Avoiding Jet Lag

Thailand is the absolute worst place for EST'ers (people on the east cost) in terms of jet lag.  Thailand's time zone is UTC +7 while NY/NJ is UTC -5.  What does that mean?  It means that it is exactly a 12 hour offset, absolutely the longest amount of time anyone has to adjust.

As a general guideline, it is thought that one day helps you adjust one hour of time zone difference.  This really depends on the person: some suffer worse than others.  For me, I am usually the one that requires the full allotment of hours.  Jet lag really can't be that bad, you just sleep during the day and go party all night. =)

However, This is going to pose a problem for me because I like to pack my days so tight that I need a vacation from my vacation.. I mean from my "study abroad".  I arrive in Bangkok on Thursday, 11:40pm and intend to go the Myanmar Embassy first thing Friday morning so I can go to Yangoon on Saturday. 

Not only do I have to wake up on time and function correctly in a foreign city.  I have to get up the next day on time and make it to the airport.  This is gonna be "fun".

So, I was going to do everything in my power not to be jet lagged.  Read about the condition, see what voodoo magic works, should I stay up all night, or be super rested.  After going through all the material (half heartedly - because I'm still trying to book my 1st hotel for bangkok), I decided that I going to buy some socks.

I think I came across them because I was looking at winter clothes on sale for my upcoming extended stay in Minnesota. (It's cold there) Apparently, compression socks help circulate the blood and prevent blood from clotting.  This was obviously very closely related to some potential solutions to jet lag that I read about: drinking lots of water and zero coffee.  They all help your body function well in an extreme environment (cramped in a tiny chair for 20 hours with some kid kicking your chair and a baby crying nearby).

It was good enough for me, I was sold.  But I remembered that my running friend recently bought compression socks for running.  Ah hA!  I can get two birds with one stone. (i don't want to ruin expensive non-running compression socks) So, I searched for and found running compression socks.  THAT is MY solution.  I will be wearing those socks, in addition to drinking plenty of water, avoiding coffee, putting myself on Thailand schedule as soon as I get on the plane, and exercising daily leading up to my flight.  Hopefully, it all works out.  At least I have some spiffy sox for a 10 miler that I just signed up for.

I will let you know if this strategy works...