The Flying Mishaps Series is a collection of blog posts that gives practical suggestions for flying around the world. This month, we consulted with some of the top travelers from our Fort Collins office — our recruiting team and the Office of the President — to bring you the best suggestions to enhance your traveling experiences. We’ll cover everything from how to sleep on a plane to flight delays and lost luggage, and provide some Pro Tips along the way too.
Becoming the “Plane Sleeper”
Though it can be tempting to binge watch thirteen hours of movies you’ve missed out on in the last six months to a year, sleeping on your longest flight for at least a solid six hours is your best bet for beating jet lag and staying well on your journey to the other side of the world. It will help reset your internal system and keep you in optimal health. For a list of “Must-Haves” on your flight, check out the Top 10 List from our intern and guest blogger, Chloe. But what if you’re not the typical “plane sleeper”?
1. Put your feet up and get comfy. One helpful tip for sleeping on planes is to prop your feet up on something under the chair in front of you and recline your seat. It’s not rude, and they recline for a reason. Elevating your feet slightly helps trick your body into thinking it’s not time to sit up. While you know you aren’t laying down, your posture is less likely to be associated with how you sit when you are working or mentally engaging your brain.
2. Bring ear plugs or soothing music with comfortable headphones. Although it’s mostly white noise, planes are loud. The engines required to transport a few hundred people thousands of miles around the world are incredible, large, and loud. Your sleep may also be interrupted by people talking, laughing, children, flight attendants asking you questions, and other things. Unless it is your child that you are keeping an eye on, bring something non-distracting and stick ’em in your ears for good measure.
3. Eye masks — really? Most long flights also offer eye masks to keep out the light and a blanket for optimal snuggling potential. Eye masks are particularly helpful because, as you are trying to re-train your body on when to sleep and when to be awake, light is a trigger for dopamine production, which negates the melatonin produced in the brain associated with making you sleepy. In short, keep out the light, sleep longer. And snuggling is always pleasant.
4. Sleep less before your trip.On the day or night before your trip, sleep less than you would normally. For some people this is not a problem due to anxiety and excitement of traveling. If this is not you, consider this: getting less sleep makes you more tired when it’s time to be awake. The time to be awake would be on your flight, which is now when you’re trying to get more sleep. This will assist in retraining your body’s natural circadian rhythm cycle to be flipped. Sleep less the night before, sleep more on your flight. Every hour counts.
5. An over-the-counter sleeping aid is your new best friend. Finally, if all else fails, there’s medication for that. If you’re averse to taking OTC medication such as Tylenol PM or Advil PM, an herbal equivalent also available over the counter is Melatonin. Melatonin is produced by the brain and triggered by light, (or the lack of it), and it signals your body to shut down and sleep. It is also the component in turkey that makes you tired after eating a large Thanksgiving meal. Sleeping on planes is not easy, and in order to get your optimal amount of sleep to reset your internal body clock and stay healthy, you need as much uninterrupted as possible on your longest flight. Of course we recommend the other four options first — so when in doubt, do what’s best for your body.
We wish you the best of luck sleeping on your next flight!
