How do you deal with jet lag?

T

ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
I don't know how many of you fly in but being from England there's a 5 hour time difference. So if its 5pm when we land to us it's really 10pm (which wasn't as bad as when I did LA and found myself 8 hours back in time) ;)

After a 9 hour flight (12 for LA) plus all the travel time prior and the airport waiting around it's pretty exhausting no matter how you play it.

I usually try to stay up til about 8.30 then the first day do a relaxing park like Epcot. It's a lot if walking but I find it quite easy going there. Sea World is another option if its a year I choose to go there (tend to miss that one out some trips).

Luckily it's worse going home I find (your body thinking it's 7pm when its actually midnight is more of mind bending) but that's okay because it'd rather snooze at work than at WDW :)
 
jkl2000

jkl2000

Well-Known Member
I know the method that works when flying from the US to Europe (if you arrive early AM) is as soon as you're in your hotel room or wherever you're sleeping, to sleep for about three hours, then wake up and stay up until a normal local bed time. Works like a charm for me.

Going the other way... I would think stay up till a normal local bed time, then sleep and do your best to wake up at a normal wake up time. First time I went to Europe, I did this except I slept until about 7pm the next evening! Man, was I disoriented.

I'm sure there are lots of recommendations online. I'm glad I have no time difference!
 
jw24

jw24

Well-Known Member
Well, for jet lag in general, definitely give yourself time to adjust. It may take a few days to accustomed to the time change. Don't try to rush everything as soon as you land because granted, no matter how many days you stay, you won't get everything done, which is the motivation for more visits. :D
 
T

ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
Unfortunately when you're on that time scale and spending that kind of money allowing time to adjust isn't viable. Just gotta power on through ;)

I know for sure it was easier when I was younger! Nowadays by the time I've adapted I'm on the flight home ready to be messed up again :D
 
BiffyClyro

BiffyClyro

Well-Known Member
You just have to make yourself get up at normal time and go to bed at normal/ a bit of a later time. You might be a bit grumpy and groggy but it's the only way to push through. It gets to about 6.00pm (FL time) and you start feeling really tired, but don't go to bed until at least 10.00 i'd say. It gets easier after the 1st day.

Usually though when you're at magic kingdom you push through happily! It's just keeping kids awake.
 
The Mighty Tim

The Mighty Tim

Well-Known Member
Going from UK to USA, I stay up to normal sleeping time in the US. At WDW, this means maybe a quick visit to the park on arrival, then some food and then sleep. Adrenaline usually keeps me going.

On return, we usually get back early morning, and I can't sleep on planes. So, I try and stay awake again until normal sleeping time, by which point, I'd have done 34 hours without sleep. One key trick is not to stay in bed too long that night, otherwise the following night, you will find it difficult to get to sleep, which is frustrating if you are going back to work the next day!!

Incidentally, a problematic, multi legged trip back across the Atlantic to the UK resulted in me getting a mere 4 hours sleep in the space of 60. Needless to say I was a bit tired/doolally by the end!
 
jkl2000

jkl2000

Well-Known Member
BiffyClyro said:
You just have to make yourself get up at normal time and go to bed at normal/ a bit of a later time. You might be a bit grumpy and groggy but it's the only way to push through. It gets to about 6.00pm (FL time) and you start feeling really tired, but don't go to bed until at least 10.00 i'd say. It gets easier after the 1st day.
Click to expand...

Around 9pm you start seeing stars before your eyes!
 
BiffyClyro

BiffyClyro

Well-Known Member
jkl2000 said:
Around 9pm you start seeing stars before your eyes!
Click to expand...
Haha yeah! For me there is a tradition where at about 6.00 my teen brother gets grumpy and has a falling out with someone over something ridiculous and then falls asleep like a toddler on the way home :D
 
The Mighty Tim

The Mighty Tim

Well-Known Member
Someone once said to me that sleep deprivation was a bit like morphine. After experiencing jet lag induced sleep deprivation, I have to agree!
 
LucyK

LucyK

Well-Known Member
We have just a two-hour difference to Orlando which is not bad and should not make our internal clock all that crazy but after a ten-hour flight we are dead tired.

For us what works better is taking an overnight flight that get us to MCO around 1pm (after a connecting flight at either Atlanta or Detroit). We normally hit MK for a couple of hours, have dinner and crash for the night and on the next day we're good to go!
 
ABZDisneyFan

ABZDisneyFan

Member
If you are flying from the UK, snooze on the plane on the way over for an hour or so then stay up as late as you can when you get there, think of it as a late night out at home. I also drop some hay fever medication to make me drowsy before I go to bed.
The first day or so you'll be out of it a bit but you'll soon get over it.
On the way back avoid heavy food on the plane, hay fever tablet & try to get some sleep.
Used to do a couple of transatlantic trips a month with a Middle East trip thrown in as well when I was younger & never suffered from jet lag.
 
Weather_Lady

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
When traveling internationally in the past, I've tried to spend a few days slowly adjusting my wakeup/bedtime times in the necessary direction (earlier or later) by one hour per day, so that it's not as much of a transition when I get to my destination. I do the reverse when I return.

My body tends to adjust quickly to new sleeping patterns, so this works well for me.
 
Nero the dog

Nero the dog

Well-Known Member
I always find it far worse flying back to the UK. The worst part is the drive home from the airport, a journey that takes 2.5 hours going takes at least 4 going back because of all the stops for coffee and fresh air.
After that I just try to stay up until a reasonable time then go to bed. I have to set the alarm for the following day and force myself to get up.
Another tip is to find something to keep you busy the next day, it will all go to waste if you just sit around and doze off.
 
IWantMyMagicBand

IWantMyMagicBand

Well-Known Member
Chuck all the above advice out if you're travelling with young kids. It's their clock. Ugh! Last time, because we napped after lunch in USA, when we got back to UK they slept from 7pm til 8pm then were up after their nap til Midnight! Was like having a newborn again. Some choice words came out of my mouth for a good few days, and goodness knows how on earth I drove! Also, we come home on a Thursday so kids have a couple of days to adjust before school. And we save up to come home Premium, learnt that lesson after I ended up cradling my 3 year old and 5 year old in 2 seats.
 
DicksonGR

DicksonGR

Well-Known Member
We're just back on Wednesday morning and our bodyclocks are all over the place.As I type this my GF is sleeping beside me and it's 2.40 in the afternoon! I start work soon so that'll get me back on track ....
 

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