Jet lag

Being jet lagged is like being sick. It’s outside your control. A complete disruption of your circadian rhythm and normal routine. You fly for 30+ hours. You try to sleep, but it’s not real sleep. You eat food, but it’s not real food. You get off the plane, you feel tired, you are hungry, you are scared of customs officials and relieved to get through immigration without too much hassle, you are stressed cause you have no local currency and don’t how use the local public transport system, you are confused by the different languages peoples are speaking and you are suspicious of people trying to take your bags or offer you transport – but all these overwhelming things are overwhelmed by the excitement of being in a new country …. for about 43 minutes.

Because then you are a little sorted, you have got some local cash at the atm, figured out how to get to your accommodation, maybe you ate something and so you relax, a little …. And then it hits you. Overwhelming Exhaustion. It’s not like being tired, or hungover… its stronger and it hits you and slaps you down and you must, must sleep. But you are in a taxi, or on a train, with all your luggage and you can’t rest… not just yet. So you somehow push through it, stay awake and get to where you going and then it’s too late. Now you are overtired, your’ve caught the jet lag.

Jetlag is like a sickness because it can strike down anyone, young or old, hale or sickly. It can strike at anytime. 2:34 in the afternoon, your going down. Jetlag is like a sickness because you get better mysteriously and instantly…. at 3:36AM in the morning you are completely fine and wide awake. Jetlag is like a sickness because once you have it, it drags on and on and can be hard to get over, for days, for weeks. Might as well stop typing, get my headlamp and go for a very, very early morning run…