Former Cruise Officer Reveals How Secret ‘Ship Fever’ Is Rife Onboard

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Cruise ship staff work extremely hard to make the best possible holidays for their passengers. Whether this is providing top quality entertainment, dishing up fine meals or making sure cabins are tip-top, their efforts are usually very obvious. Yet in doing so, and spending prolonged periods of time on sea excursions where standards are sky high, the conditions might take their toll. In an article published in Express.co.uk, a former cruise ship worker Joshua Kinser has revealed during his time on board, he suffered from numerous bouts of “ship fever”.

Here’s an excerpt from the article which chronicles the phenomenon of “Ship fever”

Chronicling Ship Fever in a Book

He opened up on his experiences in a new book, Chronicles of a Cruise Ship Worker, and wrote the heavy, incessant schedules may have been to blame.

He wrote: “Eventually, I found ways to deal with sea days but at the time, they were beginning to give me a case of the ship version of cabin fever”.

How does it occur?

“Crew members who sail aboard ships headed to Hawaii and back or partake in an ocean crossing from New York to England can have many consecutive days at sea in a row, and these crew members can easily develop ship fever”.

“Ship fever occurs when you begin to have a difficult time being isolated out in the middle of the ocean, and the only cure is to get off the ship.”

How to reduce it?

Talking of a slight cure, he added: “I was able to reduce the temperature of my ship fever by getting off the ship and exploring a port, but this was only temporary”.

Cruise secrets: A former employee has opened up about 'ship fever'

Meanwhile, although ship fever may cause mental turmoil, the real effects of mass illness on board have come to light.

Cruise secrets: The ex employee likened ship fever to cabin fever

 When it is likely to occur?

He explained it occurred when he had not had a break between cruise routes. One former cruise ship worker has revealed all after his vessel was hit with a norovirus breakout.

Former Carnival Cruise Line employee Jay Herring talked of what he termed the “extremely contagious” illness and its terrifying impact on board, for both passengers and crew.

Spreads Like a Wild Fire

In his new book, The Truth About Cruise Ships, he said: “Most of the outbreak on cruise ships happen when the virus is brought about by someone who got infected in port, either from person to person contact or from contaminated food and water”.

“It’s extremely contagious, and once aboard it spreads like wildfire”.

“One infected chef can contaminate hundreds of meals.”

“The minute I would set back on the ship my ship fever temperature would slowly begin to rise until I ran off the ship again”.

“I began to feel a bit trapped while abroad the ship, and I wasn’t ever going to have a long break from it until my contract was over and I could go home for a short vacation, which was still three months away.”

Cabin fever, which Joshua compares his feeling to, is described as a common reaction to being isolated in a building for a period of time.

Others term it as a type of claustrophobia.

The Real Effect of Illness

Meanwhile, although ship fever may cause mental turmoil, the real effects of mass illness on board have come to light.

One former cruise ship worker has revealed all after his vessel was hit with a norovirus breakout.

Former Carnival Cruise Line employee Jay Herring talked of what he termed the “extremely contagious illness” and its terrifying impact on board, for both passengers and crew.

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Source: Express.co.uk