Overseas Moms: Jet Lag in Kids Is Brutal—Secrets to Recovery in Just Two Days

Traveling back and forth between Taiwan and the U.S. every year, the hardest part is adjusting to the time difference. Add kids—who are like unpredictable little bombs—into the mix, and the whole family turns into chaos. You can’t just put them all on sleeping pills, right? Especially when returning to the U.S., everything slows down—the sounds, the pace—and it feels so peaceful and sleep-inducing. It usually takes two weeks to adjust, and for some, even a month. But in our family, from a two-month-old baby to a three-year-old toddler...

When flying from San Francisco back to Taiwan, you have two flight time options: either midnight to 1 a.m., or around 4 p.m. You should definitely choose the midnight flight. The return trip to Taiwan is against the wind, so the flight is longer—about 13 hours—and you’ll arrive around 5–6 a.m. During check-in and customs, unless they’re babies or exceptionally well-behaved, kids tend to be excited. But once aboard (after just 1–2 hours), the exhaustion from staying up late hits hard, and they’ll fall asleep instantly—often before even getting the first meal.Devin is three years and two months old, Owain is one year and one month old. The two of them can already team up to cause chaos in the waiting area. Then they sleep as long as they can, and if they wake up, give them water right away—air cabins are really dry. I bring my own thermos with hot water so they can drink and fall asleep faster. The brothers usually wake up around the second meal (after about 8 hours of sleep), which is just over an hour before landing. Since they’ve already slept plenty on the plane, when we arrive in lively Taiwan, we keep the energy going all day—we don’t let them sleep at all. Who could sleep in such an exciting place anyway? So coming back to Taiwan, jet lag is barely noticeable. If we rate jet lag from 1 to 10, this trip is maybe a 2. That 2 comes from them occasionally waking up around 1–2 a.m. to toss and turn, but they go back to sleep on their own with no fuss. The real challenge is returning to the U.S. Flights from Taiwan to San Francisco also have two time slots: one around 7:50 p.m., and another between 11 p.m. and midnight. You should definitely choose the evening flight. Flying back to the U.S. is with the wind, so the flight time is cut down to just 10 hours. We board at 8 p.m. when everyone is still wide awake. After the first meal, a quick bathroom break, and some playtime, four hours fly by. For them, that’s already considered super late, so if they want to sleep, let them—it’s rest they need. But don’t help them fall asleep (no making the bed or tiptoeing around). This time, I thought it was too much when the older brother slept for five hours. We arrive in the U.S. around 3 p.m., and that night is tougher. Aside from going to bed later, you won’t sleep much anyway. For the older brother, who’s three, you can explain what jet lag is. For the younger one, no need for words—just lay him down.
The whole family will fall into deep sleep around 4 a.m., but you must get up by 9 a.m. at the latest. Since you’ve just returned and need to shop, head out for groceries in the morning. After shopping, eat out, then take the kids to an outdoor amusement park. The fresh air and warm sunshine at outdoor parks greatly help with adjusting to the time difference. Of course, they’re not invincible—they’ll often fall asleep on the way to the park after lunch. Remember, wake them up after no more than an hour, because every minute now is deep sleep, and one hour of sleep is worth five. Once they wake up, their eyes will light right up.

For a full three-plus hours in the afternoon, it’s both fun and jet-lag recovery time. By that evening, the brothers are back to their normal bedtime—7:30 p.m. for one, 8:30 p.m. for the other. They’ll still wake up at night, of course, but they don’t need help falling back asleep. They’ll just sit up, look around, and drift off again on their own. By the next day, they’re almost fully recovered. They sleep in a bit later in the morning (starting around 8 a.m.), and the younger one still takes a nap. The older one naps only if needed. Starting that night, they—and us adults—are all fully recovered!! Although their deep sleep still centers around early morning hours, it will gradually shift earlier over time. But the hardest part—those midnight wake-ups—is already behind us. In short, don’t give in to those adorable sleeping faces and let them sleep longer. Otherwise, you’ll really end up with nightly disruptions and daily misery. Chatting with friends helps, but not recommended on Day 1—talking drains your energy, the CO2 level gets high, and you might just doze off mid-convo. The most effective remedy? Outdoor activities where you can stretch your limbs.

1. Devin and Owain are both early-to-bed kids. In the U.S., the older one sleeps at 8:30 p.m., the younger at 7:30 p.m. When back in Taiwan, their bedtime is delayed by about an hour. The later they sleep on the plane, the worse the effect.
2. If even new sights and fresh air can’t wake them up, they must take a short nap—but no more than an hour. A child’s sleep cycle is about 40 minutes, and once that’s complete, their body gets full rest.
3. Bring a thermos to stay hydrated on the plane. After U.S. customs, you can only ask shops for hot water, or wait until boarding to ask the flight attendant. In Taiwan, there are water dispensers everywhere—it’s very convenient.
4. For kids who watch TV, movies on the plane are a hit. For those not used to screens yet, bring more toys and books.
5. During jet lag adjustment, when the kids sleep at night, adults should rest too—to save energy for unexpected situations (like midnight antics).

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