What should you know about fighting jet lag west to east?

Flying west to east asks your internal clock to become earlier: local bedtime and wake time arrive sooner than your body expects. This mismatch can cause difficulty sleeping at night, early-morning wakefulness, daytime sleepiness, headache, and reduced concentration. Jet lag can overlap with insomnia, especially when you watch the clock or nap for long periods. The travel route and your starting sleep pattern affect how the adjustment feels.

In the days before travel, shift bedtime and wake time earlier in small steps if your schedule allows, while keeping meals and activity aligned. During the journey, set your watch to destination time and sleep according to the planned local night. After landing, seek daylight at the time recommended for an earlier body clock, keep evening light low, and avoid a long late nap. Hydrate, eat regular meals, and use gentle activity to stay awake until a suitable local bedtime. Ask a travel clinician about timing if your itinerary is complex or you use regular medicines.

Get medical advice if sleep problems remain disruptive after adjustment, recur on every trip, or make driving and work unsafe. Urgent assessment is needed for sudden confusion, fainting, chest pain, severe breathing trouble, or a severe headache with weakness, speech change, or vision change.

Ask when to seek morning or evening light for your route, whether a planned sleep aid is safe, how to handle medicines across time zones, and how to manage an early work start while sleepy.