Ski sickness

A snowHead

Hi, I'm 58 & have over 30 weeks skiing under my belt. My last ski trip to Pas de la Casa was quite strange, the first morning we were blasting all over the place followed by some lunch but then I stared to feel ill, very ill. I felt drunk, lightheaded, sick, sweaty & had no strength. (No alcohol involved) I somehow ended up plowing back to top of the run that overlooks Pas & it then took me 90 mins to get down what would normally have taken me about 5 mins. From lunchtime it was overcast & dull !! I ended up at the Doctors who said I had a lung infection & gave me antibiotics but also said I had SKI SICKNESS ......... what ? Never heard of it but she described my symptoms perfectly & I suffer badly from sea sickness. I also have tinnitus but that has not affected me before. Can anyone recommend a cure or help ? Thanks in advance..

A snowHead

I've never heard of it....Altitude Sickness - Yes; but not Ski Sickness.

I assume the symptoms were caused by the lung infection. Is it now better? Was the Doctor somehow suggesting that skiing caused the Lung Infection? Could you have picked it up on the plane?

My Father suffered similar....but it turned out he had Angina (which I assume is not the problem here).

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Hi, Google ski sickness .......... it's amazing !! I'm trying to find a way to prevent it. I personally don't think I had a lung infection !!

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I experience it in poor light. Have done for 45 years.., learned to ski in Scotland. Not helpful wink

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@Old Fartbag, I've experienced the condition of almost "sea sickness" type queasyness on the few occasions when I've been in a total white out situations where you can't read the terrain and you're not sure whether you're a on downward or upward sloping piece of ground. Perhaps other sHs have too?

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Have you found a remedy for it ?

After all it is free

Do you wear glasses? If so has your prescription changed? My prescription causes some distortion at the edges which can be a bit disorienting, and this this has made me feel quesy at times.

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Hi, I only wear glasses for reading so they wouldn't affect me !!

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I’ve experienced the same symptoms ONCE! But only once.

I can’t be sure what it was. But my best guess had been a combination of altitude sickness exaggerated by flat light induced vertigo.

It was overcast with a bit of blowing snow, making it hard to see where I was. No reference as to whether I was moving or stopped. It was the first time I’ve encountered that so I was downright scared. It took me an hour to get down the 1000’ vertical. Shortest ski day I’ve ever done.

(I’ve been in similar situation again but without the dizziness)

The rest of the day, headache and just feeling queasy.

As I just flew in from sea level to nearly 10000’, I mostly treated the altitude sickness side of the symptoms. Lot of water and a rather fitful night (bathroom visits).

Surprisingly, the next day I was feeling perfectly fine. I took it easy for day 2, then resume my usual skiing.

Now, I pay attention to altitude on my ski trips. Take it easy on day 1. Drink lots of water, and rest. Never had the same problem again.

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I get this watching GoPro footage of skiing but don't think I've had it on the slopes.

It sounds perfectly plausible that a kind of motion sickness can affect skiers - it certainly does, for many people, in poor visibility. Might be exacerbated by the effects of even moderate altitude (especially for people who suffer from migraines who might be hyper-sensitive to even small changes in atmospheric pressure). And somebody who is not normally very physically active who spends a morning spent "blasting all over the place", especially after a poor night's sleep, might expect to feel under par.

You know it makes sense.

I've had it twice, the worst was in VT when I was working for once of the ski companies, got it on the way up and mid week. Same issue both times dehydration and not enough sleep.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

I've only had 5 weeks, but I've felt dodgy sometimes - disoriented and queezy, when it happens I stop and admire the view (if there is one!).

The cure for sea sickness is to keep your eyes on the horizon. If, in a windowless room, the ship pitches and rolls, your brain thinks that the world is moving and reacts accordingly (the information from your 'chalky balls' is in conflict with the information from your eyes) by looking at the horizon the brain can see that it is the vessel that is pitching and rolling, the world isn't, the conflict is resolved, and the body is ok.

When skiing, if the conditions permit, keep your head up and keep an eye on the horizon, any movement will be interpreted by the brain as a deliberate movement of the body, not the world moving, so all is well. It works for me.

A snowHead

I suffer from this as well, it's messed up a load of ski days for me. To the extent now that if it looks like there is any risk of flat light or poor visibility, I take Itinernol, a motion sickness tablet that has some caffeine in it. That's worked great for me. These symptoms are exaggerated by any trace of tiredness or a hangover, so for the OP, if you don't want to suffer, I'd go easy on the apres as well! But a strong 5* recommendation for taking some motion sickness pills, its helped me enormously with the same problem.

A snowHead

you can acutally take sea sickness tablets..for many peple they work...its all in the inner ear im told

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@rjgordon0, I've had something similar in foggy conditions. Heady and woozey. On the reverse, if it is too sunny I get migraine. Why do we do it?

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I have learn a lot about this, thanks guys!

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I wonder whether it was just vertigo(bppv) as it appeared not to subside when you got down to the village.

There are simple tests for bppv. The condition is caused when salt crystals break off inside your balance system, collect with others then bounce around causing dizziness and nausea etc.

Unfortunately once you get it you are prone to repeat attacks but the solution is simple. You need to get the rogue crystals somewhere safe in the balance canals to dissolve.

I get bppv but I have never had it in the mountains.

Here is a YouTube solution that works for me:

http://youtube.com/v/bu2YurNjEV8

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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

My Doctor recommended Stugeron for vertigo, which works, I carry a couple in my wallet just in case.

After all it is free

I take Sturgeon too. Eat lightly first day and drink loads of water. Had it in my fifties, now in sixties and seems to have disappeared. Weird!

@sarah jane, we had Sturgeon as the fish course at our wedding!

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My wife gets bppv every six months or do and it's obviously not nice! The exercises mentioned above work well especially when used at an early stage.
I have always suffered from astigmatism and a few years ago started to notice problems when skiing. I have been skiing for nearly fifty years but for the rirst time suffered from a level of disorientation and nausea three years ago. I clearly remember the occasion when I found myself landing on my side in a whiteout whilst convinced I was in total control.
The following summer I was told that I had a problem with my left eye and almost immediately lost the eye. I was skiing by the next season (with kind encouragement from people on this forum) and feelings of disorientation and nausea are now gone.
The brain plays some weird and wonderful tricks when the senses contradict what the mind expects but as it adapts things become 'normal' again.

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I’ve just returned from a few days in Pas & I got my ski legs back !!! Firstly I had a clean bill of health..... no flu four weeks before skiing!!! I took some really good motion sickness tablets with me but never used them as we had bluebird skies all week. I also asked the local in resort pharmacy about altitude sickness tablets & they gave me a type of aspirin that can help with low to medium altitude........ one per day & only 1.50 euro, result

I have had this, particularly in VT (could be the 2300m base altitude not helping). It’s quite unnerving. Good to know about those medications for reassurance. I thought it was just me!

You know it makes sense.

Very oddly, as I get nauseous quite swiftly in flat light (if not in the trees) we've found ourselves being out where I would normally expect to find myself feeling quite sick and didn't but Mrs U who has never suffered it, did, and had to go home.

No precipitating circumstances that we could see (sic). (see what I did there, three times!).

Very bizarre.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

@snowymum, because they're kids and just get on with it?

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Just stumbled across this.
I do remember skiing Stubai a few years ago in near white out conditions. When a friend announced he was suffering from ski sickness (never had it before) we quickly realised the reason. He had just had eyes laser treatment, one eye was set for distance and the other for reading! Clearly not a good decision Puzzled

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Ski sickness

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