How to stop getting up early after travelling west?

February 20, 2019 10:00 PM

I'm still on that contract, flying 2700 km east every month or two for five days at a time. I've conquered eastward travel (yay tips in that thread + flight schedule changing), but each time I get back home - flying west for two/three timezones depending on time of year, landing at 7AM local time after maybe 4 hours of sleep before the flight - for days or weeks I wake up at 4AM, far too wired to get back to sleep. This time around, a week of 5 hours per night has left me a zombie desperate for solutions.

Left to my own devices, I need about 7 hours sleep, 11 PM to 6AM, and manage it fairly regularly. I fall asleep easily and wake at my alarm, maybe half an hour later on days off. I do sometimes wake at 3-4 due to bodily or feline needs, but I don't have trouble getting back to sleep unless my diurnal rhythm is disrupted. Dawn right now is 6.40AM. I've always taken westward travel much harder than eastward, which I know is not typical.

How do I get my body to follow the clock more easily? I have a few more months of this left and I'm very tired of losing over a week's sleep after each return.

posted by I claim sanctuary to Health & Fitness (5 answers total)

Best answer: You might want to experiment with melatonin. This article suggests that for "advanced sleep phase" syndrome, which includes falling asleep and waking up too early, taking in the morning might actually help.
posted by metahawk at 11:07 PM on February 20, 2019

Best answer: Yeah, melatonin timed correctly might help. Also bright light / blue light at night, exercising at night, eating at night ... all these things are "zeitgebers" (time-givers) that will help your body come around to its new western time zone.

I have a circadian disorder and have found a lot of useful, science-based information in the book Reset Your Inner Clock by Michael Terman Phd. It has chapters about jet lag and shift work that might be helpful to you.
posted by hungrytiger at 11:39 PM on February 20, 2019

Have you tried an over the counter sleep aid? Doxylamine works very, very well for many people; I sleep well on it and wake up naturally with no hangover or other unpleasant effects. I take two 30 minutes before bed.
posted by DarlingBri at 12:51 AM on February 21, 2019

I know this may not be helpful, but the best way to reset your sleep schedule (in either direction) is to be outside all the time at daylight. For severe circadian rhythm disruption I think five days is the maximum needed, but even one day outside will help a lot. And then avoiding bright light at night. If you can't sleep being awake in a dim room reading beats being up and active with bright lights and screens by a mile.
posted by wnissen at 11:00 AM on February 21, 2019

Response by poster: Doxylamine isn't available here, but 3mg of melatonin taken once I woke at 4AM did let me sleep all the way to my alarm at 6.15. The downside is that sleepiness and yawning passed only at 11 AM, but I'm hoping melatonin-aided sleeping in over the weekend will settle things for good this time around.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 3:20 AM on February 22, 2019