Jet lag

This is a very frequently discussed topic. Most of us have our own routines that we've developed through trial and error. What works for one person may not work for another. Because I'm first, here's what I do.

I drug myself on the plane with Ambien. I do this not necessarily to combat jet lag, but just to make the flight go by quicker. Don't try the pharmacology route unless you discuss it with your doctor first and you know how the drug will affect you.

After crossing the ocean more times than I can keep track of, I've learned one thing- jetlag is going to hit no matter what I do. So, I work it into my schedule. I may take a short nap when I arrive (no more than two hours), then I go outside for a walk and begin the process of re-synchronizing my circadian clock to the new time zone. I go to bed slightly earlier than I normally would on the first night, then sleep later than usual the next morning. By day two, most of the travel fatigue is gone, although it takes a few more days to completely adjust my sleep cycle.

I never sleep on the plane - it just doesn't work for me and I feel incredibly awful when I get off the plane. I pre-plan "activities" for myself on the way to stay awake...read a magazine cover to cover, watch a movie, eat a meal, read my book, laps around the plane, watch another movie, read again, and so forth! I get a flight that lands in Europe mid-afternoon. I get to wherever I'm staying for my first night, drop off my things and then go have an early dinner somewhere. Soon after dinner, no later than 7, I go to bed and sleep through the night and don't get up until at least 6 or so when I just can't sleep anymore. It usually gets me fairly back on track for the first full day.
Drink lots of water on your flight; not alcohol or soda.

For me I prefer landing in the morning, staying up all day, getting to bed around 8 pm & getting up at the normal time in the morning.

Fortunately or unfortunately my internal clock has been broken for years - in my former life I would end up working straight through for 2 or 3 solid days to get everything ready for me to be gone from work for 3 weeks or so. By the time I got on the plane I was so revved up with adrenalin sleep was fleeting. We usually land in the morning - we would drop our stuff at our hotel and go! I get to bed about 8 pm the first day and wake the next morning all adjusted. I have never needed a lot of sleep 5 or 6 hours a night is about it - I still keep crazy hours so time zones still don't affect me.

I'm more like Anita than like Tom, I really can't sleep on the flight, maybe an hour or so of fitful sleep but mostly I'm too excited and uncomfortable in my tight economy seat. We try to take evening flights from Seattle that arrive in early afternoon so we can power through the rest of the day, walking around outside if possible, excited to be there, no naps if we can help it. An early heavy dinner with wine (no alcohol on the flight), then to bed when it gets dark, with an OTC sleeping pill. That puts me out till the next morning when I feel pretty adjusted.

It's harder for me coming back, I'm exhausted when I get home and go to bed early, then wake up in the small hours, and it takes me a week to get back in synch with Pacific time zone. Of course at this point all I'm missing is normal home routine (helps to be retired) so no big deal.

I see you're from Wisconsin so maybe ORD is your departure point, shorter flights than mine so maybe less disruptive. Good luck, and don't worry about it too much. Just don't plan anything involving sitting in a dark room (opera, planetarium) the day you arrive!

My biggest piece of advice is listen to your body. I take a nap as soon as I get to my hotel, if the room is ready. I can't get comfortable enough on the plane to go to sleep so I'm basically a zombie when I arrive in Europe. I take a nap at 10:00am and then am wide awake until 2:00am the next day. If you need to sleep, then sleep. If you're ready to go when you land, that's great. Expect that your normal sleep routine will be disrupted for the next day or two after you get to Europe.

Before going on any trip to Europe, I try to go to bed earlier and earlier. It helps a little.

When on the plane, I drink a little water--no alcohol. And after eating dinner, I'll take an Ambien. When I awake, I'll watch a movie, and we'll be there.

We'll take it easy on the first afternoon and night--maybe walking around the city a little. But we'll go to bed at a normal time and get ready for our second day 100%.

Jill,

I can only speak for myself.

