Using Sleeping Pills to Fall Asleep When You’re Jetlagged
These days, there are so many complaints about air travel, it’s hard to count. There are the seats, which seem to get closer and closer together on every flight. There’s the food, which in the past ten years has gone from bad to worse to non-existent. And now there’s the sheer audacity of charging for every bag you check in! It’s absolutely horrible!
The worst part, though, by far, is something that’s been around since the very beginning of air travel – jet lag. It strikes in two ways, depending on which way you travel. Travel from east to west, and you’re going to find yourself falling asleep mid-afternoon, and waking up at three in the morning, feeling 100% awake and ready to start the day. The problem is, nobody else will be for another four hours, and you’re left watching Matlock reruns all morning.
The second way it strikes is west to east, and that’s where it gets really annoying. You basically suffer from insomnia, wide awake for hours until you can finally fall asleep. Then you wake up – at one in the afternoon! Your productivity is shot to hell until you can recover, which can sometimes take a week!
There are two basic remedies which work wonders when trying to get over jetlag. First is the temporary cure; sleeping pills. Lots and lots of sleeping pills. Ambien, Stilnox, whatever works for you. You can even buy Stilnox online from your in-flight wireless connection (which you have to pay for!), so it comes to your house quick. Use the sleeping pills to regulate your sleep, artificially forcing your body to keep to a normal schedule.
The second way is daylight. This is more of a long term cure; the sleeping pills help you fall asleep while jetlagged, but daylight helps train your body to adjust to the new time. Make sure you take daily walks when the sun is shining, and if you’re stuck in an office, go out to the balcony and stand in the sun, or take breaks from work to go outside. With any luck, you’ll cut that jetlag down to just a day or two!