Nausea usually responds well to a handful of simple strategies you can start right now. Whether it’s from a stomach bug, motion sickness, pregnancy, or something you ate, the goal is the same: calm the signals between your gut and brain long enough for the feeling to pass. Here’s what actually works.
Try Ginger First
Ginger is one of the most studied natural remedies for nausea, and it works for a wide range of causes. Its active compounds, gingerols and shogaols, act directly on the digestive tract and on the brain’s nausea center. You don’t need much. Clinical trials have used standardized doses as low as 84 mg of active gingerols per day spread across four capsules, and that was enough to reduce nausea in chemotherapy patients over multiple treatment cycles.
For everyday nausea, the simplest options are ginger tea, ginger chews, or ginger capsules from a pharmacy. Fresh ginger sliced into hot water works too. Sip it slowly rather than gulping it down, since flooding your stomach with liquid can make things worse.
Press the P6 Point on Your Wrist
There’s a pressure point on the inside of your wrist called P6 (sometimes labeled PC6 or Neiguan) that can take the edge off mild to moderate nausea. It sits in the groove between the two large tendons that run from the base of your palm down your forearm.
To find it, lay three fingers from your opposite hand flat across the inside of your wrist, starting just below the wrist crease. The point is directly below where your third finger lands. Press firmly into the space between the tendons with your thumb. It shouldn’t hurt. Hold for one to two minutes, then switch wrists if needed. This is the same principle behind anti-nausea wristbands sold for motion sickness and morning sickness.
Inhale an Alcohol Swab
This one sounds odd, but sniffing a standard isopropyl alcohol pad is a technique used in emergency departments for acute nausea. Hold an unopened alcohol swab about one to two centimeters below your nose, then take four slow, deep breaths about two seconds apart. You can repeat this every 10 to 20 minutes for up to an hour. The sharp scent appears to interrupt the nausea signal, and recent EMS practice guidelines from 2026 include alcohol swabs as a frontline option when other treatments aren’t available.
If you don’t have alcohol swabs on hand, any strong, clean scent can help to a lesser degree. Peppermint oil is a good alternative.
How Peppermint Helps
When you’re nauseous, the muscles lining your stomach and intestines often tighten and spasm. Peppermint’s active compounds, menthol and menthone, relax those muscles directly. This eases the cramping sensation that feeds the nausea cycle. Peppermint also stimulates bile flow, which improves digestion and can reduce that heavy, queasy feeling after eating.
You can inhale peppermint essential oil from the bottle, add a drop to a tissue and breathe through it, or sip peppermint tea. Avoid peppermint if you have acid reflux, though, since the same muscle relaxation that helps nausea can loosen the valve at the top of your stomach and let acid creep up.
Eat the Right Foods (or Nothing at All)
If the thought of food makes you gag, don’t force it. Resting your stomach for a few hours is fine as long as you stay hydrated with small, frequent sips of water, clear broth, or an electrolyte drink. Avoid drinking large amounts at once.
When you’re ready to eat again, start bland. The BRATT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, tea, and toast) is a structured approach used at major cancer centers like Memorial Sloan Kettering to ease people back into eating after vomiting or severe nausea. These foods are low in fat, easy to digest, and unlikely to trigger another wave. Crackers, plain potatoes, and broth-based soups also work well. Avoid greasy, spicy, or heavily seasoned food until you’ve kept bland food down comfortably for several hours.
Cold foods tend to be better tolerated than hot ones because they produce less aroma. A room-temperature banana is easier on a sensitive stomach than a plate of scrambled eggs.
Over-the-Counter Medications
Two main types of OTC medications target nausea, and they work differently depending on the cause.
- Bismuth subsalicylate (the active ingredient in Pepto-Bismol) protects the stomach lining and works best for nausea from stomach bugs, food-related upset, or general indigestion. Don’t use it if you’re allergic to aspirin, since it’s in the same chemical family. It’s also not safe for children under 12 or for kids and teens who might have the flu or chickenpox due to the risk of Reye syndrome.
- Antihistamines like dimenhydrinate and meclizine (found in Dramamine and Bonine) are the go-to for motion sickness. They work by dulling the inner ear’s ability to sense motion and blocking the signals that trigger nausea in the brain. They cause drowsiness, so plan accordingly. If you have glaucoma, an enlarged prostate, or breathing problems like asthma, check with a pharmacist before using them.
For motion sickness specifically, these antihistamines work best when taken 30 to 60 minutes before travel. Once you’re already deep into nausea, they’re less effective.
Quick Habits That Help Right Now
Beyond remedies, a few simple changes can make a noticeable difference in the moment. Get fresh air: open a window, step outside, or turn a fan toward your face. Cool, moving air reduces the sensation of nausea for many people. Sit upright or recline slightly rather than lying flat, which can increase pressure on your stomach. Avoid strong smells, especially cooking odors, perfume, or cleaning products. Breathe slowly and deliberately through your nose, since rapid or shallow breathing can amplify the queasy feeling.
Loose clothing helps too. Anything tight around your waist or abdomen puts pressure on your stomach and can push nausea from manageable to miserable.
Warning Signs That Need Urgent Attention
Most nausea passes on its own or with the strategies above, but certain combinations of symptoms point to something more serious. According to the Mayo Clinic, you should get emergency help if nausea and vomiting come with chest pain, severe abdominal cramping, blurred vision, confusion, a high fever with a stiff neck, or rectal bleeding.
You should also get to an urgent care or emergency room if your vomit contains blood, looks like coffee grounds, or is green. A severe headache alongside vomiting, especially one unlike any you’ve had before, warrants immediate evaluation. And if you notice signs of dehydration (dark urine, dizziness when standing, dry mouth, or going many hours without urinating), you may need IV fluids to recover safely.