Jet lag, I need advice and tips!

Hi i am going to kuwait from london.

I will wake up at 8am local london time and go to the airport at 1pm for my first flight. then from there onwards i have 2 transits then arrive at kuwait at 4am (next day). the transits are very short so i cant catch a nap or a sleep and the flights in between are also short. When i get to kuwait my apartment check in is at 1pm so basically i will be awake for more than a day. and by the time i get to my room then i will be very sleepy but then my sleep schedule will be messed up. does anyone have any tips on what i can do to stay up or just any advice in general?

First of all, not everyone gets jet-lag....you might be one of the lucky ones...but you'll certainly feel the effects of being awake for 24+ hours.

You could try to sleep on the longer flights. I simply can't sleep on planes but some people can. Use ear-plugs or headphones to reduce noise.

Make sure you drink plenty of water on the flights. Dehydration makes jet lag...and tiredness...feel worse

When I fly to the US I'm usually up by 3am UK time (to get to the airport, bag drop etc) and arrive in the early afternoon US time (7-9pm UK time, depending on where I'm going).

When I arrive in the US (and when I get back to the UK after the overnight 'red-eye') I try to stay awake until my 'normal' earliest bedtime in that time zone. I usually manage 20+ hours before I have to go to bed (the first night is always a bit earlier than normal), have a long sleep (sometimes waking up at my normal UK time and then going back to sleep again) and then feel pretty much ok and 'sorted' for the time zone.

I'd advise you to do much the same. If you find yourself awake at your normal UK time on the first night don't be tempted to get up, don't start using tech and don't read: just stay relaxed and comfortable in bed, in the dark, letting your mind wander until you drift off again (and you will)....

You'll arrive in the very early morning and have to wait until you can get into your apartment. You could perhaps have some breakfast in the airport and try for a short sleep afterwards to keep you going?

When you get to your apartment help yourself to stay awake by properly unpacking then (if possible) gently exploring the local area on foot, checking out places to eat, finding somewhere with decent coffee etc etc

[ Edit: Edited on 20 Jul 2022, 21:02 GMT by leics2 ]

I have had a lot of flights much longer than your flight. Just deal with it! Catch a quick nap on the plane when you can. (I do use a sleep mask for my long flights along with ear plugs.) Long flights for me is often around 20 hours.)

You can try to put yourself on Kuwait time for a few days before the departure from London. I like arriving overseas during the day hours. You get to use the hotel for the full time you pay for.

On my long flights I mostly read until I am too sleepy to keep eyes open. A cat-nap here and there can be helpful. First day in a new country I try not to sleep a lot. I get out, walk, eat, explore, etc.

Good luck.

On arrival and trying to stay awake stay in well illuminated places. Darker places allow the brain to think it's evening and time for sleep whereas brighter well illuminated make the brain think daytime (and not time for sleep).

Ian

The advice to switch to local time as soon as you can and try to stay awake until a normal bed time there is good. But if you really feel you can't do that, on arrival at your Kuwait hotel set an alarm for one hour and take a nap immediately (before unpacking or anything else). A short nap like that will only take the edge off your tiredness so you should still be sleepy enough by Kuwait bed-time to get a good night's sleep and will hopefully wake up feeling pretty much OK. I did this the last time I had a similar journey and it worked well for me - but make sure you're not tempted to nap longer than the hour maximum.

I agree with Sarah. It's all very well trying to get onto timezone as quickly as possible, but on some journeys the fatigue is as big a part as the actual jetlag. Do something to address the fatigue first - grab a shower and a quick sleep, then stay up till local bedtime.

Everyone else has good advice, and I agree.

When I was a little girl, I had an epiphany which gave me the key to sleeping just about anywhere. And the clue is - don't worry about whether you are sleeping or not. Because if you worry about it, you will surely keep yourself awake. So don't go in negatively thinking that the time if too short to get any sleep. Make yourself comfortable and find something positive to think about (don't worry about how long you have, don't think about what you didn't pack etc. ) Think about what pictures you want to take when you get there or something else positive. Sometimes I try one of the yoga exercises at the end of a yoga session - start out by relaxing your scalp, and then your forehead and concentrate on going down your body relaxing each small section (keeping the scalp and forehead relaxed when you go to the cheeks. You may sleep or you may not but you will be relaxing.

Then don't hurry around when you gt there. For my husband who just does not sleep on the plane, I make him take a short nap. And I get a shower.

If I've had breakfast on the plane or after I land, I skip lunch

I like to do something that isn't strenuous outside in the fresh air, and then at 5 pm local time have supper. Something easy to eat. THen I get into bed and go to sleep. And stay in bed (except at our age for going to the bathroom) until normal waking up time at your new location.