You're not the boss of me

I wasn't one to get on a boat if I could avoid it. I wouldn't get sick, but I'd feel nauseous and uncomfortable and basically make anyone around me feel uncomfortable (at least I thought I did). So when Randy invited Roger to go whale watching and Roger invited me to come along, my gut reaction was, "Are you kidding??"

But I gave it more thought and considered it to be an opportunity so I accepted the invite. I'm convinced that my aversion to boats is in my mind. If I could approach it more positively, maybe I could do well on a boat. I didn't know a hypnotist who could plant a positive suggestion in my mind, so I armed myself as best as I could.


Ready or not

Friends were very supportive and gave me tips like when to start taking the Dramamine, what types of food to avoid, where and how to stand, and what to look at while on the water. The advice was welcomed and the support was encouraging.

We went out today and I had a glimmer of anxiety wash over me as I stepped on the boat, but I let that go and thought about the adventure. We had to go out pretty far to see Humpback Whales--pretty far was ~15 miles. That took a while, but I stayed outside the cabin and enjoyed the fresh air as I let my legs absorb the motion of the boat while keeping my torso pretty quiet. I didn't sit down and I didn't hang onto a railing, I just kept looking to the horizon for whale spouts.

Well, guess what? I did okay! I didn't get dizzy or uncomfortable and I was able to enjoy the ride. Granted, the water was relatively calm, but the cruise was longer than normal and there was plenty of time for it to turn into a bad situation, but that didn't happen.

We saw a number whales and a few showed off their flukes.


Humpback Whale


Humpback Whale

Then suddenly there was a "whoosh" near me and 2 humpbacks were right next to our boat! Everyone gave a big cheer as they paralleled our course. They didn't give us the thrill of seeing their flukes, but it was pretty cool to have them come so close.


Humpback Whale

We also saw dolphins and plenty of birds like this pelican.


Brown Pelican

I had a great time and felt like I achieved a milestone today. What shall we do next? Book a cruise? lol

Big thanks to Randy, Roger, and Princess Monterey Whale Watching.


Randy & Roger

Also thanks to everyone who gave me advice and a "you can do it!" I did it!