You Can Beat Jet Lag

If you get just a couple of hours sleep while you are on a transatlantic flight you should be able to function the day that you arrive. Anyone who goes through many time zones usually has to deal with your body’s biorhythmic confusion called jet lag. If you are going from the United States to Europe you may change your wristwatch forward six hours. Your body gets confused and doesn’t know how to react. Your body doesn’t like change and has a hard time changing. Your body is used to its 24 hour time schedule. Now your body is telling you to eat when you should be sleeping and then will want to sleep when you should be working.

Most people just assume the first day of your vacation after a long flight will be worthless because of jet lag. Don’t sell yourself short. Many people can enjoy productive first days and may even be hyper. You can’t stop jet lag from happening but if you follow these guidelines you can lessen the symptoms.

Make sure you leave on your vacation well rested. It can be very stressful to fly across many time zones. If you end up having a party before you leave or are frazzles because you are stressed you will probably end up sick for the beginning of your trip. Usually a cold early on in the trip is very normal but there is something you can do to stop it.

Trick your body into thinking that you are leaving a couple days earlier than you actually are planning on leaving. Don’t have anything planned for this time period and make sure everything is done and you are ready to go 46 hours ahead of time. Mentally you will be prepared for leaving and you can peacefully start your trip stress free. You will leave on your vacation full of energy and 100 percent able to enjoy all of the excitement that awaits you on your trip.

Think about well-known jet lag remedies. It never is a good idea to promote medicine as an everyday remedy but taking Ambien as a sleep aid is probably a good choice when it comes to combating jet lag. If you can get at least seven hours nightly while you are away, you will be able to adjust better to the local time where you are vacationing. If you do this, you will not be too tired to stay awake until the correct bedtime and you will be able to adjust and get over jet lag much quicker.

Ambien does cause side effects and is habit forming so make sure you check with your physician before taking them and make sure you stick to the instructions carefully.

Bottom Line. One of the top things you can do is make sure you leave the house well rested and stress free. You need to force your body into the time zone you will be vacationing in by acting like you are there already. If you follow all of the guidelines that were suggested, you may be able to enjoy yourself the minute you get off the airplane.