Some say jet lag is a state of mind, while others spend their long-haul holidays falling asleep at noon and asking: ‘But what time is it, really?’
It’s the only downside to seeing the world, and travellers have spent decades trying to avoid it.
Some drink copious cups of coffee, or eat lots of bananas (yes, really, it’s the potassium). Others take sleeping pills, but these can be addictive, and have varying degrees of success.
So, when I flew more than 10,500 miles from London to Sydney, I assumed I would have to accept my fate – that is, until an Australian colleague recommended the app Timeshifter and, spoiler, it changed my life.
How does the Timeshifter app work?
Timeshifter is the brainchild of tech entrepreneurs Mickey Beyer-Clausen and Jacob Ravn, along with Dr Steven W Lockley, an expert in circadian rhythms who supports NASA astronaut training.
Your circadian rhythm is better known as your body clock, and when you cross time zones, this gets disrupted.
According to Timeshifter, the app combines ‘the only elements shown to reset the circadian clock’, (light-dark exposure and melatonin) along with those that ‘alleviate the symptoms’ (light, melatonin, caffeine and naps).
The concept is simple. You put in your flight date and time, and a schedule is created for you. Your first plan is free, then it’s $9.99 (£7.97) per plan or
a $24.99 (£19.94) subscription which offers unlimited plans for a year.
You’ll be told when to sleep, take naps, get (or avoid) light exposure, and when to drink coffee or chug supplements.
Given that melatonin is prescription-only in the UK, I wouldn’t be taking it – but you can give Timeshifter this info, and your schedule is adjusted accordingly.
Putting Timeshifter to the test
I was due to fly at 9am on a Sunday, so I was surprised when my schedule started on the Friday before. I was instructed to be up by 7am, and go to bed before 10pm.
On the Saturday, those timings shifted by an hour, so I was up at 6am (on a Saturday), and in bed for 9pm.
Then came the day of my flight, where I had to set my alarm for 3am. This felt cruel, given I didn’t need to leave for the airport until 5.30am.
Timeshifter also told me to get straight on the caffeine, which at this point was pretty much a necessity.
I also needed light, but, erm, it was dark. So I switched on every light in my flat and hoped that would have the same effect.
Things started to get a bit weird when I boarded my flight at 9am. By this time I wasn’t allowed to have caffeine, while my fellow passengers were on the espressos.
However, I trusted the process, and when it was time to go to sleep at 3pm London time, I actually felt pretty snoozy.
Timeshifter told me to sleep for an hour before arriving in Doha at 4pm UK time, or 6pm local time. I should have slept at the airport, but the anxious part of me was too scared about missing the connecting flight, so I stayed awake.
Two hours later (8pm in Doha) I was on another plane (it would be a mammoth 14-hour journey), and it was time to go back to sleep. Again, this is easier said than done; I had some food and watched an hour or so of Ocean’s 11 before finally dozing off.
I’ll admit, the military schedule adds a level of pressure that doesn’t make relaxing easy. But, I stuck to it as best I could, and was only ever about an hour or so out of my plan.
I had to set an alarm to wake up after six hours, and, as under orders from Timeshifter, start pounding the caffeine. Again, this felt a bit counter-intuitive. It was the dead of night in both the UK and Doha, and almost all my fellow passengers were sleeping.
Still, I did as I was told, and watched Oceans 8 and 12 before my final scheduled nap six hours later (8am in Doha). By this stage, I honestly had no idea what time it was, so I was grateful to have Timeshifter making decisions for me.
After an hour, I was waking as the plane started to descend, and it was 5pm in Sydney. And, somehow, I felt… fine?
The verdict
Emerging from a 14-hour flight, I was definitely giving Andy Dufresne as he escaped from Shawshank. But while I might have had cabin fever, and a crick in my neck, I genuinely wasn’t tired.
At the hotel, I ate dinner without falling asleep in my pasta, and then, it was time for bed.
As we walked back to our hotel rooms, my friends commented that they were wide awake, given it was morning back in the UK, but I was more than ready for lights out.
How did I sleep? Like a log.
The following morning, my fellow travellers commented on their eventful nights. One even got up at 3am, and took a ferry around Sydney Harbour at sunrise. Meanwhile, I was sleeping soundly.
While others spent the next few days groaning and popping sleeping pills, I was feeling pretty smug about my Timeshifter experience.
Since then, I’ve been raving about it anyone that will listen. If you’re travelling long haul, I can’t recommend it enough.
This article was originally published on February 18.
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