In this massive essay I’m going to break down (and build up) the concepts of motion sickness, simulator sickness, and a lot of related conditions in mind-blowing ways. Over a decade of research and painful first-hand experience has revealed myriad connections between histamine build-up, low serotonin, dopamine anomalies, dyslexia, dynamic movement perceptual difficulties, migraines, specific genes, and simulator/motion sickness. My own case of simulator sickness is the worst I’ve ever encountered or heard of, so yes, I’ve been deeply motivated to figure this crap out. I hope this page helps you feel better (and edified!).
Simulator Sickness & Motion Sickness Symptoms
Simulator sickness and motion sickness manifest similarly for me. Both feature headaches, nausea, dizziness, excess heat in my face (as if I have a very localized fever), mental slowness, and general disorientation.
Simulator sickness emphasizes the headache aspect with a more pronounced face-fever, but when it gets bad it includes a fair bit of nausea and dizziness as well.
Motion sickness emphasizes the nausea aspect although it can appear just as a headache when it is mild.
Both conditions will tend to continue far after the aggravating stimuli is removed. When it comes to simulator sickness the sensitivity the following day is heightened. In other words, the effects are cumulative not just over minutes or hours, but days. In the worst case of simulator sickness (back when I didn’t know what was causing it), it took five days of rest without doing anything to strain my eyes or mind before the pounding headache finally stopped. (I was in pain for a little over two weeks in total in that particular instance which was when I was around twenty-three.)
In this article I’m going to explore many things I didn’t previously believe were related. Now I believe they are all stemming from the same anomalies, which may be genetic in origin. The same symptoms occur and feel subjectively the same from this wide array of experiences – from reading, to wearing glasses, to long car-rides. Simply “feeling similar” wouldn’t have ever been enough to make me think they were more directly related, but the fact that two of these factors would make the symptoms more than twice as bad, and sometimes make the symptoms come on more than twice as fast, began to shift my thinking.
Examples:
🟣 If I combine wearing glasses with a mentally challenging board game I will get the same symptoms sooner and more strongly than if I were to play the game without glasses.
🟣 These activities also multiply the symptoms when they are done back-to-back: getting into a car after I’ve just had a long study session means I will end up with motion sickness on a relatively relaxed, smooth drive that would otherwise evoke no response on its own. And, predictably, the motion sickness will be heavy on the headache side since it is really simulator sickness being amplified rather than the reverse.
🟣 Whereas if I have developed motion sickness in a car, if I get out of the car and then try to read, my symptoms will get worse – including the nausea – which is almost never induced by reading alone.
🟣 In fact, I can read for hours upon hours now (in my mid-thirties), but if I’ve been scrolling through photos on my phone (giving myself simulator sickness), trying to read any substantial text will greatly emphasize the simulator-sickness headache.
🟣 If I’ve come off an airplane or out of a car ride with motion sickness, I need to wait until all symptoms go away (usually until after I’ve slept) before I can do any activities which would induce simulator sickness – otherwise my existing symptoms will skyrocket and I’ll have the added symptoms of simulator sickness arrive immediately. This can be so severe that I become incredibly dizzy (possibly just from pain-overload at that point).
Simulator Sickness
The Myriad Simulator Sickness Causes
Simulator Sickness from Games
Simulator sickness is brought on most rapidly by attempting to play a first-person-perspective game that is (1) new to me and (2) in a virtual area that is closed in (i.e. rapidly changing environment whenever you move your perspective). Within five minutes of playing a new game in these conditions I can end up with a severe headache that will linger for hours after I have stopped playing the game.
I can adjust to a game if I play and stop right before I get sick and repeat this process over weeks, slowly moving up from two minutes a day to thirty minutes a day, adding a minute or two each day. This is extremely aggravating so I don’t go through this process often, particularly since messing up means being left feeling ill for hours or the remainder of the day.
It is also essential that I don’t become overly stressed or unhappy while trying to adjust to a game. The less stress I experience, the more quickly I adapt to a game. Those happiness neurotransmitters, as always, are miracle-workers (literally!).
Simulator Sickness from Scrolling
While simulator sickness develops for me most rapidly while playing a first-person-perspective video game, it also develops when scrolling a lot on a web page (whether that’s on a PC or a phone). I usually use “long blinks” to help with this issue, but prolonged online shopping (over an hour) brings on the headache, the vague sense of nausea, etc. Even shorter online shopping sessions (a few minutes) can induce pangs of vertigo, disorientation, or pain in my temples.
The same “scrolling sickness” comes from sorting photographs (which involves scrolling through many images and pausing only to select some and drag them into a folder), and sometimes just from reading on a page that scrolls. It helps if I remember to close my eyes or blink a lot when scrolling, but sometimes I’m so absorbed that I try to track what I’m looking at while it’s in motion; and that hurts.
So what’s going on? Simulator sickness (also called cybersickness) occurs when there is a mismatch between visual input and your body’s senses of motion (kinesthetic, proprioception, vestibular, gravitational perception, etc). This same mismatch can happen when scrolling through images or text rapidly. The rapid movement of text or images while your eyes attempt to track them can create a sensory conflict similar to feeling stillness while watching movement (video games) or similar to feeling movement while seeing stillness (boat cabin), leading to dizziness or headaches.
According to my research, it’s not just me. People prone to motion sensitivity, vestibular dysfunction, or migraines tend to experience both simulator sickness and scrolling-induced discomfort.
Simulator Sickness When Reading (Dyslexia Crossover!)
In my early thirties I finally realized that my reading problems are also tied into the “simulator sickness.” The motion of my eyes, and the juxtaposition of both imagining something while visually scanning text, strains something in my mind.
In my early teens it took extreme determination to read to be able to do it at all. The headaches were so extreme and instantaneous as a child. It took reading each day to the point of pain for over a year before I could read a short chapter (a few pages) without a headache (which happened around age fourteen).
My limit for reading has increased and increased. Now, in my mid-thirties, it takes around two or three hours of fiction reading to bring on the headache – depending on my sinus condition. It’s closer to ninety minutes for nonfiction reading (which is about half the tolerance time!). This time period is oddly much shorter early in the morning where reading easily gives me a headache, nausea, dizziness, etc.
How could all these factors add up? It makes sense that more sinus congestion leads to more sensitivity. After all, we’re talking about a bunch of organs in the head around the sinus passages – the vestibular system of the ear, the eyes, and even the brain. (We’ll explore this connection more later on.)
But why does “thinking harder” (as is needed for nonfiction) double (or even triple) my likelihood of developing the same type of headache – complete with vague nausea, a higher propensity for dizzy-spells and a hot, feverish-feeling forehead?
Simulator Sickness / Light Sensitivity Crossover?
Because my sensitivity to light has always felt similar to the pain I’ve felt from trying to read, I used to think the problem with reading was lighting. The first time I was able to read, when I was seven or eight years old, I did it in a closet with very, very low light. This allowed the headache to be manageable enough to “get into” the story and imagine it a little bit, which had never before happened while reading to myself (only when Mom read aloud to me).
I was always very sensitive to light, even as an infant. I would cry on a sunny day incessantly, even when I was in the shade. My parents think they may have overdosed me on vitamin A because they were both giving it to me not realizing the other already had. This, alone, however, doesn’t explain-away all of this complex.
It is potentially relevant that I have easily developed eye strain from monitor usage which incidentally feels like the same kind of headache (with pressure all around my eyes), except amplified tremendously – amplified to a migraine where no light whatsoever is acceptable and my eyes remain bloodshot and red even after a full night’s sleep. This sort of horrifying eye strain was the worst after weeks of heavy computer use when I was twenty. However, I have not had eye strain that bad since I started taking Wiley’s Finest “Bold Vision” which contains Lutein, Zeaxanthin, Zinc, Astaxanthin, and Bilberry Extract. This particular supplement reduced my sensitivity to headlights at night in just one week.
