jjsebba

Hi all

I will be heading to NZ at the beginning of July and probably starting work fairly soon after I land. I am hoping to fly via San Fran/LA so going that way around. What are peoples' experiences/tips to fight/deal with jet lag?

Dad and baby will probably go the same way a month after me.
Also, how does one get a toddler to change their sleeping pattern by 12 hours?
any tips gratefully appreciated!

simonsi

You will generally arrive in NZ in the morning, so try and arrange your sleep during the journey such that you have some sleep before landing, that gives you the best chance of lasting through your first NZ day and going to sleep that night. It will take about a week or so to get fully aligned so dont worry, beach walk at night - all been there!

Same rule for kids, try and get them to last until local bedtime, if they fall asleep try and confine it to short naps so the big sleep is due at the right time.

But TBH with young children, sacrifice EVERYTHING for a peaceful (as possible), journey and sort out sleep etc when landed. Worst journey I have ever seen was a couple flying transatlantic with 2yr old twins plus a 6yr old, in 3 seats and 2 basinettes. Their plan was to confine the twins to the basinettes for the entire flight - result was frazzled twins, parents and more than a few passengers.

We always let ours roam the aisles at times at that age (avoid meal serving times etc), some passengers make faces and have fun, some just ignore (your toddler will then ignore them), but generally most people love kids and those wanders around the isle let them explore and use up some of their mental and physical energy.

Also have lots of variety of stuff for them to do but as far as possible go with the flow, 6hrs into a 12hr flight is not the time to make a disciplinery stand

ohdearydear

We flew out here in January with a 9 month old baby via Singapore so I can't help with a toddler but I can say that you should SLEEP AS MUCH AS YOU CAN ON THE PLANE! I can recommend the disposable milk bottles for your baby - we had the milk warmed in them by the steward - and we used them for take off and landing to stop her ears popping. We also brought her sachets of food rather than using the baby food on the plane - again it can be warmed easily in hot water and they will do this for you.

I have a friend who comes over regularly with her daughter (she started at 5 months and she's now over 18 months and already been to NZ 3x in her life!). She went via LA last time and found that the bassinet was rubbish on the flight so ended up having her daughter sleep on her for most of the time - they walked up and down the aisle lots - and she had a LOT of toys with her! She also keeps to her home routine as much as possible - wearing PJ's when it's time to sleep, having a nightcap and reading a story. When they arrive they stay with family and usually get up at the crack of dawn (that would be expected with or without a child) but within a few days and the lack of long daytime naps they get over it pretty quickly. Usually her daughter before her.

We came in 2009 (without a child) and pretty much worked our way through the entire movie plan so by the time we reached Christchurch we were both exhausted! We knew better this time and slept as much as we possibly could and it was the best thing we did!

Good luck - it's hard work!

julesnye

there is an homeopathic remedy for jet lag produced here in NZ which all the celebrities, allBlacks and other sports people use.
You can buy it over the internet as well from the aiports and chemists here.

I've flown all over the world and swear by it. As long as you follow the directions closely it works great. I flew back to the UK and was able to go straight to work from the airport after 27 hour flight, with no jetlag in sight and other than being a little tired atthe end of the day all was good.

Details here:

http://www.nojetlag.com/

To buy over internet, I used these:

http://www.shopenzed.com/no-jet-lag-...idp107560.html

love30stm

right what is it legal speed???

im always ok with a few naps on plane i just feel a little bit tired the next day like on any trip

Bev MK

I really wouldn't worry about it, it works itself out fast enough. And the kids are off their routine anyway because the flights are unlikely to fit their specific schedule. Concentrate on having a non-stressed flight and deal with the jet lag as, when and if, it comes. My kids never struggle with it to be honest - usually after a very long journey, they've had a bit less sleep than they're used to so they go to bed whenever we want.

Catchafire

Get out into the sunshine as much as possible when you arrive, it will help your body clock adjust much quicker. Nothing worse than falling asleep at 7pm and waking up at 3am.

I would not worry about your toddler to much. They adjust pretty well. Our youngest is always out of sorts the first night and you need to be prepared for that, hard to settle and frequent waking up. After the first night back, it's all good.