As the school holidays beckon you are more likely to be on the move in the next few weeks with your family. If you’re due to be travelling across time zones, managing children with jet-lag (and trying to minimise its impact at both ends of the vacation) may fall to you. Here are some top nanny tips from some of our NSJ nannies…
1 - Consider your flight times..
One nanny advises that ‘a good trick for beating jet lag is to try and get the children’s body clocks on to your destination time zone as quickly as possible – even before you get there. Think about the local time zone before board the plane, and try to encourage their sleep on the plane accordingly. For example, if your plane lands at 7am local time, they will ideally be sleeping right up to the time you land, which often means staying awake longer than usual whilst at home, and for the first few hours of the flight.
2 - Stick to the routine you have at home..
‘To help combat jet lag when travelling, we do our best to keep naps and bedtime consistent. For us this means keeping our routine and schedule similar to at home. We usually travel with a GroBag, blanket and a couple of favourite books, then we do our bedtime routine in the same order as at home. Additionally, we do our best to keep naps and bedtime at the same time (but on local schedule). Sometimes, we just need to wait it out but we are usually back on track in a few days.’
3 - Eat meals at local times..
‘Studies show that by adjusting to eating your meals at local time instead of when you would normally eat, that you ‘reset your body clock’ more speedily. Fasting during your flight is also recommended but with kids this is obviously not possible. I would recommend small meals and snacks during your flight is best, then indulging in a big meal (whether that be breakfast, lunch or dinner) in your new time zone.’
4 - Little by Little..
Once home, adjust the daily routine by one hour at a time, creeping closer from holiday time to home time. One carer says ‘the gradual approach works for us because it’s not such a shock to the system, for lack of a better word. The shorter time difference, the easier, but if you have the luxury of doing this for more than a day or so, I think it could work even for multiple time zones.’
5 - Embrace the Crazy..
If all else fails, just embrace the jetlag and even plan craft activities for 3am if need be. ‘It is just human nature to come home exhausted and dreading the sleepless nights and grumpiness. Nothing kills the holiday buzz quicker than a bad bout of jetlag. So one tip would be to anticipate it - embrace it and accept it - as part of the holiday. So plan to have snack time at 3am and plan on how to use the time with your charges in a positive way. Why not use the time to complete a travel journal, or draw pictures of the holiday together? This will make it less painful for everyone and is a good way to look back on the holiday memories. Obviously this is fun for a day or three and not the new normal!’
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