I dont sleep on the plane overthere and once i get checked in i will take a shower and get out and do some sight seeing. I will hit the sack around 2100 (i work a 12 hr shift normally) since that is my normal time i go to bed even though its about 8+ hours off. that first night i will sleep real good and then get up around 0700 or earlier depending on what my body does.

just so you know, i think you will find that going over there is alot easier than going back home.

happy trails.

Tom's advice is excellent. I've posted my own routine a few times, which entails (and this is not a joke) diet, controlled exposure to light, and strategic doses of melatonin.

But I've never posted my real secret about jet lag before, which is as follows.

Have a small child. This will completely destroy your circadian rhythms and you will never experience jet lag (or complete rest) again.

I have previous post our ritual which has for us proven to be very effective. Depending on where we are going we need to shift around 8 hours. About three or four weeks prior we start time shifting by one hour each week. Instead of getting up at 7am, we get up at 6, then 5, then 4. Dinner and everything shifts according. Little clumsy the last week or so. On the day of departure we try to be up early - maybe as early as 3 am. Since our flights often leave in the range of 7 to 8 pm, we are at the airport early 4/5 pm, have a nice dinner at the airport. Within an hour of wheels up, we are settled in, shoes off, ear plugs and eye shades on and ignore all activities on the plane. Can get some sleep, not great but some. When plane wakes up and hour or so prior to landing, we participate - coffee, breakfast. Generally land early to mid-morning and hit our hotel. If we cannot check in will leave luggage and get into the sun and walk a lot. Find a little lunch, hopefully outside. Return to hotel around 2,3 pm. And take a nap with an alarm set for 2 hours. Generally wake before the alarm, freshen up, get back outside with more walking. Have dinner with the restaurants open, generally around 7, and back to the hotel by 10. Find we wake on time the next morning and rarely have any lingering jet lag the next day. May have a little but completely gone by second day.

Three keys for us - Three or four hours of time shift which means that we only have to adjust to three or four hours at other end. The very early day on departure which makes us very tired by the time we get on the plane and with the time shift that is about the time we are scheduled for bed. And, finally, the two nap in the afternoon of arrival combine with max time in the sun.

There are two facets to jetlag. One is disruption to your body's rhythm, often combined with lack of sleep on an over-night flight. There's lots of good advice here for that.

The other facet, not so apparent, is mental disorientation. It's been claimed that adjustment takes one day for each hour of time difference. Personally, I think that's an exaggeration, but it does take some time. It can be harder to concentrate, to follow directions, and to "file things" in your mind. It's best to plan your first couple of days in more detail ahead of time. Don't try to do too much, and don't buy any expensive souvenirs right away since your judgment is likely to be impaired.

Good advice about the souvenirs, Chani. I never get jet lag on the way to Europe, but on returning I have great difficulty readjusting. I think it's Returning Traveler's Remorse.

I can't sleep on a plane for anything. I just try to finish packing and preparing a few days before the trip. I try to avoid caffeine and sleep well in the days leading up to the trip so I am at least well rested before I start. I previously tried leaving tired hoping it would cause me to sleep on the plane, but it didn't work. I try to rest on the plane, and always try to sleep, but always fail. When I arrive, I make myself stay up until 9 or so that night. I usually plan simple things the first day like an early dinner and exploring the neighborhood around where I am staying. I go to bed around 9 that night, and since I am really exhausted by then, I usually sleep pretty well. The next day I am usually good to go. Coming back I find much harder. I think it is easier to fight jet lag when you are on a trip, excited and seeing new things. It is much harder for me to fight it when I am getting back into my normal home/work routine. I always plan at least two days at home before going back to work to help me adjust.