Simulator Sickness Sensitivity in the Morning
And most mysterious of all – why would I be more sensitive in the morning? If anything, shouldn’t I be more robust when I’m more fresh? In the evening I am more likely to have been exhausted by a day of events, some of which may have been stressful, but oddly, reading in the evening is fine. In fact, if my sinuses are clear and I’m just reading some pleasant fiction, I can sometimes read for the better part of five hours without symptoms. Yet morning reading with just a smidge of congestion can lead to feeling faint and hot-headed in under an hour.
The morning sensitivity is most pronounced if I am awake earlier than usual (particularly two or more hours earlier). During this time I am more prone to simulator sickness and motion sickness. Furthermore, if I eat it will make me very queasy. This may be similar to why/how motion gives me dizziness and a sense of falling as I am falling asleep as I am hormonally in a similar state (it seems) when I am awake much earlier than usual. The more sleepy I am, the more susceptible I seem to be to the motion/simulator sickness condition.
Why would being sleepy make me more susceptible?
Simulator Sickness from Deciphering
I am more prone to simulator sickness from reading nonfiction (where the content is challenging) than I am to fiction novels. The more challenging the material, the sooner the symptoms come on and the worse they are. I have occasionally had the same symptoms come up when playing a challenging board game or strategic (top-down) video game. Intense analysis that requires me to process something in a novel way that is not memorized seems to bring this on.
It seems to be the specific act of deciphering something that brings this on. Complex sentences, or simply trying to understand something through distractions (like learning a board game while people are talking about unrelated subjects around me) is a rapid recipe for the same complex of headache, forehead heat and pain, dizziness, and nausea.
The plot thickens when I add the detail that this happens to me even if what I’m deciphering has no visuals: simply trying to hear and understand someone through distracting noise (whether it’s white noise or music or other vocals) brings on the same symptoms.
Simulator Sickness Migraines
Sometimes my simulator sickness headaches are so bad that they escalate to all the symptoms of a migraine. And, in my research for this article, I’ve learned that there is such a thing as “vestibular migraine.” This is specifically a migraine caused from conflicting sensory data between your vestibular system and other perceptual sensory systems.
People with vestibular migraines or chronic migraines often experience visual triggers. Rapid motion on screens – scrolling, fast animations, and flickering – can overwhelm the brain of individuals with a certain sort of sensitivity. What sensitivity, you ask? We’ll talk more about that later on. The plot keeps thickening as we go.
Alleviating Simulator Sickness
For the longest time, I felt like all I knew was what didn’t work for me.
While kvass (fermented vegetable juice usually containing beets) helps with fume-induced headaches (which feel quite different) it has little to no effect on my simulator sickness headaches.
While ginger works for motion sickness headaches and nausea, it doesn’t work for my simulator-induced headaches and nausea. I’ve also tried ginseng, vitamin D, vitamin B12, fish oil, and kefir to no avail.
Grapefruits are yet another headache-cure that helps me with headaches brought on through dehydration. For some reason, the specific balance of electrolytes and other nutrients in grapefruits help me hydrate better than water alone, and better than any other fruit (including watermelons). This may be due to the lymphatic-cleansing effects of grapefruits. Unfortunately, grapefruits also don’t help with simulator-sickness headaches.
Time alone (waiting) seems to have little effect as I can still have a headache with a similar level of intensity nine hours after its onset during morning study. For this reason, I have become quick to stop activities that bring these symptoms on; if I stop when they are just beginning they tend to recede within half an hour. Conversely, if the symptoms are brought to a point where they are medium to severe, they seem to continue to get worse for half an hour after I’ve stopped, and then stay plateaued there for hours or until I’ve slept.
Unfortunately, prevention is not a perfect fix, as simulator-sickness headaches often creep up on me during unexpected activities such as sorting photos (scrolling) or while reading a text message on my phone while walking up the stairs (complex eye-tracking). Ironically, the research I did for writing this whopper of an essay gave me simulator sickness, and I was too engrossed to notice until the symptoms were too intense to recede from a simple break.
For years, all I knew to work were two things: sleeping and prevention. As I’ve indicated, prevention is key since it is really hard for me to get rid of simulator sickness once I have it. And according to many others on the forums of the web, this is a common issue.
Without further preamble, here is my list of Simulator Sickness Aids, each listing their percentage of effectiveness range which I’ve experienced.
✔ Sleep. 40%–100% effective. Depending on the severity of the headache, a short nap may be insufficient, but for mild simulator sickness, even twenty minutes of sleep have been enough to eradicate it. In more serious cases, the nap seems to last for at least forty-five minutes. I’m not the best napper, so usually I cure mine with overnight sleep, however sometimes this next tip leads to a nap.
✔ Orgasm. 15%–95% effective. While headaches and being in the mood don’t seem to go together, orgasm seems to be an effective pain-relief method for many strange ailments, including menstrual cramps. I have not tested this much for simulator sickness, but I seem to recall it helping tremendously in one case, and not very much in another. Why the effectiveness varies so much is anyone guess, but why it helps is clear: orgasm is a tremendous release of neurotransmitters, and as we’ll see later on, neurotransmitter balance is what simulator sickness is all about.
✔ Sensory Deprivation. 10%–90% effective. Lay down in silence and darkness with no movement. Stay put until symptoms dramatically recede or you fall asleep. If you have experience with meditation or self-hypnosis, please do add these components. I’ve found sensory deprivation to be enough to nearly abate symptoms entirely in cases of mild symptoms, but with more severe cases it can feel utterly insufficient unless it bleeds into a nap.
This same procedure helps with feeling overwhelmed in general, regardless of what symptoms are involved. This fact has made me question if the whole thing is a very specific form of stress response, and thus, can only be calmed as a stress-response (such as through meditation and other de-stressing techniques).
✔ Head Massage. 15%–80% effective. The massage will be most effective if it is combined with sensory deprivation – most importantly, darkness. If you’re in a public place (like at a convention), then closing your eyes might be the best you can manage, but try to cut as much visual stimulus as possible.
The massage will also be more effective if being performed by someone patient with strong hands. In my experience, the massage needs to focus on sustained pressure – or pauses during pressure (held for one to two full seconds per movement) – with every finger tip spread a short distance apart, mostly on the crown and sides (above and behind the ear area).
Others find the neck to be the most important part, but I do not. It likely has to do with how much neck tension is contributing to your headache, but in my case, my headaches are almost always from dehydration, fumes, or simulator sickness, and not neck tension (even though I have plenty of neck tension like all people who hunch over various projects all day).
✔ Laughter. 2%–15% effective. While I’ve found this to be a mild aid, it’s better than nothing. Laughing, obviously, is the opposite of stressing-out, so this can help calm your nervous system at least.
Preventing Simulator Sickness
Preventing simulator sickness is something we’ll explore more throughout this page, but here are a few tips for gaming specifically:
✨ Field of View (FOV) Settings
Modifying the game’s field-of-view can influence the extent of peripheral vision displayed, potentially reducing disorientation. Experimenting with different FOV settings may help identify a comfortable range that minimizes motion sickness. For me, the more I can see at once, the better (because this means less abrupt movements).
✨ Reducing Screen Size or Increasing Distance
Decreasing the size of the game window or increasing the distance from the screen can lessen the intensity of visual stimuli, potentially alleviating symptoms.
✨ Room Lighting Adjustments
Some individuals find that gaming in a dark environment reduces visual distractions and strain. Others, like myself, find that the room being evenly lit is critical. My eyes seem to become particularly fatigued if there is high contrast in the room, particularly when using a monitor for anything.
Also, be sure there’s no glare on your monitor, as this is a common trigger. For me, this goes under the category of “deciphering” – trying to figure something out through sensory noise, which is extremely exhausting and can cause symptoms all by itself. I’ve actually gotten headaches just by playing a board game with too much glare on the cards I was peering at!
✨ Frequent Breaks
Regular pauses during gaming sessions can help prevent the onset of symptoms by allowing your body to recalibrate between periods of intense visual stimulation. As usual, humans aren’t meant to laser-focus on something in one sedentary position all-day, every-day, but many office workers (and gamers!) do just that.
Motion Sickness
Motion Sickness Causes
Motion Sickness from . . . Motion!
