Dealing with Jet Lag in Toddler... strategies please?
 

Hi everyone,
Just wondering if there are any strategies you've used or heard of that work in helping babies get adjusted to the new time zone with the least jet lag possible.

Specifically, what do you do the day you land... do you keep them up in the afternoon even though they're tired so they go to be as close as possible to their normal bedtime, or let them fall asleep a little earlier (but of course they'll wake so early.)

Also, your second and third day there, do you watch their cues and just let them nap when tired or is it critical to get them back to their normal nap routines even if it means they're a bit grumpy and tired?

Thanks,
Kat

I would suspect that if the toddler is able to sleep during an overnight flight there will be a lot less problem with jet lag...are you assuming the toddler won't be able to sleep?

,,please dont take this as sarcasm..but a rested adult will help tremendously..you will have to play things by ear..also make sure you (and your partner if travelling tandem) get some rest and try not to do too much.. if you have family "or best frieds" see if they can take the baby for an afternoon on day 1..each child will be different and will depend somewhat on the flight..YOU CAN NOT PLAN THIS TRIP with a child of this age..you will have to be flexible so as my now older children would say "chill Mom".

In part do the same thing for them you should do for yourself. Moderate walking and sunshine help minimize the impact of jet lag.

Our strategy was to let our daughter crash at will during the first couple of days if she was so inclined but not to let her sleep more than an hour or so. It took her less than 48 hours to readjust her schedule but then she was always an easy kid that way.

Good luck.

skatterfly, you've posted a lot of related toddler questions before...I have replied to a few of your other threads....hope I can help here! As the mother of a (now) 4 year old who has been traveling internationally with her since she was 4 months old, I have experienced (and still experience) all kinds of things. It is natural for little ones to be tired when you arrive, however, if you are fortunate enough for them to sleep as much as they can on the way over, then you have a leg up on the situation. To that end, I always try to book evening flights (departures from 4:30 pm onward out of LAX) so that the evening flight mimics our night schedule as closely as I can (dinner, read some books, then to sleep). That has seemed to work for my little one. On flights where I flew in the middle of the day, I still made sure she "napped" just like she would have done at home. When we arrived at the hotel, she often wasn't tired and wanted to come with me out and about. Generally speaking, the first day anywhere is the settling in, relaxing day, so I don't "plan" anything really upon arrival (other than minimal exploration to find dinner someplace, then bedtime). We go to bed early that night and are ready to start out fresh the next day.

The next day or so, they get sleepy in the afternoon as they normally would at home, and when I am pushing her in the lightweight stroller, she often closes her eyes and snoozes while I am walking about. Overall, I did not find the time adjustment to be difficult, very normal in fact, considering we fly from the West coast each time. It ends up being close to a 16 hour trip (with stops and all). We're off again on 1 September for 3 weeks!

Thanks for the advice everyone. My friends all swear by benadryl to make the baby drowsy, but we're reluctant to do it. (I actually think it's wire her up.)

Huitres... where are you going on this trip? Thank you for your advice here and everywhere else to my baby posts. You're always a good source of travel info with your baby. I'm glad to hear that jetlag hasn't been that hard on your baby... I have heard that, like adults, it's usually worse coming home than getting there. But I also want to help her not be too tired after the first couple days. My brother and sisterinlaw who just moved to London said it took their baby weeks to get adjusted to the time... but they're a bit more haphazard with the baby's schedule and only after moving there did they realize the value of a nap schedule and a bedtime routine which I've always had. I'm hoping to get on the plane, feed her dinner,get her into her jammies, and put her to bed at her usual time and get at least a little sleep myself.

