Ok I have read some articles about this, but i figured I would ask...is there a way to reduce the amount of jet lag one can feel when traveling overseas...my situation is going from NY to Asia...that is 12+ hours night and day...i have lived that going to australia, but I had like 7 months to live through it...in this case i have 3 weeks to get around and move quickly to see things and I am trying to figure out the best way to avoid or reduce my jet lag...

Any advice?

ambien

whatever time you arrive in your new city, just make sure and NOT sleep until like 8 or 9 pm... then you'll get a good 10 or 12 hours of sleep and ideally refreshed and reset to local time.

for me, I just sleep on the plane. The whole time, if possible. It doesn't matter the time of day, because it's not very restful sleep, just time-passing sleep. Then, the seoncd I arrive somewhere, I have a "local time body clock"

ambien sounds good! I did have a bad experience once where i couldnt fall asleep on the sleeping pill (do not try that at home kids)...

thanks though, i will stay up as late as i can

There is a whole school of thought on jet lag - a couple of tips that are easy include things like:

1. Setting your watch ahead to the local time as soon as you take off.
2. Once you get there, don't nap - walk around and stay active (try to stay outdoors if you can to get the sunlight).
3. Don't drink any alcohol on the flight over (but drink LOTS of water)

Many swear by the Anti-Jet-Lag Diet developed by Dr. Charles F. Ehret of the Argonne National Laboratory's division of Biological and Medical Research. Starting four days before departure, you follow a regimen of alternately moderate "feasting" and "fasting" to get your body adjusted.

I've never tried it, but I know others who have and think it works very well.

quote:

3. Don't drink any alcohol on the flight over...

I dunno. I guess it depends on if you are accustomed to drinking alcohol. I find on long flights that a good hard burst of alcohol consumption early in the flight followed by sleep(as interupted as it might be), works great. I fly 5-10 long haul round trips per year, and it does work. The most important thing as others have said, is to resist the temptation to take a nap or go to sleep before your normal bedtime when you arrive. (Not usually a problem when traveling USA to Asia)

i completely agree with travel4life.

when you arrive, do NOT go to sleep until at least 8 pm. Then just sleep for 9-13 hours. You'll wake up the next day feeling good. It's worked for me 3 times without a problem. Also, try to get a good night sleep before you leave!

quote:

(Not usually a problem when traveling USA to Asia)

If it's a roughly twelve hour direct flight, local arrival time should be similar to local departure time.

Whilst being well rested is important any time flying or not, also try to have very active days preceding the flight and that will help with getting some sleep on the plane butbecause it could be of limited benefit (not a bad thing in itself at that stage) it will help you get a good nights longer sleep on first night, going to bed at whatever later hour you intend to whilst travelling, though nightclubbing on the first night is obviously asking for it!.

You should be OK after that.

quote:

If it's a roughly twelve hour direct flight, local arrival time should be similar to local departure time.

My reasoning was that most flights from USA seem to arrive Asia in the afternoon or night. The buggers are flights to Europe which usually arrive early in the morning.

I think we're agreeing there braslvr, my reasoning being that there is roughly a twelve hour time difference between NY and say HK.

quote:

The buggers are flights to Europe which usually arrive early in the morning.

Agree with that too for if you leave at say 6 pm with a six hour flight, you then get in at say 6am - you haven't really felt like sleeping and you have a whole another 12 hours plus ahead of you but eventually sleep like a log when you do fall over.

Leaving Oz for Europe, it's usually a flight in afternoon for say Singapore arrival about 10 pm or so and then connection leaving around MN for a morning arrival which becomes real matchsticks props later in day - even so with a 24 hr stopover.
You do at least feel like sleeping on second leg but arrive pretty knackered much as you would going opposite direction to Europe on shorter flight where you essentially lose your normal sleep time more so.

I read somewhere these tips by a flight attendant:

- if you arrive completely exhausted at your destination in the morning it's ok to nap, but for no longer than 3 hours

- if you arrive in the afternoon, you must keep yourself awake at least until 8 pm.

Yep, and dehydration is your worst enemy! Some flight attendants have suggested drinking 1L of water/hour, but that's really excessive. Just make sure you'll drink enough of non-alcoholic beverages, so that you need the use the facilities every other hour, when you're awake.

Ok so this isn't the best method I'd say, but it works for me. I can't sleep on the plane. So I stay awake the night before I go, so by the time I'm there I have been awake for 2 days. Then go through your first day kind of tired but when you finally let yourself sleep you do so wonderfully and wake up refreshed and in the right timezone.

thanks for all the help everyone...i'll take bits and pieces of everyone's ideas so far and hopefully it will work!

Try the jet lag calculator at Calculator

(I hope that link works)

I have a real hard time sleeping on the plane for more than 15/20 minutes at a time and normally arrive after a long haul flight pretty exhausted. I know the advice about not sleeping once you get to your destination, but I find after a 4 hour nap I adjust pretty quickly to the time change after that.
The times I've tried to stay awake until 8 PM or so I'm useless anyway, wandering around Cairo that way nearly got me hit by a bus.