Motion sickness is induced on airplanes, boats, and in cars. I seem to be far less likely to get motion sickness if my sinuses are clear. Also, ginger works like a charm. However, I get motion sickness more easily from being in a car when I already had simulator sickness upon entry, and in these cases ginger is not effective. Like most people, turbulent air or water and windy roads make it worse. Poor car suspension makes it worse. Looking at anything inside the car makes it worse. And yet if I have ginger, my sinuses are clear, and I don’t already have simulator sickness, then I won’t have any motion sickness even on very windy roads or on a turbulent airplane ride.
The worst air sickness I ever had happened in 2023 when flying to Oregon after I’d recently recovered from covid-19 (sometimes called corona-virsus). I didn’t think my sinuses were all that bad. The air turbulence was unremarkable, yet I was crying from the intense pain which became increasingly worse. I rarely ever cry in public, yet I was sobbing uncontrollably. When it came time to disembark I could hardly walk. I was so dizzy I certainly couldn’t walk straight.
I was perhaps more dizzy and disoriented than I’d ever been while entirely sober and not even sleep-deprived. I continued crying for at least ten minutes after getting off the plane, just sitting down immediately after getting off the runway. Our ride was waiting for us, but it took me over ten minutes to recover enough to walk. I was unable to pull my suitcase (despite its lovely four-wheel design).
Full recovery – the absence of symptoms – took a whopping forty-eight hours to achieve. That’s two nights of sleep, plenty of rest in a darkened room, healthy meals, and even cuddles and other de-stressing activities.
Research revealed: “It’s an inner ear vagus nerve issue that causes motion sickness. Covid is known to damage your inner ear from the virus.”
Motion/Simulator Sickness from Wearing Glasses
I got headaches from wearing glasses from the first time wearing them and I was told this would go away. It never did. Through years and years of different prescriptions from different places, glasses always give me headaches with prolonged use. When I first received glasses as a teenager the headaches came on in less than three minutes. By my early twenties I could wear them for up to ninety minutes before I experienced much strain – as long as everything I was looking at was adequately far away.
To this day I still limit wearing glasses to social events, outdoor activities, and errands. I can feel an immediate relief whenever I take my glasses off even if I was only wearing them for a short time.
Oddly, the headaches seemed lessened by switching from metal glasses to plastic – but it isn’t a weight issue since some of my metal glasses were extremely light-weight. I’ve experienced many headaches that seemed to come on specifically from wearing metal on my head, or even holding metal up to my head. This seems like an extremely odd reaction – to the point where virtually everyone (myself included) would expect this to be psychosomatic. Yet many times these metal-induced headaches came on even when I was unaware that metal was near my head. And yet sometimes I’ve been perfectly aware (like when wearing metal ear-rings) and had no problem. Could it be that the type of metal matters?
Motion/Simulator Sickness from Movement While Falling Asleep
When my bed shifts even the slightest as I am falling asleep I get a sensation of falling, dizziness, and a vague sense of nausea. The disoriented feeling matches the profile of this general set of symptoms, so I believe it is related. It is as if my body can’t manage the kinesthetic stimulation in my near-sleep state. Once again, this could be a stress-response. But why is the stress response to motion/simulation sickness so consistent and specific rather than other stress-response symptoms I’ve experienced?
Alleviating Motion Sickness
Once again, prevention is the best method, and ample fresh ginger root throughout rides in a car, plane, or boat are essential – especially if the roads, air, or water are “rough.” If ginger isn’t enough, then sleep usually is enough to put the symptoms behind me.
Other foods which are found to help with motion sickness symptoms (particular nausea) are cardamom seeds, bananas, and apples. Bland, mildly salty foods, especially when they are crunchy – such as celery or oat crackers – are also helpful in some cases.
While I already supplement plenty for vitamin D and magnesium and I’ve never noticed these impacting whether I get motion sickness or simulator sickness, some individuals with migraine-associated vertigo or motion sensitivity have seen benefit from supplementing for these.
Another natural remedy is found in belladonna and henbane which contain scopolamine, a compound traditionally used to treat motion sickness. While these herbs have been noted for their effectiveness they should be used with caution due to serious potential side effects. Scopolamine is a tropane alkaloid which affects the nervous system by blocking acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in muscle function and parasympathetic nervous system regulation.
I’ve personally never tried these as these plant medicines are no joke: a few belladonna berries can be fatal for a child. Nevertheless, the active ingredient, scopolamine, is used in patches for treating motion sickness. Even the side effects for “mild” scopolamine poisoning aren’t pretty (constipation, confusion, and reduced saliva production to name a few).
In contrast to scopolamine, ginger is a very safe root vegetable known for its myriad benefits with no side-effects from long-term consumption. While overdose is undoubtedly possible, it’s also possible to overdose on any vegetable, or virtually anything you expose yourself to (including water). As usual, please let your internal guidance systems warn you if you’re getting too much of anything – ginger included.
Of course, ginger, vitamin D, and magnesium are more “natural” options, but there is at least something to be learned from the drugs people take for motion sickness, even if I personally am not a fan of utilizing highly isolated, synthetic/refined substances that normally wouldn’t be accessible through food. We’ll look at the role of these drugs and what can be learned from them later on.
Sensory Issues
I have many sensory issues – not just motion sickness and simulator sickness. I’m easily overwhelmed by my sensory experiences, including perceptions of beauty. It’s not just negative experiences which are “blown up” for me, but positive ones too. Beautiful movies and music easily bring me to tears. Sharp noises and surprising kinesthetic experiences can cause me to shriek, meltdown, and/or leave me shaking for ten minutes after the fact.
If you don’t already know exactly what’s going on here, I’m a highly sensitive person – even when compared to other sensitive people. For a while I wondered if I were autistic because of how much more sensitive I am than my other sensitive friends. But recent human genome research has shown that sensitivity isn’t just one gene – it’s thousands of genes. I believe I got a much higher array of them than usual, leading to my highly unusual childhood.
As a kid, I was so sensitive to stimuli that I disliked most parties, ran away from children who played loudly, hated the outdoors, hated when anyone left a television running, and generally preferred to play alone in my bedroom in silence. I spent hours and hours in silent solitude, journaling and drawing, playing with my dolls, building with blocks, and pursuing anything creative. Any stimuli that I enjoyed – even just a few minutes of it – could fuel hours of independent play as I continuously extrapolated on what I’d taken in.
In general, I’ve always had a much lower tolerance for “intake” – at all levels. Intellectual, emotional, and sensational stimuli are different forms of “intake.” When I was in my late teens I realized I would only intake about ten percent as much as I created – whether that was drawing, writing, talking, dancing, or another form of expression. It wasn’t until I was nearly thirty that I could manage even a fifty-fifty ratio of input to output.
Perhaps it is simply the case that visual and kinesthetic inputs easily overwhelm me, but I don’t like to settle for such a simplistic, reductionist perspective. For one thing, that still doesn’t explain why I have this very specific set of symptoms from a very specific inter-related complex of things. I want to understand. And I have come to some answers, which you’ll discover on this page.
Simulator Sickness & Poor Depth Perception
My depth perception isn’t great. This is an odd one, as many dyslexics have exceptional depth perception, but mine is dismal. I memorize how things fit together rather than clearly perceiving how they go together.
When Lytenian and I go drone flying I am constantly shocked by his ability to tell where the drone is accurately relative to my own constant misjudgments.
When driving I pretend the car is much larger than it is because I can’t gauge how far I am away from anything accurately even after driving the same car for a decade. Yet I know exactly where my tires are and can avoid a maze of potholes; I think this is due to the kinesthetic feedback available for the tires.
Because simulator sickness in first-person games is very potent, and because depth perception feels highly relevant to these games, I’ve often wondered: Can these be related?
Kinesthetic Connection
It may be notable that with my eyes open my balance is superb but that it is terrible with my eyes closed. My good balance has been remarked upon in many cases, including my first (and only) time snowboarding where I remained upright down the slope but immediately fell over once I was still and didn’t have the strength to pull myself up. The fact that my balance would be that good despite my low body strength was particularly remarkable.
I have read that there is a cerebellum variant which provides better balance, but it is strongly correlated with higher incidence of motion sickness. I strongly believe I have this variant.
