Recently, when I got back from California to Kuala Lumpur and it took me about 3 days to get over my jet lag. I’m talking about 16 hours difference between the 2 countries! Comparing to the past, I found that I got over it pretty fast this time around.
What did I do? Basically I slept a lot. Really. I also found these 5 ways to beat jet lag worked for me. I hope these 5 ways would help you too, if you are going through hard times dealing with jet lag.
1. WORKOUT
I tried working out in the morning. If I’m up by 5am, I’ll workout soon after. This makes me tired and I find that I’ll go to bed pretty early. This would continue for a few days and I slowly adjusted to my normal sleeping and waking up hours.
When I first got back, I was invited by L’Occitane Malaysia to join a 5km marathon – Race For Vision. The marathon is to raise awareness on fighting avoidable blindness. I actually did the whole 5km marathon but to be honest, I did both walking and running. That night, I was so exhausted and I slept like a baby!
2. TAKE EXTRA 2 DAYS OFF
Sometimes it’s worth taking that 2 days off to take things easy before you head back to work. Like what they say, you need a holiday after a holiday. I totally believe in that.
That’s so your body can adjust back to the normal routine. You’d probably need to unpack, do laundry and run errands. So get yourself busy and you’ll get tired by end of the day and start adjusting to the right time for bed.
Try to eat healthy at the same time. Maybe go through a detox program and eat more fruits and keep yourself hydrated at all times.
3. START ADJUSTING 2 DAYS BEFORE
Well, I also believe that the previous point might not be applicable to some. Not everyone have the privilege to get extra days off because annual off days are limited and precious.
If that applies to you, do try to adjust your timing 2 days before you leave for home. Start taking things easy 2 days before the vacation ends and you’ll find that when you get back home, you will not suffer the jet lag as much. If caffeine makes you stay awake, try to avoid it.
Another option is to try to take naps on the hours where you’re suppose to be in bed back home.
4. NATURAL SLEEPING REMEDIES
I don’t encourage sleeping pills but if you really need it, do go for natural supplements such as Melatonin. Melatonin helps you relax and aid in regulating back your sleeping pattern. Another option is Dreamrite, which is a non-habit forming vegan sleeping pills.
Another one of my favorite natural sleeping practice is to use essential oil. I’ll add some lavender oil into my diffuser about 30 minutes before I go to bed. Then I’ll put on white noise in the room or sleeping music. I found the combination helped me to snooze well.
5. RELAXING ACTIVITIES
When I mention relaxing activities, I usually put spa first before other activities like Yoga. That’s because I’m such a sucker for relaxing massages and facials. My few favorite places are Beauty Chambre & The Rub Bar.
There’s nothing wrong with a little self-pampering. Go for an hour or two hour massage and the blood circulation will help you relax and sleep better at night. I heard sleep yoga is pretty helpful with jet lag too. I haven’t try them myself but I have some friends that recovered from jet lag quickly with sleep yoga.
Basically, you can just relax and nap whenever you feel like it. Your body will slowly adjust back to your normal sleeping pattern after a relaxation session.
How do you usually deal with jet lag? If you have tips that worked for you, do share with us.
