Tips for overcoming the jet lag effects

Have you ever travelled to a different time zone, woke up in the middle of the night and wondered why the sun is shining outside? I have, and getting used to a different time zone is one of the biggest obstacles I was facing at the beginning of my travels. And since I have traveled to a different time zone, which can result in a jet lag, more than twenty times in the last two years, I can say I became a master in avoiding most of the major effects of jet lag.

What is jet lag and what are its effects?

Jet lag is a condition that can really mess with our biological clock. Effects that spending time in a different time zone will have on you, depend on where you are travelling. I will give you a simple example. Say you are from Europe, and decide to travel to the United states of America, or the Caribbean. When you get to your destination, you will have no problems waking up early in the morning, but you will find it really hard to stay awake past eight o’clock at night.

The reason for that is simply because your body is still used to the ‘old’ time from your home country. On the other hand, if you travel to, for example, Asia, you will find it hard to wake up early in the morning, but it will be really easy for you to stay awake longer.

Other jet lag effects that I have encountered, also include extreme tiredness, dizziness, concentration and memory problems, confusion and loss or gain of appetite. It feels even more unpleasant than it sounds.

My tips for beating the jet lag

The internet is full of tips for overcoming the annoying jet lag effects, and, of course, most of those tips do not work. In this blog post, I decided to share the tips that I tried and they actually helped me with minimizing the annoying jet lag effects.

When I travel to a different time zone, I usually do the following thing a few days before departure: I try to go to sleep and wake up at the local time of the country I am travelling to. This experience can be a bit unpleasant since you are still at home, but it makes adjusting to a new time zone easier.

Sleep on the plane! Forget all about those movies you can watch on planes, you can get them on DVD or Netflix eventually. And forget about food. If you do not want to miss a snack, ask the person sitting next to you (or, even better, a flight attendant) to wake you up when the meals are served, or just tell them to put your food on the tray. And if you miss a served meal, remember that airplane food is not that good anyways. And believe me, every minute of sleep that you get on the plane, counts.

And if you can, choose the red eye flight. Red eye flights fly during the night. They are usually much cheaper, and I always find it easier to fall asleep when I fly during the night.

When choosing a red eye flight, you will be awarded with amazing scenery during takeoff. This was New York at 11 p. m.

When you arrive to your destination, go to sleep at a local time. Regardless on how tired you are after you arrive, try to avoid that little nap during the day at all costs. That will mess up your biological clock even more.

Drink enough water. It is extremely important to keep yourself hydrated. If your body is not hydrated enough, it will be even more difficult to adjust to a new time zone and therefore a new rhythm. During my first day in a different time zone, I try to drink at least three liters of water every day.

This is your best friend when flying into a different time zone.

Do not drink alcohol or caffeine quite a few hours before bed. I used to party a lot and with partying come the drinks. But I realized that drinking alcohol makes my jet lag effects worse - I am unable to sleep if I drink alcohol less than five hours before bedtime when I am in a different time zone. Needless to say that same goes for coffee.

We all love them, but try to survive without coffee and alcohol at least during your first few days at a new destination.

And if you get up in the middle of the night, and the tiny voice in your head is telling you that it is time to get up, do not listen to it and go back to sleep. Set an alarm for the morning so you will know, in case you wake up at night, that it is not time to wake up yet because the alarm did not go off.

A few words for the end…

The effects of jet lag can be extremely unpleasant, and they can even ruin your idea of a perfect vacation. But with little preparation and knowledge on what to expect, the effects of jet lag can be minimized in as soon as only a couple of days.

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