My kinesthetic/proprioceptive perception is somehow wired oddly in relation to my visual perception. Perhaps these two are trying to hyper rely upon one another (which may be related to my excellent balance). Perhaps they are not communicating with one another in an optimal way.
Auditory Perceptual Issues Connection
My poor auditory perception may somehow be more central than it seems. About half of dyslexics have auditory perceptual issues, although in my family it seems clear that we all experience odd auditory problems. I do not process what I hear accurately, particularly in terms of sequencing.
Auditory problems are shown to slow readers down because of the subvocalization process happening at a mental level when reading. I seem to subvocalize less and less as I read more quickly and become more immersed in the story but this only happens with fiction and not with nonfiction (which certainly relates back to my experience of symptom severity and susceptibility).
And remember, trying to decipher something through white noise or distracting sounds (like a television running in the background) also brings on the same array of symptoms.
Histamine
Histamine Connection
Motion sickness medication is anti-histamine medication. Furthermore, there may be a genetic factor involved which also links to histamine.
What is histamine?
Histamine is an organic nitrogenous compound involved in local immune responses communication. Histamine is also involved in regulating physiological functions in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter for the brain, spinal cord, and uterus. Histamine, generally speaking, is an important and good thing. Like sulfur and mucus, in the right places and right context, histamine is a vital part of a healthy body. But in the wrong context, histamine is no longer desirable.
But the thing that blew my mind is really that histamine is neurotransmitter. Say what? Histaminergic neurons can regulate and be regulated by other neurotransmitter systems. Whoa, whoa, whoa!
H1 Antihistamines (OTC)
Antihistamine medications used for motion-sickness include Meclizine (Antivert, Bonine), Dimenhydrinate (Dramamine), and Cyclizine (Marezine). These medications block H1 histamine receptors in your vestibular and vomiting centers, reducing nausea, and dizziness. Basically, these make your motion sickness go away. A lot of people wouldn’t dream of going on a ship or airplane without these drugs.
Common side effects of antihistamine medications include drowsiness, dry mouth, and “mild cognitive slowing.” I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to take something that’s going to make me feel slow. I’ll stick to my ginger, thanks.
Anti-histamines aren’t the only medication used for motion sickness, however.
Prescription Medications for Severe Motion Sickness
The Scopolamine Patch (Transderm Scop) is often prescribed for severe or persistent motion sickness. It is anticholinergic, reducing vestibular signaling to the vomiting center. This drug, like basically all drugs, has concerning common side effects such as dry mouth, blurred vision, and sedation. Blurred vision? Really? What is it doing to cause that?
Another drug, Ondansetron (Zofran), is a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist sometimes used off-label for certain nausea conditions, though it isn’t a go-to for motion sickness.
Serotonin
While not standard for motion sickness, anecdotal reports suggest SSRIs can indirectly influence vestibular tolerance in some individuals. My reading indicates that this is usually relevant if there are co-occurring anxiety or migraine issues.
But what really started making things spicy was when I learned about the relationship between serotonin and histamine: you see, these two neurotransmitters seem to have an inverse relationship – meaning that one of them being high may generally point to the other being low. And guess who has low serotonin production? People who are genetically “highly sensitive persons” – like myself. However, the inverse relationship notion may be overly simplified, as most statements about neurotransmitters are.
One thing that strikes me about the serotonin connection is how much my overall network of symptoms (everything from skin to sleep to inflammation) all seem to improve when I consume turkey tails and animal skins. I’ve assumed this was due to collagen content (as per the GAPS diet protocols), but what if these benefits are more because of tryptophan – a precursor to serotonin?
Histamine and Serotonin
Histamine and serotonin are both neurotransmitters and biogenic amines that play crucial roles in your nervous system, immune response, and gut function. They interact in several ways, particularly in inflammation, nausea, sleep regulation, mood, and sensory processing. Their balance is important, and disruptions can contribute to motion sickness, migraines, allergies, and gut disorders.
Each of these neurotransmitters could easily be the subject of a very long book. Depending on how high or low the levels of a neurotransmitter are, and which receptors are being affected, the effects can be the total opposite of what you’ve been taught. For example, serotonin is associated with relaxing, and even sleeping, but it’s also involved in wakefulness too. Given how complex all of it is, I’m going to only include some particularly fascinating highlights here:
Histamine (via H₁ receptors) promotes wakefulness and alertness, while serotonin can have both wake-promoting and sleep-inducing effects depending on the receptor subtype. Furthermore, serotonin helps regulate sleep cycles by converting to melatonin at night. Too much histamine can disrupt sleep. (And here, the inverse relationship between these neurotransmitters begins to appear.)
Histamine and serotonin systems interact in mood regulation; histaminergic activity can modulate serotonergic transmission, affecting anxiety and depression. Furthermore, both histamine and serotonin influence dopamine levels, affecting mood, motivation, and nausea.
Serotonin and histamine both influence gut motility. And if it wasn’t obvious from all of my writing on constipation, this is a subject of great interest to me. (Most recently I wrote about the connection between Epstein Barr and chronic constipation.) Serotonin (5-HT3 receptors) stimulates gut movement and is involved in nausea. Histamine (H1 & H2 receptors) can either increase or disrupt gut motility. Histamine apparently stimulates serotonin release from enterochromaffin cells in the gut.
Histamine release can trigger serotonin-related nausea. Excess serotonin in the gut activates 5-HT3 receptors, triggering nausea and vomiting (which is why antihistamines and 5-HT3 blockers like ondansetron can alleviate nausea).
Mast cells release both histamine and serotonin: during an allergic reaction, mast cells release histamine first, followed by serotonin. This can cause vasodilation, swelling, itching, and nausea.
High serotonin levels can trigger vasoconstriction, followed by rebound vasodilation, which contributes to migraine onset. Histamine can also directly trigger migraines by promoting inflammation and mast cell activation. This is why some migraine medications (like triptans) target serotonin receptors, while others (like antihistamines) help histamine-related headaches.
DAO (diamine oxidase) enzyme breaks down histamine, and MAO (monoamine oxidase) enzyme breaks down serotonin. If either enzyme is insufficient, histamine and serotonin can accumulate and cause symptoms. For me, taking freeze-dried kidney capsules (a natural, rich source of DAO) has been a lifesaver.
So what about my theory that chronically low serotonin might lead to higher histamine? There is some basis for this theory, although it’s far from confirmed. If serotonin levels are chronically low, there might be less inhibition on histaminergic neurons, leading to increased histamine activity. Furthermore, serotonin can inhibit mast cell degranulation, meaning that low serotonin may lead to higher histamine release from mast cells. Chronic stress, which can deplete serotonin, is also linked to higher histamine activity.
The more research I do, the more rational this connection feels. Histamine intolerance and mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) are sometimes seen in people with mood disorders, anxiety, and chronic stress and these conditions are often linked to low serotonin. And migraine sufferers (who often have serotonin dysregulation) sometimes experience histamine-triggered migraines.
But again, neurotransmitters are complicated and scientific studies are uncovering more nuance to their function each year, so don’t get too attached to this explanation.
Mental Exertion Headaches
I wanted to know if “thinking too hard” really was related to my simulator / motion sickness woes, so I also looked into this possible connection. Seriously, when you get headaches that can last eight hours, it’s amazing how much you really want to know. Believe me, I’m not doing this for love of research or writing, but because pain really provides the spark needed for some dedicated effort! So here is what I’ve learned . . .
Mental exertion headaches, also called cognitive or thinking-induced headaches, occur when intense mental activity – such as studying, problem-solving, or focusing for extended periods – triggers pain. These headaches can feel similar to tension headaches, migraines, or even exertional headaches (caused by physical activity).
Thinking requires significant energy (oxygen and glucose), and prolonged mental effort can deplete these resources. When your brain’s energy supply struggles to meet the demand, it can trigger vasodilation (expanding blood vessels), inflammation, and pain.
As we’ve already seen, serotonin depletion is linked to migraines and motion sickness. Excessive mental exertion may deplete serotonin, worsening headaches and nausea.
Dopamine imbalances may also cause mental fatigue and headaches, as seen in people with ADHD who experience cognitive exhaustion.
