| | Fighting Jet Lag By Paula Farris If you have ever traveled
across the country or across an ocean or two you
know how real (miserable) jet lag is--that
feeling of tiredness, nausea, irritability, fuzzy
thinking and impaired judgment and memory. Of
course, if you can’t stop the time changes you
experience when you travel, but there are a few
things you can do to ease their effects on your
body.
- Choose your flight carefully
When
traveling eastbound, plan to travel
during the day and arrive late at night,
that way you can go straight to bed after
you arrive at your hotel and start the
next day a little fresher. Better for
your natural body rhythms to have to stay
up a little later than to have to endure
a possibly restless night on an airplane
and then be expected to be awake in the
morning after you arrive at your
destination. Westbound travel is gentler
on your system, but you will still
benefit from a daytime flight.
- Plan to take the first day after travel
as a rest day.
Don’t plan any business
meetings where you need to be alert to
make major decisions. Give your body a
day or two (or even three if you travel
to the other side of the world) to adjust
to the new time schedule before you are
forced to function at full mental and
physical capacity. - Avoid alcohol while in the air.
The
altitude causes your body to react
differently to its effects as it would if
you were on the ground. The magnified
hangover you may get will intensify any
jet lag symptoms you may experience. - If your schedule allows, try to plan an
extended layover en-route to your final
destination.
This will allow your body to
adjust to the time changes more
gradually. - Try to choose an aisle seat on the
airplane.
This will give you a little more room
to stretch your legs (and to make trips
to the restroom easier.) The more
comfortable you are, the less stressful
your flight will be, and the easier time
you will have recovering from the
feelings that accompany time zone
changes. - If at all possible, in the four days or
so preceding your departure time, start
to adapt your body clock to the time zone
where you will be traveling.
Get up
earlier, stay up later, eat your meals
closer to the times you will eat when you
arrive. Gradually adapting your body
clock in familiar surroundings will be
less of a shock on your system.
- Eat very lightly while on the plane.
It
is best to bring your own food and eat
according to the schedule you have
adapted to. Eating familiar foods when
you are hungry, rather than possibly not
so tasty fare whenever it is served to
you will help to keep your stomach
settled.
- If the pilot announces that you will be
experiencing turbulence, lay off the
food.
That tossed about, roller coaster,
light headed feeling may be fun at an
amusement park, but it can add misery to
the effects of jet lag.
- Bring your own first aid kit.
Try to
avoid taking any kind of medication while
in the air because it, like alcohol, can
have unpleasant side effects when mixed
with high altitudes, but if by the time
you land your head feels like it would
feel better if it rolled off your
shoulders, a pain reliever may help
alleviate the pain and discomfort.
While nothing can eliminate or cure jet lag
(yet!) following this advice should make the time
adjustment easier, quicker and less painful.
The transition to a new time zone may be a bit easier if you feel at home in your surroundings. This article will give you some tips on how to make your hotel room feel more like home.
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Mesa, AZ 85201
Paula @ StressFreeFamilyTravel.com |
