Ocean Explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau's Tips for Dealing With Seasickness

Jean-Michel Cousteau—son of the iconic documentary filmmaker and conservationist Jacques Cousteau—claims to have never experienced seasickness himself. The 80-year-old explorer attributes his luck to the amount of time he's spent on boats filming nature documentaries, exploring marine environments, and raising awareness about conservation issues. So what advice does he have when his shipmates start to look a little green around the gills? Thrillist recently reached out to him for an answer.

Cousteau has seen a fellow sailor succumb to the nausea-inducing rocking of a ship many times. When this happens, he says the best thing to do is avoid the bow, or the front of the ship, but resist the urge to hide out below deck—away from any views of the ocean. Motion sickness occurs when the information sensed by our inner ear doesn't match up with what we see in front of us: In the case of sea travel, this could mean you feel the floor of the boat shifting beneath you while the wall of the galley appears to stay still.

Rather than forcing yourself to forget where you are, Cousteau says the most effective approach is to embrace your enemy. Look out at the water and try to appreciate the sights. Staring intently at the horizon will also help re-balance what you're seeing with what you're sensing. Soon you won't be focusing on that queasy feeling in your stomach. “Suddenly, instead of not feeling well, they’re distracted by our profound connection to the oceans," Cousteau told Thrillist.

And if all else fails and your boat is nowhere near dry land, Cousteau suggests a very Cousteau-esque solution: Slip on your scuba gear and get in the water. Of course, that may not be an option depending on what type of voyage you're on. If that's the case, you may want to consider these more conventional motion sickness remedies.