Acetylcholine, another important neurotransmitter which is important for focus and learning, when dysregulated, can lead to brain fog and tension headaches.
Intense focus can also lead to subconsciously clenching your jaw, wrinkling your forehead, or tightening your neck and shoulders. This can cause tension headaches, which may feel like a band around the head or a pressure behind the eyes. And admittedly, my simulator sickness headaches often do match that description.
Tension can affect your brain relatively directly: your brain needs constant oxygen and glucose to function. If blood flow is restricted (due to stress, posture, or tension), oxygen delivery is impaired. Hence why certain kinky activities can lead to headaches.
Conditions like chronic sinus congestion, autonomic dysfunction (e.g., POTS*), or poor posture may reduce oxygen to the brain, making headaches more likely. *POTS stands for postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, a condition that causes heart rate to increase and blood pressure to drop when standing upright. And if that’s all you need to qualify for this condition, I’ve had it my entire life. (Sometimes I wonder if I had a pre-birth intention to have as many overlapping genetic, environmental, and microbiome issues as possible so that I’d be driven to study these conditions and teach others.)
People with sensory processing issues (e.g., ADHD, autism, vestibular disorders, or post-concussion syndrome) may fatigue more easily, leading to headaches when processing too much information.
In addition to all the other treatments listed throughout this page, here are some specifically for mental-exertion overlap:
✔ Blink more and use eye drops to reduce eye-strain.
✔ Utilize diaphragmatic breathing, which can improve oxygen flow to the brain.
✔ Eat brain-friendly foods rich in long-chain fatty acids, monounsaturated fats, and antioxidants.
✔ Avoid blood-sugar crashes which are induced by processed foods and refined sugars.
✔ Stretch and adjust posture often to reduce tension.
An example of a neurotransmitter-conscious meal plan might look like this:
🌅 Breakfast → Scrambled eggs with spinach fried into them, and avocado slices and berries on the side along with a cup of green tea. If you’re vegan or sensitive to eggs, try frying spinach with apples or mushrooms instead. (Fried apples happen to be one of my go-to safe foods – I fry mine with avocado oil and add cardamom and organic almond flour.)
🍏 Mid-Morning Snack → A handful of almonds, a couple cacao beans (pure chocolate), possibly stuffed inside dates to make this an extra-special treat.
🥗 Lunch → Salmon served on a bed of mashed potatoes and arugula with either avocado oil or flax oil. Matcha tea on the side.
🍵 Afternoon Boost → Blueberries, pomegranate, and/or raspberries.
🍛 Dinner → Turmeric chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, and steamed broccoli. If you’re vegetarian, try lion’s mane mushroom in place of chicken. (If you can’t tolerate broccoli or other sulfur-rich vegetables, check out my recent post about sulfur-related SIBO.)
🌙 Before Bed → Chamomile tea and one bite of banana for serotonin support. (You can freeze the rest of the banana for a future smoothie.)
Further Treatments
While things get very interesting when we start examining dyslexia, sensitivity, genetics, and vestibular syndromes, let’s cover some more basic treatments that will help virtually anyone suffering from simulator sickness.
Environmental Modifications
Get a l0w-blue-light monitor with no flicker and a higher refresh-rate screen (90 Hz or above if possible). From there, further adjust brightness and contrast to maximize comfort. These adjustments didn’t fix my problems, but they helped.
When playing games, reduce motion blur and overly dynamic visuals. Generally fiddle with the graphics settings until symptoms are reduced.
Add more surface area around your monitor. For a while I had a huge paper frame of colored purple papers around my monitor, almost like a funky photo frame. This helps reduce simulator sickness because it enhances the “through a window” effect, helping your brain know this is all happening “outside.”
Lean toward warmer lighting in your office and bedroom. While “more blue” lighting is great for clarity in the kitchen or art studio, it can strain your eyes if that’s “the norm” everywhere in your life. Warm lighting in the bedroom can also improve sleep, as warmer lighting is the natural lighting of dusk.
Lifestyle Habits
Sit near an open window, go outside, and/or utilize air filters. Fresh air is generally shown to improve headaches and nausea, even when the cause seems entirely unrelated to air quality.
Try the twenty-twenty-twenty technique during office work: Every twenty minutes, look at something at least twenty feet away for twenty seconds. This can reduce eye strain, visual fatigue, and simulator sickness. I also like to cover my eyes with my palms to block out all light if at all possible, for at least ten seconds. This helps me immensely at general stress-management and the prevention of virtually all symptoms.
Utilize gradual exposure – which helps downregulate stress responses. Slowly introduce new video games, starting with very short sessions (one to three minutes) and gradually increase session length over time. Depending on your level of sensitivity you might have to go very slow. For me, it’s typical that I need to start with one minute per day, and can expect to be up to maybe seven minutes per day by the end of the week.
You undoubtedly already know this one: Seek a stable reference point. In vehicles, look at the horizon or a stable visual reference. In games, reduce movement until your tolerance is increased.
Consider your overall health. Staying hydrated, well-slept, and nourished can all contribute to a reduction of symptoms. Also, some evidence suggests that cardiorespiratory fitness and lower stress levels can improve your body’s resilience to sensory conflicts.
Strange Aids: Ice Water & Peppermint
Ice Water
Some individuals claim that immersing their feet in ice-cold water can reduce feelings of nausea associated with motion sickness. While the exact mechanism is unclear, it’s suggested that the cold sensation may distract the brain from the conflicting signals causing the discomfort. Maybe motion/simulator sickness is stress-related for other people too and not just me. (Or maybe everything is stress-related?)
Peppermint
Regularly inhaling peppermint essential oil has been reported to provide relief from motion sickness symptoms. The refreshing scent may help soothe nausea and is even utilized in some hospital settings to reduce patient nausea.
A friend of mine suggested I try peppermint essential oil for stomach aches once and I looked at her like she was crazy.
“I can’t tolerate mint in my stomach or menthol on my skin!” I exclaimed, something I thought this friend knew about me.
“No, no, no,” she said, “Just smell it.”
The idea that this could actually help was novel to me at the time. Then I tried it and it actually worked. Since then I discovered that smelling rose essential oil actually helps me with menstrual cramps. Aromas really can be effective therapeutic aids.
Devices to Aid Simulator Sickness and Motion Sickness
Acupressure Wristbands
Wearing wristbands that apply pressure to specific points is believed to prevent nausea. These bands are designed to stimulate certain pressure points on the wrist, potentially alleviating symptoms. I can’t testify to this personally, but I’ve met others who use them and swear by them.
Vestibular Stimulation Devices
While research and development in vestibular stimulation devices are ongoing, consumer-ready products specifically targeting simulator sickness are limited. Nevertheless, some technologies, like bone-conduction headphones (which we’ll get to in a moment), are commercially available. Devices specifically engineered to mitigate simulator sickness are in the works, and if you’re interested, keep an eye on Otolith Labs and Vivonics. At the time of writing, these are still under study and not widely accessible to the public.
Bone-Conducted Vibration
Bone-Conducted Vibration (BCV) refers to the transmission of sound or mechanical vibrations through the bones of the skull, rather than through the air via the ear canal. It is used in hearing technologies, vestibular research, and experimental treatments for conditions like motion sickness and simulator sickness. While research indicates these devices may be quite effective, dedicated devices specifically targeting simulator sickness or motion sickness are not widely available to consumers.
With Bone-Conducted Vibration technology, vibrations are transmitted through the bones of the skull to the cochlea (the inner ear’s hearing organ). The cochlea interprets these vibrations as sound, bypassing the outer and middle ear. In vestibular applications, BCV can stimulate the otolith organs (responsible for detecting motion and gravity) to help recalibrate balance and reduce sensory mismatches.
While not exactly the same, there are some headphones designed to transmit sound through the bones of the skull, keeping the ear canals open. While their primary function is general audio playback (i.e. normal headphone use), some studies have investigated their potential in reducing symptoms. I personally find this fascinating and encouraging since I find that having my ears blocked also causes me a certain degree of stress and inclination toward headaches, so such headphones may be particularly helpful for me.