Hi,

Very similar to Leigh's routine. We make sure every things in order (double checking pet/house sitter, light timers, copies of what we need, etc.) at least a week before we leave. We are packed and ready to go 2 to 3 days before our flight. We never really have jet lag, so to speak. We'll fall asleep (in coach) for an hour at a time, for maybe 2 or 3 hours total, but once we land, we're ready to go for the day. We're very excited to start our day in Germany! We've never done less than a 2 or 3 hour drive after landing in the early am in Germany, plus we'll do a tour of a castle or something else. Go for a walk, out to dinner and usually get to sleep around 9 or 10pm. Typically wake up early the next day and everything is fine. I always give ourselves 2 days off after returning. That's the tougher part.

I think it's the lack of stress, as we're so prepared before our trip that helps the most.

Paul

I have never suffered from jet lag on my trips to Europe. Here's what works for me.

1. Go to you doctor and tell him that you need a few pills to relax on the plane ride to Europe.
2. (Optional) - Have a beer or two as you wait for the plane.
3. Take the pills as you are about to board the plane.
3. Invest in a set of earplugs and an eye mask to use when you are on the plane.
4. Sleep like a baby and wake up in Europe!

No stress means starting to toss your junk in the bag ten minutes before you leave and checking to make sure you locked the door behind you and didn't leave dirty dishes in the sink.

You have to believe in jet lag to let it bother you - - kind of like trolls under the bed or goblins in the closet.

I think Leigh hit the nail on head- do your best to make sure you are well rested leading up to the trip. Then you have some reserve built up for that first day. I am able to get a good nap in about 50% of the time. The other 50%, I am too excited to sleep. So I download a lot of movies and books and get up to stretch my legs a few times. I am also a big believer in avoiding alcohol on long flights. The celebratory " I am going on a trip" drink is tempting. But even one drink makes me feel more dehydrated and gives me a headache and keeps me from falling into a deep sleep. Once I arrive, I stay up as late as I can that first day. I do prefer arriving early afternoon so I can check into the hotel right away.

My husband and I have always used "No Jet Lag Pills". You can buy them on-line on e-Bay or at travel stores. They are not medicine. You take one pill on take-off and one every two hours. If you fall asleep, you can go for up to four hours without a pill. A lot of people think jet lag is in your head and that the pills don't work. Well we have used them for about ten international trips and they have worked for us. We have even been to Australia, twice and had no jet lag after our flight from LAX to Brisbane and onto Melbourne. It is harmless and it works for us.

For me, it really depends on the timing of the flight. If you flight leaves the east coast at around your bedtime (9pm or later) rather than mid-afternoon (around 4pm), you will have a much better chance of getting a few hours sleep. At least that is the case for me. I drink lots of water, get myself the eye covers, and take a shot of Nyquil.
Once landed, try and do some fun, maybe outdoorsy things. Drink one cup of coffee as soon as possible, and no more caffeine after. I stay out and about most of the first day, get an early dinner, and fall asleep by 8:30am. Wake up the next morning with no more issues.

Since I live in California and have a long distance to travel, I prefer taking late afternoon flights so I have a better chance of sleeping on the flight. Our flight last August to Italy departed at 4pm and I stayed up through dinner and then took a melatonin (helps with jet lag), magnesium and part of a Xanax. I also used a relaxation/sleep app on my Iphone. The combination put me to sleep within 30 minutes and I was luckily able to get a good 5-6 hours sleep. We arrived in Venice and were a bit drowsy but then excitement kicked in and I didn't want to miss a minute of being in Venice so I stayed up, walked around, had an early dinner and returned to the hotel at around 8pm and went to bed. By the next morning, I was acclimated and ready to go!

Like Anita and others, I don't sleep on planes. I pass the time watching movies, reading a book, playing Suduko, listening to RS radio shows, music, drinking lots of water, which means multiple trips to the bathroom, laps around the plane, hanging near the galley talking to other non-sleepers. I'll close my eyes and doze off, but definitely no more than a few minutes here and there. We tend to arrive in Europe in the morning, so we muscle through the day staying outside, exploring, and do our best to stay awake until about 9pm. Then we sleep through the night until about 7 in the am. No Jet lag on day 2.