My Mind is Catching Up With My Body

I am finally feeling like my mind is in the same place as my body.

I came from Spain on Saturday, 8 time zones ahead of SLC.  I did all the things they tell you to do; drink water, don't drink alcohol, set your watch to the new place as soon as you lift off, get a light nap and don't eat unless you have to. 

Until today I still felt like I was on another planet.  This weekend I was constantly tired, woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep and I said and did things as if I were drugged.

They say it takes a day for each time zone to feel right.  I have been doing this for a number of years so I feel I am ahead of the curve.  I can get back in about 3 days from a trip from Europe.  If I have to I can function in those three days (like when I went to Spain I attended business meetings the day after I arrived) but I won't be happy and I wasn't up for drinking after the meetings.  I just went to bed and crashed.

I really think your mind has to catch up with your body.  With modern transportation you can get to Europe in less than a day.  This trip used to take weeks, your mind had time to adjust.  Now you don't get this luxury so your mind doesn't quite know where it is until you can get your rhythms back in sync.  This is hard to do when you are awake in their middle of the night. 

My best remedy is not to do too much in the first few days and let yourself recuperate; let your mind catch up with your body.