The Sinus Connection
As I’ve experienced in the most painful, first-hand way possible: sinus issues play a significant role in both motion sickness and simulator sickness due to their impact on the vestibular system, pressure regulation, and sensory perception.
Your sinuses and inner ear are closely connected. If sinus congestion, infection, or inflammation occurs, it can affect the Eustachian tubes, which regulate ear pressure and balance. When these tubes become blocked, you can feel dizzy. Sinus-related dizziness can exacerbate simulator sickness, making symptoms like nausea and vertigo worse.
The sinuses help regulate pressure in your head, and sinus infections (sinusitis) can disrupt this balance. If your sinus pressure is “off,” your body might struggle to process sensory information correctly, increasing the likelihood of motion or simulator sickness.
Chronic sinus infections, allergies, or inflammation can have lasting effects on your vestibular system, which controls balance and spatial awareness. Thus, chronic sinus issues may be directly linked with being hypersensitive to motion.
✔ Clear your sinuses regularly, especially before flying (by using a neti pot or similar).
✔ Stay hydrated to keep mucus thin and flowing.
✔ Diffuse peppermint or eucalyptus essential oils into your environment.
✔ Ensure proper ventilation while using a simulator or playing a video game.
Neurological & Vestibular
COVID-19 Vestibular Issues
So that bad airplane experience I had after covid? I’m not the only one. Vestibular issues due to ear damage during covid-19 is a known issue. If you suspect that you have covid-19 related ear damage (hearing loss, tinnitus, or ongoing vestibular issues), it is recommended to get a thorough assessment, including audiometry and possibly vestibular function testing. This is also correlated with ongoing inflammation after post-covid, so you may want to look in general anti-inflammatory approaches (like adding ginger, turmeric, and antioxidant-rich foods to your daily rituals).
If you didn’t have motion sickness or simulator sickness, but developed these post-pandemic, or more clearly post-covid, that’s your likely culprit. For those of us who’ve been struggling with these issues most of our lives, it could be linked to a genetic predisposition.
Neurological & Vestibular Trouble
If you experience simulator sickness regularly and you also have many of the following symptoms, my research indicates it may be an underlying vestibular or neurological issue.
✅ Dizziness or nausea when scrolling
✅ Discomfort when watching fast-moving videos or playing video games
✅ Feeling “off-balance” or lightheaded after monitor usage
✅ Sensitivity to fluorescent lights or bright monitors
✅ History of migraines or motion sickness
✅ Inability to tolerate virtual reality (VR) headsets or 3D movies
✅ Neck pain or tension-triggered headaches
Vestibular Rehabilitation
Apparently there is a thing called “vestibular rehabilitation!” According to my research, a physical therapist, occupational therapist, or audiologist specializing in vestibular rehab can tailor exercises that help your brain re-calibrate to conflicting visual and vestibular signals. This is mind-blowing for so many reasons. I feel so vindicated that one of the specialists is an audiologist! I’m not just making these connections up!
Techniques apparently involve gaze stabilization exercises, balance training, and gradual exposure to provocative motions. This definitely sounds similar to the brain retraining I did to down-regulate my stress response to chemical and smoky-odors. It turns out that complex was a stress response, but simply knowing that wasn’t enough. In order to recover from my ever-increasing multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS), I had to go through intensive weeks of brain retraining exercises (and months of ongoing practices after that, some of which I still utilize now, years later).
But the good news is that if it is basically a stress-loop issue, like MCS, I already have precedent for overcoming it. And remember how I mentioned earlier that I noticed that being in a good mood helped me recover more rapidly from simulator sickness? What if the days where I “didn’t recover until I slept” were like that because I kept stressing out further about how I felt, perpetuating the stress-loop cycle?
Genetics
Genetic Motion Sensitivity
Yes, genetic motion sensitivity is a thing. My Dad was very sensitive to amusement park rides with small circles, and while I didn’t share this sensitivity as a child, I rapidly developed it as a teen. Both my parents are sensitive to flashing lights and flickers. What’s more, both my parents come from families with strong addictive personalities and schizophrenic tendencies – and both of these are correlated with unusual dopamine function. And we’ll see in just a moment how dopamine anomalies are highly tied to motion and simulator sickness.
Vestibular system differences – Genetic variations can cause a heightened response to motion stimuli, making it harder for the brain to adapt.
Dopamine dysfunction – Some people have a weaker ability to filter out conflicting sensory inputs, leading to motion sickness.
Neural plasticity issues – Certain genes make it harder for the brain to adjust to new motion environments (VR, scrolling, car rides).
Specific Genes
Several genetic studies have identified specific genes that influence susceptibility to motion sickness. These include genes involved in vestibular function, neurotransmitter signaling, and sensory integration.
✨ COMT (Catechol-O-Methyltransferase) – Dopamine Regulation
Gene variant: rs4680 (Val158Met)
Function: Regulates dopamine metabolism in the prefrontal cortex.
How it relates to motion sickness: The Met/Met variant is linked to higher dopamine levels, which can make people more sensitive to sensory stimuli, including visual motion. If you have this variant, you may experience higher anxiety, nausea, and motion sensitivity.
✨ DRD2 (Dopamine Receptor D2) – Dopamine Sensitivity
Gene variant: rs1800497 (Taq1A)
Function: Affects dopamine receptor sensitivity.
Variants that reduce dopamine receptor function can lead to weaker neural adaptation to sensory conflict. Individuals with these variants often have higher motion sickness susceptibility and may struggle with VR and simulator sickness.
✨ GRM5 (Glutamate Metabotropic Receptor 5) – Vestibular Processing
Function: Plays a role in sensory integration and balance processing.
Variants in GRM5 have been linked to dizziness and nausea in virtual reality (VR) environments. Individuals with alterations in this gene may be more sensitive to motion sickness triggers.
✨ PTPRD (Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase Receptor Type D) – Neural Adaptation
Function: Involved in neural plasticity and adaptation to sensory stimuli.
Individuals with certain PTPRD variants may have a harder time adapting to new sensory environments, increasing their susceptibility to simulator sickness. This gene has also been linked to dizziness disorders and chronic motion sensitivity. This one is high on my personal suspect list because I’ve always been prone to dizzy spells (from many different forms of external and internal stimuli), and my neural plasticity does seem abnormal. Sometimes I adapt much faster than anyone else around me, but more often, I’m last to adapt to something.
✨ CACNA1A (Calcium Channel Gene) – Migraine & Vestibular Function
Function: Regulates calcium ion channels in the nervous system, affecting sensory processing.
Variants in CACNA1A are linked to vestibular migraines, which are often triggered by visual motion. People with mutations in this gene can experience dizziness, vertigo, and heightened sensitivity to scrolling, virtual reality, and video games.
Migraine Genes
Many people with “migraine genes” also have “motion sickness genes.” Both conditions involve sensory hypersensitivity, dopamine signaling, and vestibular function – and all of this stuff sounds like me.
Here are three specific genes:
✔ TRPM8 (Cold & Pain Sensitivity Receptor) – Linked to migraine and nausea sensitivity.
✔ HTR3A & HTR3B (Serotonin Receptor Genes) – This impacts nausea response.
✔ HCRT (Hypocretin/Orexin System Gene) – Regulates wakefulness and motion sensitivity.
That third one – which also regulates wakefulness – sounds like a likely culprit in my case, as I’ve struggled with severe insomnia issues (even when extremely tired) since I was nine.
Dyslexia, Autism & More
The Magnocellular Pathway
Research indicates some dyslexic readers have magnocellular (motion detection) pathway anomalies. The magnocellular (M) pathway is one of the two major visual processing streams in the brain, along with the parvocellular (P) pathway. It is responsible for detecting motion, depth, contrast, and rapid changes in visual stimuli. This pathway is crucial for spatial awareness, tracking moving objects, and processing low-light vision.
The magnocellular system is specialized for:
✔ Motion detection
✔ Low spatial resolution (coarse details)
✔ High temporal resolution (rapid changes in time)
✔ Contrast sensitivity, especially in low light
The magnocellular system originates in large ganglion cells in the retina (in your eyes), which then send signals to the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus and subsequently to the primary visual cortex (various areas of your brain).