~kat

The trick is to maintain a schedule, as close as possible, to your normal one at home. If you arrive somewhere and are just beat, and choose to sleep upon arrival, you will be thrown off for a good few days. If you hang in there, go get dinner (as tired as you and they may be!) then go to bed normally, they will sleep very well and even later in the morning. Jumping right into the timezone has been very useful. The following days are not bad, in fact, we don't get jet lag going there. Coming back home has been a bit harder to adjust to though. On an aside, I will share an interesting thing with you (not to scare you) but when we were in Paris in April, my little one got very sick the following morning, she was out of sorts, almost flu-like symptons. She even threw up. I panicked because didn't know what to get her in France. I ended up going to a local market, bought a 7-up soda and a small bread roll. When I gave it to her, she amazingly got better - instantly. We went out that afternoon to the Eiffel Tower, rode the adjacent merry-go-round, etc. Worked miracles! :)

We were in France 5 months ago; however this time we are going back to Italy again after a 9 month lapse.

Oh Jeez, don't give the baby Benadryl to make it sleep!
Babies sleep..unlike those of us who cannot sleep at all on overnight flights.
My daughter was a dream, cars, planes, she just conked right out. Woke up smiling. My son however, liked to be up with us. But even he would fall asleep eventually.
Everyone has great advice here, little naps the next day, food on a normal schedule, just please, do not give a baby drugs to make it sleep. That is not all they do.

Huitres, thanks... this is exactly the kind of info I need to hear. I don't mind if she has jet lag for 2 weeks once we're home (well... you know what I mean), but I'd rather not have that delay when we land the first few days. Granted, we're seeing family, and my parents are flying with us so we'll have 4 adults to take up the load if she is a little tired.

My big strategy will be to get her to sleep as much as possble on the flight over there. Luckily, I do have one "ace in the hole" for sleeping... I'm still nursing her and it's a great way to get her to sleep so I don't care if she latches on and stays there for the flight. :) (Of course, some on this board will shudder at the thought of someone nursing a 16 month old... but I'd rather do that than let her scream on the flight.)

You're very lucky to be able to travel so often with your little one. Have a great time in Italy... of course I have to ask where in Italy you'll be going. Italy is our next destination hopefully in a year or two. (This trip sort of surprised us when my BIL decided to move to London very spur of the moment this Spring. Now I'm so excited I can hardly wait.)

Scarlett... yep... we won't be giving her benadryl... not only do I not want or think I need to drug her... the antihistamine dries out the mucous membranes, making her even more susceptible to colds and viruses caught on the plane.

Thanks all,
~kat

Nursing babies up to age of 18 mos seems perfectly acceptable to me. I think after that age, since they are eating and all, that it is a good point to wean them (IMO). I nursed my little one through 12 months, she is the one who stopped it, not me! She also used a pacifier on flights and that helped with take-off and landing to avoid ear-popping. She used a pacifier for quite a long time and it was certainly handy over the last couple of years! Now I give her a small piece of sugarless gum that she chews on take-off and that is very exciting for her, takes her mind off of the noises that the airplane is making!

We are going back to Cinque Terre for 1 week to visit family friends, then a couple days in Lucca (my fav) so we can go to Pinocchio Park in nearby Collodi. Then to the Tuscany coast, Livorno and Il Terrenia, to stay with more friends for a few days, then southward for 1 week to the Amalfi Coast to see more friends. I can't wait, it will be great to be back. I am already planning my return trip to Italy at Christmas time since I learned my little one's childcare is closing down between Christmas and New Years - got to make the most of the preschool closure! :)
(I have family in Europe too, so that is why I go back and forth a lot).

Have a great time with your in-laws, your travels will be fine with your little one. You are fortunate to have your parents accompanying you to help out.

skatterfly, I meant to tell you I did see a nursing baby in Paris, probably about 10 months old. His parents seemed to be Indian or Pakistani tourists (they were dressed traditionally and speaking their native language, and we were on the Batobus). I know you had asked about this, and I can attest that no one batted an eye. Then again, I doubt most people but tuned-in mothers would notice.

Huitres... I am absolutely GREEN with envy over your itinerary. Wish I knew which smiley if any would show that!!! :)

skatterfly-your itinerary sounds exciting too! I am rather boring, I mainly go to (and only prefer) Italy! :)

My strategy would be to leave the baby home with in-laws/parents..... :=)

Failing that, I think sleeping on the plane, Travelbunny to be as flexible as possible and the suggestions to maintain as normal and regular a routine as possible have to be the order of the day.