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Flying from Calgary or Toronto to Europe or Asia crosses enough time zones that jet lag is close to unavoidable, but how badly it hits you and how long it lasts depend heavily on what you actually do on the plane, not just how you feel once you land.
Start shifting your schedule before you fly, not after
Two or three days before departure, shift your sleep and meal times by 30-60 minutes per day toward your destination’s schedule. It sounds minor, but arriving even partially adjusted cuts the total recovery time noticeably compared to arriving on a schedule that’s a full 8-10 hours off.
Light exposure timing matters more than most people realize
Your body clock resets based primarily on light exposure, not on when you sleep. Flying east, seek morning light at your destination and avoid it in the evening; flying west, do the reverse. This one habit, applied consistently for the first two or three days, does more for adjustment than any supplement.
Melatonin works, but timing and dose both matter
A low dose (0.5-3mg) taken at your destination’s target bedtime, not whenever you happen to feel tired on the plane, helps signal the shift without leaving you groggy the next morning. Higher doses don’t work faster — they just increase next-day grogginess.
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Actually sleeping on the plane requires blocking real light and noise
Cabin lighting and window glare make quality sleep difficult without genuine blackout coverage, and a contoured mask that doesn’t press on your eyes makes a real difference over a flat one for anyone who sleeps on their side.
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For daytime arrivals, manage screen light on the descent
If you land in the morning at your destination but it’s still deep night by your body clock, blue-light-blocking glasses for the last hour of the flight and the taxi ride reduce the wake-up signal your brain gets from bright morning light before you’re ready for it.
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None of these fixes eliminate jet lag entirely on a genuinely long flight, but combined, they typically cut recovery from four or five rough days down to one or two.
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