Overseas airplane trips - how do you cope?

[Rhea]

Dealing with changing time zones, etc.

Was chatting with my hubby tonight about international long flights and how I felt using the eye-shades really helped me sleep what I wanted to, so I can arrive fresher. I think they are better than ear-plugs. I get on a plane and immediately set my watch to destination time, then, if it’s a shorter flight (like 6-8 hours) try to go right to sleep. In the recent years I’ve started to use the eye shades and I sleep much more restfully than I used to.

How about you? Are you able to sleep? What’s your strategy?

 

[bilby]

Dealing with changing time zones, etc.

Was chatting with my hubby tonight about international long flights and how I felt using the eye-shades really helped me sleep what I wanted to, so I can arrive fresher. I think they are better than ear-plugs. I get on a plane and immediately set my watch to destination time, then, if it’s a shorter flight (like 6-8 hours) try to go right to sleep. In the recent years I’ve started to use the eye shades and I sleep much more restfully than I used to.

How about you? Are you able to sleep? What’s your strategy?

I used to really suffer, as I find it impossible to sleep sitting up, and uncomfortable to sit down for long periods, so I would spend the 30 or so hours between England and Brisbane mostly pacing around the plane, usually ending up propped up in a corner near a galley where I wasn't in the way of the cabin crew or other passengers, but where I could grab a fresh beer without inconveniencing the crew too much.

The solution, I found, was to fly business class, so that you get a proper flat bed (and in some cases, a bar that you can stand at and drink beer).

For sure it helps to move to destination time ASAP, and to try to minimize your exposure to light when it is nighttime at your destination (and to get as much bright light as you can when it is daytime there - which is a more difficult prospect).

I hear good things about Circadin (Melatonin) tablets taken a couple of hours before bedtime (at your destination) for a few days before and after the flight - but if traveling internationally, you need paperwork for them, including a prescription and letter from your doctor; and they may still be confiscated in some jurisdictions (and, if not declared, you can get into SERIOUS trouble). So I haven't tried them yet.

I find that flying west is far less stressful than flying east - although that may simply be because the destination when flying west is a vacation, while flying east means returning to work

 

[DBT]

I don't eat the airline food, just sit and go into a deep state of relaxation, drink either an occasional coffee or apple juice when it comes around, stare out the window, watch the video or read......achieve a sufficiently deep vegetative state of mind and time passes in a flash.

 

[Subsymbolic]

Dealing with changing time zones, etc.

Was chatting with my hubby tonight about international long flights and how I felt using the eye-shades really helped me sleep what I wanted to, so I can arrive fresher. I think they are better than ear-plugs. I get on a plane and immediately set my watch to destination time, then, if it’s a shorter flight (like 6-8 hours) try to go right to sleep. In the recent years I’ve started to use the eye shades and I sleep much more restfully than I used to.

How about you? Are you able to sleep? What’s your strategy?

Personally, I have never got over the excitement of being in an aeroplane and so I will sit by the window watching the weather and the world go by in a state of techno miracle bliss. I even take a pair of old Russian military mini binoculars along to stare at whatever is out there - at night there is no better astronomy platform and during the day trying to work out where you are on the line of flight and what you can see is an endlessly entertaining game.

 

[Ford]

How about you? Are you able to sleep? What’s your strategy?

Best sleep I ever had on a plane was the first commercial flight I took after I went skydiving.

I'd always had a bit of anxiety when flying. I could doze off, but never really sleep. Then I went on a tandem with a former member of the Army's Golden Knights. Next time I was on an airline flight, I slept like a baby.

 

[Rhea]

Personally, I have never got over the excitement of being in an aeroplane and so I will sit by the window watching the weather and the world go by in a state of techno miracle bliss.

I love that. . I like to look out the window, too.

 

[couch_sloth]

I’ve worked 12 hour night shifts for the the last 20+ years. The days I have off change from week to week. I’m constantly adjusting my hours of sleep (e. g. So that I can get things done during daylight, on my days off.). So some level of jet-lag is the norm for me. I deal with it by trying to catch extra naps when I can.
Trying to sleep during the flight is good advice. You might try using eye shades and ear plugs at home, to get use to them for the flight. Taking 25 to 50mg of Benadryl would also probably help with sleeping during the flight.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I generally don't sleep on planes at all--but I can't sleep on my back very well, either. I'm messed up for a day or so after arrival.

 

[TSwizzle]

I fly Los Angeles to London round trip, in fact I was in the UK just last week. UK time is 8 hours ahead of Los Angeles. On the outbound flight LAX-LHR I usually take a late evening flight. Get to the airport in plenty time so I am not stressing about getting checked in etc even if I don't have to check bags in. I then have a few beers before boarding. On board I have a few more drinks, eat the meal with wine and by now I have forgotten where I am going and why. Then I put on a crap movie with subtitles and the reading makes me tired and I fall asleep for a few hours. LAX to LHR is about 11 hours in the air, depends on how late they are departing, they can actually do it in about 9.5 hours when they floor it. But the time change does mess you up for a few days but I can fight the tiredness off if I concentrate in not giving in to it. You could be sitting having a chat and all of a sudden you feel very sleepy. If I get up, go outside for some fresh air and come back I can get past the tiredness and carry on as normal. The return flight is totally different. I just cannot get to sleep on that flight. I've tried the eye mask and it didn't help.

 

[Copernicus]

I find it extremely difficult to sleep during these long flights. Sometimes I can get a couple of hours of sleep. In December, I had a 36-hour trip (considering airport layovers) during which I got almost no sleep at all. I can't really afford to travel business class, so I'm stuck with seats that don't recline very much and neighbors that spill over into my space. Airlines seem to specialize in tormenting economy class passengers in order to extort higher fees for more comfortable conditions.

