Beat Jet Lag: 5 Simple Tips for a Smooth Trip

How to Deal with Jet Lag After a Long-Haul Flight

Jet lag occurs when you travel a long distance and your circadian rhythm is thrown off by your body’s internal clock clashing with the external clock due to a time zone change. Jet lag includes dreadful feelings like fatigue, sleepiness, sluggishness, stress, and not being yourself.

Today, I will give you a few simple tips to help you with jet lag.

- This is probably the most difficult tip to follow, but if possible, try to adjust your sleep pattern based on your destination one to two weeks before traveling.

- Drink plenty of water before and during your flight. Yes, you may need to use the washroom more often, but water or fluids help your body cope better with jet lag.

- When you arrive at your destination, try to take a walk or do light exercise in your hotel. Don’t just stay in your room.

- Try to get some sun at your destination. Sunlight exposure helps regulate your melatonin production and your body gets a message that you are at a different place and gets adjusted to the new circadian cycle.

- And this is my favourite tip that I follow religiously. This one is very effective where you have completely opposite time zone shifting and day becomes night or night becomes day. For example, when I go to Asian countries like the Philippines, Thailand, or Bangladesh, their time is just the opposite of Canada.

Most of the time when my flight lands in the morning or afternoon, instead of going to sleep or nap right away, I wait till actual sleeping time at night. Sometimes it is difficult to not sleep after a 24- or 36-hour journey without sleeping (I can’t sleep on a plane), but I wait for the night.

After the full night sleep, I catch my destination’s cycle and get adjusted to the new time zone quickly. Also, you can consult a doctor about using melatonin supplements to further aid sleep adjustment.