 3 1/2 hour drive. I was curious to see what exactly causes motion sickness, and here’s what WebMD says:
You get motion sickness when one part of your balance-sensing system (your inner ear, eyes, and sensory nerves) senses that your body is moving, but the other parts don’t.
Well…now that makes sense! On a plane, unlike in a car, there aren’t any objects going by in my peripheral vision, so my brain doesn’t realize I’m moving. I’d kinda’ wondered if this was the case and thought about how awesome it would be to invent something I could wear on my head—a hat of sorts—that would block my peripheral vision…still need to work on that one.
As I was still lying there thinking about how in the world I could work in the car, I remembered that I do take Less-Drowsy Dramamine on the plane if there is even the slightest chance of any sort of bumpiness, and that seems to work pretty well. So…I thought…try it today on the drive! What’s the worse thing that could happen? Well, I could get sick, but it would be totally worth the risk if it worked!
John was going to the store to get trip snacks (because…trip = snacks, of course!), so I had him pick up some Less-Drowsy Dramamine. I took just 1 pill 30 minutes before we left (I’m a lightweight on any medications and anesthesia, so taking 2 would’ve probably knocked me out), we left for the trip, and I pulled out my laptop (with a prayer in my heart), and started working.
And. It. Worked!!!!!
Except for a slight, curvy-roaded detour we made before Chattanooga to not get stuck in the traffic from a wreck, I worked the whole drive to Tennessee!!! From time to time I would look up at the surroundings (I read that would help), and if I started to feel a bit sick, I’d take some deep breaths and look around for a bit, and then get back to work. And my hotspot on my phone worked awesomely the whole trip too! Win-win!
Now…I was doing computer work where my eyes were shifting from one thing to another, so I’m not sure if this trick would work with reading or an activity where my eyes pretty much stay focused in one place, but I’m okay with that. And I still might try reading in the car.
While this might seem like a small thing, it’s a total game-changer for me. While John was driving and I was working, he mentioned that this was definitely different since he’s the one who is usually working in the car while I drive.
I guess we’ll have to flip for it next time.
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