Forum: lifehacks.stackexchange.com
Tags: <car><reading>
Title: Avoid feeling sick reading in a moving vehicle
Question: I am a student who use public transportation. I usually spend   2 hours   a day on the bus going to work, and use this time to study or just relax reading something.  But the movement make me feel  very sick .  Are there any tricks to avoid feeling sick  when reading in a moving vehicle? I want to continue using this time to read.

Answers:
sents: text: Have you tried ginger?
text: It's something that actually helps with my motion sickness.
text: Ginger supplements or ginger candy, taken 30-60 minutes before the daily trip could do wonders.
text: And it's actually Mythbusters tested and approved (Small sample size, so YMMV).
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/12864/Stig Tore
score: 14
sents: text: You won't be able to avoid it, I'm afraid - in sensitive people, it's caused by a mismatch in the information the brain receives - the movement causes messages to be sent from your ears and certain receptors in the neck to your brain that you're moving, but the eyes are sending an opposing message, that is, you're not moving.
text: And in some people, that causes nausea.
text: The only way to avoid it is not to read, and actually, the way to never feel sick on buses, cars and coaches is to always look through the front window, at where you're going, or out the back window, where you've been.
text: Looking out the side windows can cause nausea too.
text: Sadly, I speak from experience....
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/1738/Bamboo
score: 4
sents: text: You could take motion sickness pills if you want to get rid of the feeling completely, however I'm not sure if that would be your best choice if you are experiencing this problem every single day.
text: I have motion sickness as well.
text: Usually standing up on the bus helps, make sure you don't ride bus on empty stomach.
text: Another trick to reduce the sickness is to not look down and try to look at farther objects like buildings and hills rather than sidewalks.
text: Don't try to focus your attention on anything inside the bus, you need to look out of the window.
text: Avoid sitting in the back of the bus also helps.
text: Definitely don't read anything or keep looking down to check your phone.
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/9411/fuzzy_onesie
score: 1
sents: text: It's a common occurrence when people lack compound vision and are less tolerable to ambiguity.
text: If you do have ocular differences try looking up "Anisometropia Ambliopia" this can be fixed with contacts as glasses are further and create discrepancies.
text: This is my idea as it only seems to be when your reading, but your not alone
text: I have the same );
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/12967/TevDeviant
score: 1
sents: text: Where you sit in the bus can make a big difference.
text: But the optimal position depends on the person.
text: Some people say to sit as close to the front as possible, but to always face forward, never to the side or backwards.
text: However, for me, I found that I get less motion sick while reading if I sit on one of the forward facing seats over one of the rear wheels.
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/1563/Johnny
score: 1
sents: text: Motion sickness usually happens when look out the side window in a moving vehicle.
text: It is caused by perceptual differences between the senses.
text: If reading in a vehicle make sure that your focus is on the page and not your surroundings .
text: This should minimize the effect.
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/13723/Old_Fossil
score: 1
sents: text: I've encountered the same thing, and have noted this seems to be more prevalent in situations where 1) I am unfamiliar with the travel route and/or 2)
text: there are lot's of twists and turns.
text: You have the advantage in that your commute to/from school will typically follow the same route each time.
text: The key, I've found, is to first become familiar with the route: where are the sharp turns, steep inclines or declines ... and where are the frequent stop and start sections.
text: You'll know you are "familiar" with where these things are in your route if you can successfully sleep through the trip yet still wake up in anticipation of ...
text: say a stop or two before ...
text: your stop!
text: ;-)
text: This happens because your body has learned to subconsciously anticipate and acknowledge where and when those changes in the travel direction will occur.
text: Once you've mastered your route you can successfully read without becoming motion sick.
text: You may have to pause to look up and just watch the road during the tricky areas (sharp turn, steep incline/decline, frequent stop and go), but should be able to resume reading during the rest of the trip without the motion sick feeling.
text: Hope this is helpful!
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/13193/Ceylon_17
score: 1
sents: text: We used to avoid seasickness by drinking half a beer before sailing, not surehow practical that would be for your situation.
answer_details: author: lifehacks.stackexchange.com/users/18403/B. Fife
score: 0

Summary of the answers:
It is not clear whether this is avoidable or not, however, motion sickness pills or ginger might alleviate the symptoms. It may also be possible to fix this problem with contacts. Ultimately, the trick will be to make sure that you focus on the page and not your surrondings. You may find that where you sit on the bus also will make a difference but this will depend on the person.
The options include eating some ginger, avoiding reading, trying motion sickness pills, standing up on the bus, ensuring you have a full stomach, looking out of the window and avoiding sitting at the back of the bus. You may need to get your eyes tested and if you do read try to focus only on the book and not the surroundings as well.