The retinal ganglion cells have large receptive fields, meaning they are optimized for detecting motion and broad shapes (rather than fine details); they respond to changes in brightness (contrast) but not to color differences. I find this particularly interesting since shifting cloud-cover (and thus shifting window brightness) while I’m reading is very disorienting!
After signals from the ganglion cells in your eyes have reached your visual cortex, they are then sent to the dorsal stream, which is involved in:
✔ Motion perception
✔ Spatial awareness
✔ Object localization in space
✔ Eye movement control
✔ Coordination of movement with vision (e.g., catching a ball)
When the dorsal stream is not able to do the above well, it can be labeled a dynamic movement perception deficit. This was something I came across in my autism research which highly resonated with me, as I am extremely bad at all of the above. Despite taking dance classes weekly for my entire childhood, I’m still one of the very last people in any given dance class to “catch on” to choreography. Even in Zumba classes, which are designed to be for all dance levels – including no dance experience whatsoever – I struggle to observe and mimic the movements I witness in others.
Dysfunction in the magnocellular pathway has been implicated in several conditions:
👉🏻 Dyslexia: Some studies suggest that people with dyslexia may have impaired magnocellular processing, leading to difficulties in reading due to problems with tracking motion and visual stability.
👉🏻 Autism: Some evidence indicates altered magnocellular processing in autism (or ASD), potentially affecting motion perception. In fact, a large proportion of autistic individuals report dynamic movement perception difficulties.
👉🏻 Schizophrenia: Impaired motion detection and visual contrast sensitivity have been linked to dysfunction in the M-pathway.
👉🏻 Migraine with aura: Some researchers have proposed that disruptions in magnocellular function could contribute to visual disturbances in migraines.
👉🏻 Parkinson’s Disease: Reduced magnocellular function could explain some of the visual processing deficits seen in Parkinson’s patients.
When considered in terms of reading or dance choreography, this issue may seem relatively “minor.” One could say that I could listen to audio books, and go to dance events that aren’t choreographed. (Never mind that these things are really not equivalent, and are not interchangeable substitutions.) But the magnocellular system is crucial for many aspects of life.
While magnocellular pathway problems aren’t the same as being blind, this system is still critical for:
✔ Driving: Detecting moving objects quickly, gauging their distance and trajectory. Insufficiency in this area can make you an unsafe driver. Some people have proposed I’m just overly anxious and paranoid about driving – but maybe my fear is entirely rational given my own limited abilities in this department!
✔ Sports: Tracking fast-moving balls or players. Playing ball games isn’t much fun when you’re always getting hit with the balls rather than being able to catch them.
✔ Reading: Stable eye movement and visual tracking.
✔ Night Vision: Perceiving objects in low-light, low-contrast settings. This impacts your likelihood of stumbling when walking to your car in a dark parking lot full of potholes (an issue that I absolutely have).
✔ Synchronized Movement: Visually tracking and deciphering complex physical movements and then translating that to your own bodily movements.
To summarize this section thus far, the magnocellular pathway is essential for motion detection, contrast sensitivity, and spatial awareness. It works by rapidly processing changes in the environment, allowing you to navigate space, detect motion, and react quickly. Dysfunction in this pathway can contribute to learning difficulties, neurological disorders, and visual processing problems.
So what can be done about it?
Some individuals with dyslexia who experience visual stress benefit from various colored overlays on text or custom tinted lenses. In my case, when it comes to reading digital material, I prefer warm-tones when possible, and dark backgrounds rather than a bunch of white (or blue). Some dyslexics wear tinted lenses for reading – which I’m sure would have helped me immensely as a child. Now I read in my own controlled environment with my shades down and a warm-toned reading lamp.
When it comes to dance choreography, it helps immensely to have a teacher willing to break it down and do it very slowly, and with me. I can’t watch a movement, memorize it, and then repeat it. I absolutely have to nail it physically and then memorize the kinesthetic experience, which means mimicking the movement in real-time while it is being performed slowly enough for me to catch it. This is often so slow that a teacher isn’t willing to bother. Thus, I’ve often used very slow playback options of recordings to learn dance moves.
For driving, I simply avoid it – especially at night. If I have to drive, I am sure to have a beverage on hand, particularly a sparkling one. I find music and bright light too distracting, so I ensure my focus through a stimulating beverage and sunglasses when needed.
Thankfully, my natural inability at sports led me to have no interest in them, so I don’t partake in team sports or competitive sports. However, I do enjoy swimming which requires very little from my magnocellular pathway. I also enjoy ice-skating, which is very challenging for me – and I’m not very good at it despite doing it from a young age – but it’s good to have a variety of ways to be in motion.
As for night vision, I recommend supplements that provide your eyes with the array of antioxidants they need to be healthy. This made a huge difference for me. I also like to spend time in the dark semi-regularly: instead of turning on bright lights to use the bathroom at night, use the dimmest or minimum light required. I find that this keeps my nervous system happier overall, and it seems to correlate with improved night vision.
Meares-Irlen
Studies suggest that dysfunction in the magnocellular pathway may cause the visual instability seen in Meares-Irlen Syndrome. As we’ve already seen, the magnocellular system is responsible for processing motion, contrast sensitivity, and spatial awareness.
Symptoms may not show up on traditional eye exams because they are related to neurological processing, not eye structure. If you have this (or a similar) condition, you may have visited many eye doctors (as I did) and had your eyes pronounced entirely normal time and time again, despite repeated bouts of eye-strain and intense light sensitivity.
Meares-Irlen Symptom: Visual distortions – text appears to move, blur, double, or shimmer. The magnocellular system plays a crucial role in stabilizing moving images and coordinating eye movements (saccades and fixations). If your magnocellular processing is weak, text on a page may seem unstable, making reading difficult.
Meares-Irlen Symptom: Light sensitivity (photophobia) – bright lights, fluorescent lighting, or high-contrast text can cause discomfort. The magnocellular system processes contrast, especially under bright lighting. When it doesn’t function properly, high-contrast patterns (such as black text on a white page) can feel overwhelming.
Meares-Irlen Symptom: Eye strain and headaches – reading for long periods causes fatigue and discomfort. This may worsen under bright lighting or high-contrast conditions and can often be alleviated by colored overlays or tinted lenses.
Meares-Irlen Symptom: Depth perception difficulty – struggle with judging distances or navigating environments.
While Meares-Irlen Syndrome is not the same as dyslexia, the two often overlap. Some people with dyslexia show reduced magnocellular activity, leading to poor visual tracking, difficulty perceiving motion, and unstable letter positioning.
Even More Remedies
I’ve already covered the remedies that have worked best for me, but if simulator sickness and/or motion sickness are chronic problems for you, I know you’re suffering a lot. If you’re still reading this epic page, you’re looking for as much help as you can get. So here’s an exhaustive list of every remedy I could scrounge up from the web.
🧠 Neurological & Vestibular Calming Remedies
These help you recalibrate your sensory processing and thus, hopefully help reduce nausea and dizziness. We’ve already covered laying in darkness and reducing blue lighting, but here are some more tricks:
✔ Gaze Stabilization Exercises – Slowly track a fixed point; this can reset visual-vestibular balance. I have not personally tried this one yet. Let me know if it helps you!
✔ Focusing on a Stable Object – Look at a distant, non-moving object; this can anchor your visual system. Perhaps I do this intuitively – as I have a window not far from my desk, and I often pause and gaze out the window at my neighbor’s garden and a shed they’ve built which is about a hundred feet away from me. This always feels calming.
✔ Patching One Eye – Reduces binocular disparity, which is apparently often helpful for simulator sickness headaches in particular. This is another thing which I’ve often done intuitively: covering one eye and then another; I often do this throughout the day when I’m feeling tired and sensitive to light. Sometimes I think I just chronically have simulator sickness to a mild degree.
✔ Palming Technique – Rub your hands together and place your warm palms over your closed eyes; this relaxes your optic nerves. Personally I hate rubbing my hands together as I find this sensation overwhelming, so skip that part if you find it over-stimulating. Instead, you can place your hands between your thighs to warm them. Also, consider whether your eyes need warmth or coolth – as I find that inflammation and fever-like feelings can sometimes come alongside simulator sickness, and in these cases, cool hands can feel even nicer than warm ones. We’ll look at temperature-based relief more next.
