They do sound different. I used seabands when I was pregnant with my youngest. Can’t say that it really worked too well. The ReliefBand looks pricey! I’m thinking about buying one and testing it out since they come with a money back guarantee.
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Just looked it up, relief bands look to deliver a (electrical?) signal to the same point that psi and sea bands activate using pressure only. That would be why relief band is so expensive. Psi and sea are not expensive, at all. Same principle, just different intensity of treatment.
That’s what’s tempting me as well. I plan on wearing a MagicBand and a FitBit so it does seem really annoying to have something else on my wrist. I might test out Bonine ahead of time first. I’ve never even heard of it prior to this thread, but I’d all but written off the typical suggestions since seabands, ginger, etc. never worked for me.
I can’t speak to relief bands fully, as they are different. But most motion sickness bands (seabands, etc) have been shown to work purely by the placebo effect. In other words, they aren’t ACTUALLY doing anything to help. But if you THINK they are helping, they kick in a mind-over-matter idea.
Anyhow, numerous studies have shown that there is no actual benefit, just perceived benefit.
But relief bands, in SOME studies were shown not to PREVENT motion sickness, but merely delay it. In such a case, however, it might be the result not directly of the band, but something else: distraction. It has been shown that distraction also reduces/delays motion sickness. Relief band’s stimulation provides a form of distraction, which would explain why they appear to work SLIGHTLY more effectively than a placebo or seaband.
The other problem is that people who know they experience motion sickness buy such bands and then, when they use them in situations that would potentially cause motion sickness, they claim they helped. But there is no control to compare to. So, in those same situations, had they NOT used the bands, they might have ended up with the same exact results. (Which is what every controlled study has shown.)
The only methods that have shown results in clinical trials with a proper control have been medicinal forms of anti-nausea medications.
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Is it like a TENS unit, little electrical shocks or tingles?
I will admit that I was pretty sure it (Bonine) wasn’t going to work since I felt so sick the first time I rode FJ! Maybe, as Ryan1 says, I made it even worse because I closed my eyes when I really started to struggle. The next trip, after taking Bonine, I forced my eyes wide open and did deep breathing the entire time. I’m sure I looked like a lunatic but I was so determined to experience the whole journey! And I did! (Look like a lunatic and experience the journey!)
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Now see, I am someone who goes almost entirely with alternative medicine and I have done lots of research on acupuncture and acupressure and how they work and why they work. I guess it all depends on who’s paying for the study!
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Yes. Exactly.
I have tried sea bands before / nothing. The relief band really worked so well on this past trip. I get queasy on bus rides sometimes if I’m not facing the front and it worked great on all the rides (except Forbidden Journey) but I was okay about 10 minutes after. I put it on about 20 minutes before we got on the bus (with a little conductor gel rubbed onto my wrist first) and had it set at a 2 all day. I turned it up to a 3-5 depending on the ride, then right back down to a 2 when I got off. I could even feel the electrical tingles a little on a one, but I have very thin wrists. On a three or higher I could feel it through my fingers when I touched something else. Not at all painful, just surprising! Well worth the $94 to go on all the rides with my family!! 
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