My Favorite Self-Help Stuff

If you travel frequently or even just every now and then, especially across lots of time zones, here’s a tip that’ll save you some grief:

I learned it the hard way (very hard) years ago when flying back and forth to Germany and discovering stopovers in Iceland (courtesy of Iceland Air):

It seemed like a good idea at the time to stop in Iceland on the way to Germany, but I’ll never do that again. Why? Compounded jet lag and sleep deprivation:

I left in the evening from Baltimore (meaning I left MUCH earlier in Richmond, got to Iceland at something like 5 a.m., and then had a whole day of “fun” in Iceland ahead of me. Problem: I can’t sleep on airplanes and I don’t function on no sleep.

So really, I was sleepwalking through Reykjavik for hours, waiting for my hotel to allow me to check in. I did take a nap when it let me in at long last (so this is what I spent my stopover doing, mostly), then went back out etc. What with the time difference and me being a night person anyway, I went to sleep very late, only to have to get up again at 4 a.m.!

Needless to say, I felt horrible for several days once I arrived in Germany, much worse than usual (and I don’t do too well going that way to start with).

The conclusion I drew from that experience: if I ever stop over again in Reykjavik, I’ll do so on the way BACK! I’ll get there in the afternoon, and leave in the afternoon the next day. Full value from the hotel and a good night’s sleep, and I’ll arrive well-rested back home.

Fast forward a few years and to flying in the other direction — to New Zealand. It seemed like a good idea at the time to stop in San Francisco for a couple of days each time I came through. I could buy two sets of tickets, didn’t have to shell out the whole amount all at once, and I got to spend time with my friends in San Francisco, which also happens to be one of my favorite cities.

Well… I didn’t feel too good when I got back home last year after doing that particular routine. But I was too busy to really think about it (started teaching the VERY next morning), so I did it AGAIN.

This time, as I mentioned in my last entry, I was still recovering from the flu. Well… Here’s compounded jet lag and how it works going from NZ to Richmond:

Leaving in the afternoon in Wellington.  Leaving in the evening in Auckland.  No sleep on plane (12 hours or so) (though I did doze off a little a couple of times), arriving in San Francisco around lunchtime.

I totally crashed the first night, but the second one I was kept awake by non-stop hacking cough. And THEN, I had to get up early to catch the plane to Richmond (short night), and got stranded in Chicago (little sleep due to no luggage and no ear plugs AND due to having to get up at 6 to catch next plane). I got really sick all over again once I made it home.

I’m only now starting to feel better. And I have definitely learned another lesson:

When doing stop-overs on the way to New Zealand, do them going West the next time, and NOT going East. Same lesson as from the Iceland Air experience: Going East, go direct, going West, stops work great.

Maybe I’m a bit fussy when it comes to quality of sleep, but so what? Sleep is important, and I don’t think even I take it seriously enough, or this sort of thing wouldn’t have happened. I know I feel better, stay healthier, and function a heck of a lot better when I get enough of it and at the right time too.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments section

Elisabeth

Do you wish you had more energy? How are you sleeping?

If life is stressful, chances are that sleep suffers. You may simply not have (or make) enough time for sleep (if so, you know what to do!).

Or, once you do go to bed, the zzz’s just don’t seem to come as easily as you may have hoped for…

What to do?

Lots of things. Here are a few that have helped me during a lengthy episode of challenged sleep a few years ago, and still do when the need arises:

1. Outsourcing your worries: Don’t go to sleep with them (as if you could!). Write them down on a piece of paper, or into a notebook, and let the universe take care of them. At least till morning. No, seriously, you’ll sleep better almost instantly.

2. Make sure your sleep “environment” is the way you like it. Dark, quiet, right temperature, comfy bed.

3. Wear socks. I know that some people joke about other people wearing socks to bed, but when it comes to sleep, they may be just what the doctor ordered.

4. Consider earplugs if noise is an issue. The world’s best earplugs are made in Germany and are called Ohropax. You can find some on Amazon.com (expensive if you buy them there but worth every penny). You can also bribe any German friends you may have into sending you some.

5. Have a calming night-time routine. Hot chocolate (or milk), calming music, boring reading and maybe some deep breathing. In fact, trying to do some meditation once you go to bed may really help. Do one where you have to focus on your breaths, and breathe really slowly. Don’t worry if you keep falling asleep in the middle of it. That’s the idea!

6. Soothing music. Stephen Halpern’s Sleep Soundly is one option. Check back for another option that I’ll have to check on first.

To be continued at some point in the future and/or in my newsletter