🌡️ Temperature-Based Relief
Temperature changes affect vasodilation, nerve signaling, and blood flow. Thus, you might find symptoms (both with regards to motion sickness and in general) are better or worse depending on your temperature. Unsurprisingly, I find inflammatory issues to be far worse during the heat of summer.
✔ Cold Compress on Forehead or Neck – This constricts your blood vessels and numbs headache pain. I can’t say I’ve tried this, as I’m often sensitive to anything too cold on my head. I can actually get a headache from my head becoming too cold.
✔ Warm Compress on Neck & Shoulders – This relaxes your tense muscles, and for many people, neck tension is a key contributor to headaches.
✔ Alternating Cold & Warm Therapy – This helps reset your nervous system and improve circulation. I have not tried this for simulator sickness specifically, but I have found this helpful for emotional meltdowns, inflammatory pain, joint pain, lethargy, depression, and chronic fatigue.
✔ Ice Water Face Dunk (Mammalian Dive Reflex) – Dunking your face in cold water slows your heart rate, usually reducing nausea. This can also reset your autonomic nervous system. In other words, this can act like a “stress reset.” Once again, I don’t like making my head super cold, unless it is very hot and I lack air-conditioning and need a cold shower to cool down. Nonetheless, I can testify to ice-dunks of various kinds being helpful, as I’ve experienced first-hand the helpfulness of ice-dunks for hand and elbow pain, and witnessed ice-dunks helping others with tendonitis.
🍵 Substances
We’ve already talked a fair bit about key foods (ginger and cardamom), as well as the medications available (anti-histamines), and even vitamin B6 (pyridoxine form), which can help with nausea and serotonin balance. Here are two more potential aids:
✔ Marijuana – Commonly called weed, pot, or ganja, marijuana extracts are available virtually everywhere these days. CBD calms neurological overactivity and nausea for many people. I personally don’t prefer this option for regular use (or anything which messes with my neurology in a heavy-handed manner), but if this is what licks your motion sickness, maybe it’s worth a try.
✔ Caffeine – Green tea, coffee, and other foods with caffeine increase alertness and constrict blood vessels, but then, too much can also worsen headaches. If you usually don’t do any caffeine at all, a half serving of mild green tea may help a furious headache. If you already consume a fair bit of caffeine regularly, you may want to ignore this tip and focus on hydration instead.
🌀 Vestibular & Blood Flow Techniques
These techniques are some of the most fascinating, as they can reset equilibrium and reduce dizziness-related headaches through movement and posture.
✔ Head Tilting & Positioning – Slowly moving your head side to side can help recalibrate balance. While the relief for me is minimal, I have certainly found this to help.
✔ Epley Maneuver – If dizziness is present, this maneuver can reposition inner ear crystals. If you have chronic dizziness, look up this maneuver in a video. It’s fascinating stuff.
✔ Lying on Your Back with Feet Elevated – This helps blood flow return to the brain. I have not personally found this to be any more effective than simply lying down in sensory deprivation, but other people have found this can help with some symptoms.
✔ Walking on Uneven Terrain – The act of walking on grass, gravel or a forest trail stimulates proprioception which can reset your vestibular function. Furthermore, you’re (hopefully) getting fresh air at the same time. While I have not tried this for simulator sickness headaches, I have found my head to feel generally clearer when moving around my garden.
💨 Breathing & Oxygen Regulation
Breathing techniques regulate your nervous system balance in numerous ways, which is part of why pranayama (breath worth) is such an effective core part of many practices such as yoga. I utilize a wide variety of breath-focus in my daily life to help manage stress, knee-jerk responses, and pain.
Simply paying attention to your breath can have a tremendous calming effect; now your body no longer needs to scream for your attention, because you’re listening now. This may be a large part of why sensory deprivation helps so much: when you’re laying still in a dark room, there isn’t much else to do besides pay attention to your body.
✔ Slow, Deep Belly Breathing – This activates your parasympathetic nervous system, reducing stress, nausea, and dizziness.
✔ Box Breathing (4-4-4-4 Pattern) – This regulates your oxygen-carbon dioxide balance, usually reducing headaches.
✔ Yawning or Forced Swallowing – This can relieve ear pressure and recalibrate the vestibular system. I actually find that simply opening my mouth as wide as I can helps with unwanted ear pressure and discomfort, and thus, I do this very often on long drives, in airplanes, and when suffering from an ear-infection.
💆🏻♀️ Posture & Pressure Remedies
Many headaches are tension-based, even when induced during a video game. In these cases, adjustments to your posture or massaging key areas can help.
✔ Self-Massage on the Sternocleidomastoid (SCM) Muscle – This vestibular-related muscle often tightens during simulator sickness. The sternocleidomastoid (SCM) is a large, superficial neck muscle that runs from behind your ear (mastoid process) down to your collarbone (clavicle) and sternum (breastbone).
If sternocleidomastoid tension is a key factor for you, then you may also experience ear ringing (tinnitus), jaw pain, vertigo, balance issues, eye strain, or blurry vision. If you find a knot in this muscle, press gently on it for fifteen to thirty seconds, then gently release. For more information on how to do effective trigger-point massage, please do some research or talk to a massage therapist. This muscle is near major blood vessels, it is important to avoid cutting off blood flow while working this muscle – not just because it’s dangerous, but also because this will make your headache far worse.
✔ Acupressure on P6 – There is an area on your inner wrist, approximately three fingers below your palm which is known to reduce nausea and headache intensity when stimulated. If you’re into acupressure, look up a video on how to do this. Personally, I had someone try this on me while I had severe motion sickness on a ship – someone who did this on themselves to great effect – and for whatever reason it didn’t help me. But many people swear by this, so give it a shot.
✔ Stretching the Upper Back & Neck – This can relieve your postural tension from screen use. I particularly like to use a foam roller on my upper back. I find this helps a lot with tension and general computer-fatigue, but I haven’t ever noticed it helping with simulator sickness specifically. But just in case tension is a major factor for you, it’s worth a shot.
🧘♀️ Vagus Nerve Stimulation
An absurd amount of physical problems trace back to vagal tone. Vagus nerve stimulation can reduce stress, overstimulation, and headache intensity. This could easily be its own article (and maybe it will be soon), but here’s a few tips for now:
✔ Progressive Muscle Relaxation – Tense and relax each muscle group. This helps release tension-based headaches. It’s also used as part of many therapeutic practices including tantra, hypnotic induction, and meditation induction. My mother led us through a version of this practice every Friday night of my childhood during our weekly meditation circle. Even as a toddler I found this practice highly helpful for calming down.
✔ Nature Sounds – While sensory deprivation is my go-to, some people find nature sounds to be more effective for calming overactive sensory processing.
✔ Aromatherapy – We already mentioned peppermint, but lavender and ginger essential oils are also cited for relieving nausea, dizziness, and headaches. Personally I don’t find these other aromas effective, but I do find that wintergreen and helichrysum help me.
✔ Humming or Low-Tone Vocalizations – This stimulates the vagus nerve, reducing nausea and headaches in most cases. Many chanting practices take advantage of the power of making long, held, low notes. These are incredibly soothing, so please do add this to your sensory-deprivation time if it calls to you. While I have rarely tried this for simulator sickness, I’ve found this helpful in a wide variety of sensory-overload situations.
Overview?
There is no “TL:DR” for this whopping essay. The details are really important for understanding your specific case – especially if it is anywhere near as complex as mine. Some drugs may provide immediate relief, but most have side-effects. If you can get by with ginger for motion sickness and some simple lighting changes are enough to abate your simulator sickness, then you’re probably not on this page in the first place. 🤣
I’m Raederle (Ray-der-lee). You can find me across the web under my real name (sincere thank you to my wonderful hippie parents for this name): Raederle Phoenix. I have authored numerous books, made board games, and practice neurotypology. You can support my work by purchasing any of my books or games, or subscribing to my patreon.