The way I cope with jet lag is to arrive a day earlier and try to minimize the length of layovers at airport hubs. Given a day or two to recuperate, I can usually adjust to the new time zone, because I tend to sleep more soundly when exhausted from a long flight. I simply adjust all clocks to the local time zone and not go to bed until it is evening.

 

[Elixir]

Used to fly a LOT. Long flights westward were never a problem for me, but going east... ruined at least a day or two*. But back in the day, flying was FUN. Grab a few C-notes, drive to the airport, pay cash for a ticket under whatever name you want to use, be on the plane in 15 minutes and go wherever ya want. . Get on the plane and hope to get three seats to yourself... dinner served in every class except economy... now the best you can hope for is to not be sandwiched between two obese women with screaming brats sitting behind you, after arriving three hours before the flight and being scrutinized like a criminal no matter what. I'm so over it - don't fly any more unless absolutely necessary (it IS necessary when going overseas, so I opt out of that when I can ...).

* Memorable exception - got on a 747 in Honolulu headed for Denver. As soon as the seatbelt light went out, I ran up the stairs into the lounge, and strapped myself into the semicircular "couch" with three seatbelts. Stretched out and slept like a baby all the way to Salt Lake City... arrived in Denver fresh as a daisy!

 

[whollygoats]

I cannot sleep sitting up. I can, on occasion, 'doze' in a kind of twilight, but I don't wake well from it. Consequently, I tend to travel poorly.

I request aisle seats because I've seen enough cloud tops and runways. I'd rather have the ability to jump up and roam, particularly to the head.

Otherwise, it's reading matter; I try to make sure I have something interesting, print or electronic, or both.

I try not to drink alcoholic beverages, as there has never been a benefit for me.

Eastbound, I usually have to allow a day or two to acclimate. Low activity. Westbound, I tend to drop right in to whatever circadian rhythm which predominates with minimal adaptation.

 

[Copernicus]

...I hear good things about Circadin (Melatonin) tablets taken a couple of hours before bedtime (at your destination) for a few days before and after the flight - but if traveling internationally, you need paperwork for them, including a prescription and letter from your doctor; and they may still be confiscated in some jurisdictions (and, if not declared, you can get into SERIOUS trouble). So I haven't tried them yet...

I haven't tried them either, but I've been doing some research. Apparently, the optimum dose is .3 gram, but they are commonly sold at 10 times that dosage in tablet form, which can cause disruption of sleep patterns and a "hung over" feeling the day after. They are completely unregulated by the FDA. Although they are apparently effective for helping with jet lag, it is probably best to consider cutting them down into smaller pieces. If they are used to treat a chronic sleep disorder, they can be harmful, so be under a doctor's supervision for that. I'm going to try them on my next foreign trip in February.

 

[Veritass]

Went to India early last year, about as far as one can travel.

Business class was prohibitive, about twice the ticket cost, but "Preferred Economy" ("Deluxe Economy" on some) seating was fabulous at only a $500 upgrade. It gave more legroom (I'm six feet tall), your own armrest, more channel options, and a little better food. It was worth it for the space alone.

Also, noise-cancelling headphones are a must. They also help to mitigate the sound from screaming kids.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Went to India early last year, about as far as one can travel.

Business class was prohibitive, about twice the ticket cost, but "Preferred Economy" ("Deluxe Economy" on some) seating was fabulous at only a $500 upgrade. It gave more legroom (I'm six feet tall), your own armrest, more channel options, and a little better food. It was worth it for the space alone.

Also, noise-cancelling headphones are a must. They also help to mitigate the sound from screaming kids.

I've been on a lot of flights and had almost zero screaming-kid issues. One baby that cried during descent and not that loudly.

 

[Speakpigeon]

I found that just having a long and nice walk around the airplane does it for me.

Make sure to bring a warm coat.

And try to get back inside in time for landing!
EB

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I found that just having a long and nice walk around the airplane does it for me.

Make sure to bring a warm coat.

And try to get back inside in time for landing!
EB

Warm coat?

Once I found myself looking down on the ice in Siberia. I was cold despite the plane not being any different than usual!

(I don't know why it got to me, our flight path typically takes us to the edge of Alaska, seeing cold stuff down there is no surprise. We were farther north than usual, though.)

 

[TV and credit cards]

I got a hot towel once. It was wonderful. On another occasion, I had two birthdays. They both sucked.
If I ever fly again (and I will make all efforts not to) I will upgade to, be treated like a human being class.

 

[TSwizzle]

I've been on a lot of flights and had almost zero screaming-kid issues. One baby that cried during descent and not that loudly.

I was on a flight recently and I have never had so many small children on a flight, maybe it was the time of year. And a good number of them were screaming. The flight was slightly over an hour but still, it was annoying. Then on the transatlantic section of my trip, there were a few kids in the cabin that howled for most of the 11 hours. Not so bad on that flight because the in flight entertainment can block out most of the noise.

 

[Copernicus]

I've been on a lot of flights and had almost zero screaming-kid issues. One baby that cried during descent and not that loudly.

I was on a flight recently and I have never had so many small children on a flight, maybe it was the time of year. And a good number of them were screaming. The flight was slightly over an hour but still, it was annoying. Then on the transatlantic section of my trip, there were a few kids in the cabin that howled for most of the 11 hours. Not so bad on that flight because the in flight entertainment can block out most of the noise.

This has been my experience with transatlantic and transpacific flights. There seem to be more babies than in the past, and the cabin seems to have more crying by infants throughout the trip. A lot more people seem to be traveling with young children and infants these days, so the chances are that at least one of those kids will feel very uncomfortable during the flight.