Severe dehydration on airplanes...and the evils of Jetlag
 

Ok, so I drank a good amount of water and still got dehydrated.

My lips look totally, totally semi-swollen and they feel absolutely horrible. I am applying chapstick as we speak.

I have been trying to go to sleep at my regular bedtime, with some success...I still wake up a few hours later though I go to sleep absolutely fatigued.

How does everyone here deal with dehydration and jetlag? How do you restore and recoup yourself from an overseas trip?

I drink 8 oz of water for every hour I am on the plane, while I am on the plane. I take No Jet Lag, a homeopathic treatment which works for me.

When I get home I take an ambien to make myself sleep through the first two nights and then I am fine.

I had to learn this routine after many sleepless nights! Works for me.

I usually have about 5 glasses of wine on the plane. That keeps me hydrated and makes me feel good.

After a recent episode of "sleep eating" I have stopped takeing Ambien.

There are many threads on the subject of jet lag here -- did you try a search? Some people apparently take a week or so to recoup themselves from an overseas trip, so I don't think you're outside the norm.

I figure one day per hour of time zone change to recover fully.

Doesn't drinking alcohol increase dehydration?

That WAS the joke.

To rehydrate now, since the damage is done, you must continue to drink all day. Did you know that you can drink too much water? It will all settle down and your lips will be back to normal, use lots of grease :) on them and moisturize your face too.
I would take a light sleep aide (xanax works for me) to get a full nights sleep, you should wake up and be on some sort of schedule after that.
Good luck!

<<Doesn't drinking alcohol increase dehydration?>>

Yes, but after five glasses of wine, you just don't care! ;)

SeaUrchin and I seem to have pretty similar habits--I avoid caffeine and alcohol and drink at least 2L of water the day of travelling. I also wear compression socks after I started having soreness in my legs and swollen feet after flying. Some sort of sleep aid (Ambien, Lunesta...benadryl) for a day or two helps too.

I start going to bed early and getting up early a few days before leaving, so that my body wants to go to sleep sooner on the plane. No alcohol, no eating in the middle of the night, headset with relaxing music. I've heard that they pressurize planes to oxygen levels at 8000', but that some airlines (I think it was Air Canada) are now going to lower that to 6000'...so in essence, you also have altitude sickness. Some airlines also don't recirculate with a lot of new, fresh air. I believe it lowers their 'gas mileage'. I don't bother with sleeping pills, I've hear about side effects with some of them. But as an aside...I read an article about another sleeping pill that is non-prescription, been around for over 20 years, but since not under patent protection, no one promotes it since low cost, low profit...I;ll try to find the name.

Actually I do like xanax better, it comes out of the system faster I think.

Whenever I travel to Europe, I go to bed as soon as I arrive at my destination. I take a shower than take a good nap. Depending on what time I arrive, I'll get up after a few hours and go get something to eat, then go back to bed. By the next morning, I'm fine.

I always have trouble after coming back. I usually sleep an extra hour in the morning and try and take a nap when I can (I work at home, so it's easy for me).

That sounds very familiar. For me the east to west direction is always the hardest. Europe to California takes me at least 7 days to feel normal again.

A couple of years ago I read something about the importance of sunlight in re-setting your body clock. I have since made an effort to get outdoors in sunshine at my final destination, whether abroad or back home. It seems to help.

However, I just went through a 12-hour time difference last month and certainly experienced that incredible frustration of not being able to fall asleep even when tired and then waking up at 4 o'clock in the morning. It took more than 7 days to clear, but the memories made it all worthwhile.

Anselm

Well, I often specifically plan a first stop in Europe to get over my jet lag (a city where I'm solo and can have a few days to adjust before truly beginning the trip).

Just keep drinking as much water as you can, planes are dehydrating I've never found a way to completely avoid that.

I take prescription drugs to sleep.

I also drink plenty of wine (not joking)... on the plane, in Europe, after I get back home... don't care what they say. And I come out in a lot better shape then what the OP is describing, so it must be all good.

I wasn't joking either. I do drink wine when I fly and I don't ever feel that I dehydrate. I always have a bottle of water with me too. Drinking wine numbs the pain of the uncomfortable airline seat and long flight. In the morning when we get there I always wake up groggy and cranky, but thats no different than any other day of the week.

The chapped lips, dry skin are not always a product of true dehydration, but of the impact of the dry air on your skin.

I apply the chapstick ON the plane to prevent the chapped lips. Otherwise all the water in the world won't help.