The most effective way to stop vomiting at home is to rest your stomach completely for 15 to 30 minutes after the last episode, then begin sipping small amounts of clear fluid. Trying to drink or eat too much too soon is the most common mistake people make, and it often triggers another round of vomiting. The key is patience: tiny sips, spaced out, gradually increasing as your stomach settles.
Wait, Then Start Small With Fluids
After you vomit, your stomach needs a brief pause. Sit upright or lie on your side, breathe slowly, and avoid putting anything in your stomach for at least 15 to 30 minutes. Once that window passes without another episode, start with just a tablespoon or two of clear liquid every 20 minutes. Water, diluted broth, or an oral rehydration drink all work. If that stays down for a couple of hours, you can slowly increase the amount.
The goal is 5 milliliters (about a teaspoon) every five minutes to start, then gradually more as tolerated. Even if you feel intensely thirsty, resist the urge to gulp. A full glass of water on an irritated stomach almost always comes right back up. Think of it as a slow drip, not a refill.
Replace Salt and Sugar, Not Just Water
Plain water alone doesn’t replace what your body loses through vomiting. You lose electrolytes, especially sodium, and your blood sugar can drop. A simple homemade rehydration drink helps on both fronts: mix 4 cups of water with half a teaspoon of table salt and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Stir until dissolved and sip it slowly.
If that doesn’t appeal to you, diluted chicken broth works well. Use 2 cups of regular (not low-sodium) liquid broth mixed with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Another option is diluted juice: three-quarters of a cup of cranberry juice in about 3 and a quarter cups of water with half a teaspoon of salt. The point is getting a balance of sodium, a small amount of glucose, and enough fluid to prevent dehydration.
Ginger for Nausea Relief
Ginger is one of the most studied natural remedies for nausea. It works by speeding up the rate at which your stomach empties, which reduces that heavy, queasy feeling. Fresh ginger tea is the simplest preparation: slice a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger root, steep it in hot water for 5 to 10 minutes, and sip it slowly once it cools enough to drink. You can add a small amount of honey if the taste is too sharp.
Ginger chews, ginger ale made with real ginger (check the label, many brands use artificial flavoring), and even ginger capsules from a pharmacy all deliver the same active compounds. The key is using real ginger rather than ginger-flavored products.
The Pressure Point on Your Wrist
There’s a spot on the inside of your wrist called P6 (or Neiguan) that has solid clinical evidence behind it. A large review of 26 trials covering more than 3,000 patients found that stimulating this point reduced both nausea and vomiting, and it performed comparably to anti-nausea medication for vomiting and even outperformed medication for nausea alone. The technique works whether you press the point with your fingers or use a commercial acupressure wristband.
To find it, hold your arm out with your palm facing up. Place three fingers across your wrist, starting at the crease where your hand meets your arm. The point sits just below your three fingers, between the two tendons running up the center of your inner forearm. Press firmly with your thumb and hold for two to three minutes, then repeat on the other wrist. You can do this as often as you need to.
Clove Tea and Peppermint
Cloves contain a compound called eugenol, which makes up about 72% of clove extract and has both anti-inflammatory and anti-nausea properties. Animal research has confirmed that clove extract has direct antiemetic effects. To make clove tea, steep 3 to 4 whole cloves in a cup of hot water for 5 to 10 minutes, strain, and sip slowly. The flavor is strong, so you may want to start with fewer cloves.
Peppermint works through a different mechanism, relaxing the smooth muscles in your digestive tract. Peppermint tea or even just inhaling peppermint oil can ease nausea. If you don’t have peppermint tea bags, crush a few fresh mint leaves in hot water. Avoid peppermint if you have acid reflux, though, because that same muscle-relaxing effect can make reflux worse.
What to Eat When You’re Ready
You may have heard of the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) as the go-to recovery plan after vomiting. Most experts, including the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, no longer recommend following a restricted diet like this. The current guidance is simpler: once you feel like eating, return to your normal diet. There’s no benefit to limiting yourself to bland foods for days.
That said, for the first meal or two, most people’s stomachs do better with foods that are low in fat and easy to digest. Plain crackers, broth-based soup, a banana, or plain rice are all gentle choices. Avoid greasy, fried, or heavily spiced food until you’ve kept a couple of lighter meals down comfortably. Dairy can be irritating for some people right after a stomach illness, so consider waiting a day before adding it back.
Helping a Child Who Is Vomiting
Children dehydrate faster than adults, so fluid replacement needs to start sooner and in smaller amounts. For babies under one year, use a spoon or syringe to give 1 to 2 teaspoons (5 to 10 mL) of fluid every few minutes. For children over one year, aim for half an ounce to one ounce (about 1 to 2 tablespoons) every 20 minutes for the first few hours.
Don’t let vomiting discourage you from offering fluids. Even when a child is still vomiting occasionally, small frequent sips usually stay down and are absorbed. Starting with 5 mL every 5 minutes and slowly increasing works for most kids. Infants should continue breast milk or formula between rehydration sips. For older children, the same homemade rehydration solution described above is safe, or you can use a store-bought pediatric electrolyte drink.
Other Things That Help
Cool, fresh air can reduce nausea surprisingly fast. If you’re indoors, open a window or sit near a fan. Strong smells, whether cooking odors, perfume, or smoke, are common nausea triggers, so move away from them if possible.
Loose clothing helps too. Anything tight around your waist or abdomen puts pressure on your stomach and can make nausea worse. Sitting upright or reclining at a slight angle (propped up on pillows) keeps gravity working in your favor. Lying flat can allow stomach acid to creep upward and retrigger vomiting.
Deep, slow breathing through your nose is a surprisingly effective nausea reducer. Inhale for a count of four, hold briefly, then exhale slowly for a count of four. This activates your body’s calming nervous system response and can interrupt the nausea cycle within a few minutes.
Signs That Need Medical Attention
Most vomiting from a stomach bug, food that didn’t agree with you, or motion sickness resolves within 12 to 24 hours. But certain signs mean you should get to urgent care or an emergency room. Vomit that contains blood, looks like coffee grounds, or is green needs immediate evaluation. The same goes for vomiting paired with severe abdominal pain, chest pain, confusion, blurred vision, or a high fever with a stiff neck.
Dehydration is the other major concern. Watch for dark-colored urine, very infrequent urination, dry mouth, excessive thirst, and dizziness when you stand up. You can check skin turgor by gently pinching the skin on the back of your hand: it should snap back immediately. If it stays “tented” or returns slowly, that suggests significant fluid loss. For adults, vomiting that lasts more than two days warrants a call to your doctor. For children under two, the threshold is 24 hours, and for infants, it’s 12 hours.