Getting Ready--Planning
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Jet-Lag How can I Handle It?
HERE I AM IN EUROPE--eager to make every minute count--yet feeling mushy brained and sluggish. My daughter and aunt are experiencing headaches, insomnia, irritability, anxiety, and are hungry in the middle of the night--all typical symptoms of jet lag. Following a tour guide with a yellow umbrella is suddenly sounding appealing and something I might be able to do------tomorrow. As some of you know--and many of you are about to find out--Honolulu to Europe is a long flight--18-23 hours, with 1-3 layovers and 5- 6 time zone crossing! It is much more of a challenge jet-lag wise than for our mainland friends. Researchers say travelers most prone to feeling a lot more symptoms are those who have strong internal clocks (who wake up exactly the same time without an alarm), are over 50, or have a medical issue such as diabetes, high blood pressure, pulmonary or arterial problems. A medical check up is a must for any traveler, and particularly for this later group. Being well rested and in a low stress state before leaving can decrease the impact of an out of sync body. I try to follow the experts advice of acting as if I'm leaving 2 days earlier than I am--keeping the 48 hours before departure clear for relaxing. This has worked best for me when I've continued my job and flew right after work, otherwise I find "one more thing to do" right up to the minute of departure . My Psychology mentor, Dr. John Gray has helped me understand that being female with a lot of connective tissue between my right and left brain--makes it is normal for me to creatively "expand" on what needs to be done if there is unstructured time to do it in. One family told me they start changing time zones a week before leaving, a half-hour each day. The day before they leave they eat breakfast at 4 am and the children go to bed at 5:30 PM, with the adults following shortly. Thus they avoid wee hour hunger pangs and general exhaustion. Don't add boredom to fatigue while in flight. Ease the effects of long airport waits and endless flights by bringing books to read, letters to write, new address book to fill in or plan for a layover on the mainland. Experts advise drinking lots of water and juice and no alcohol or caffeine, switch your watch to your destination time and try to sleep and eat according to this time. Take frequent strolls around the plane (with pencil and stick-ups in pocket) and meet locals returning home and ask them about their favorite cafes, shops, etc., Creatively plan to avoid stimulus deprivation during your flight --particularly for children and teens. Enjoying jet lag and getting to my lodgings are my primary goals once I land. Since I know I'll be physically out of sync, slow thinking, and easily distracted by my new surroundings, I switch to strategies for decreasing stimulus overload. Before I leave home I write myself a set of detailed instructions for my first two days. This To Do List includes every thing from how to get out of the air port to a reminder to take my vitamins. Bearing in mind that sound sensitivity is a normal stress reaction---I select a quiet village or accommodations in a quiet area of a city for my initial stay. Ear plugs help me get to sleep should the hunch-back ring his church bells all night long. (In a week I sleep through these like a local.) I bring a list of quiet non-thinking-keep my body moving sights & activities such as strolling through gardens or grave yards, sculpture museums, hiking the country side or getting to know the side streets of my village. A lot of exposure to crowds and trafficked areas can jostle jet lagged nerves. After two nights of good rest, I am ready and fit for sit down and mind involving activities such as theater, (I'll never forget sleeping through CATS my first night in London), bus and city orientation tours, art museums, dark cathedrals. and crowded city squares. There is a wealth of information and theories re. Jet Lag. It is good to review some of these before you leave. With a little foresight and planning, you can come home saying "Jet-lag--it didn't put a damper on my trip!" Let TERC know how you have dealt with long long flights and Jet Lag. Mele Fujiwara, TERC Travel Consultant
Check out these TERC articles and web sites for more information:
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