This is second part of my blog on Tips to Avoiding the Stress of Flying. In this part you will see how we can have nice sleep while flying.
Many people find it difficult to sleep on a plane, and no wonder, when you consider all the distractions, noises, children crying, light streaming in through the window (daylight is very bright at 35,000 feet!), and to cap it all, you don't have enough leg room, you feel cold, your shoes are too tight, and it's not easy to sleep upright! Well, even with these disadvantages stacked against you, the following tips may ease in enough comfort to enable you grab a few hours of good sleep on your next long haul flight:
1.Choose your seat in advance
This advice comes from the editor of independenttraveler.com, who suggests you pick a window seat so you can lean against it (it also gives you control over the sunshade!) and stay out of the way of people climbing over you or going up and down the aisle and leaning into or falling against you just as you are dropping off.Also, think twice about reserving exit row and bulkhead seats, sometimes the advantage of extra legroom is outweighed by armrests that don't raise and seats that don't recline (so they don't cause an obstruction in an emergency). This could also be a noisy section of the airplane as these seats are often reserved for families with young children.
The same goes for the last row: the seats may not recline and if they are near the toilets, you could be troubled by noise and smell!
Check out Seat Guru from tripadvisor: tap in the flight number and you can see the layout of the plane and review advice on the pros and cons of different seating areas.
2. Take one small bag as hand luggage
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Take only one small bag as hand luggage, so you don't have to jam one under your feet and restrict your legroom. Keep all the things you are going to need on the flight at the top of the bag, and put a few in the pocket of the seat in front, but not too many or the flight attendant may ask you to remove them if they bulge out and potentially obstruct passenger evacuation.
3.Neck Pillow
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Bring a neck pillow, an eye mask for blocking out light, and warm socks (it can get chilly down near the feet during a long haul flight). Some people don't find neck pillows very comfortable: try out a few. Some of the ones you blow up have an annoying seam that sticks into your skin when your head flops over! Those velvety, already-blown-up ones seem better, but try them out first.
4.Wear Comfortable clothing
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Wear loose, comfortable clothing and go for layers that you can peel off easily when you get too warm or put on again if you get cold, for example a loose long sleeved T-shirt and a body warmer might be more practical than a jumper.
5.Shoes
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Wear comfortable soft shoes that you can slip on and off easily: your feet will swell during the flight.
6.Early Boarding no Rushing
Board early to make sure you get your pillow and blanket: if there isn't one for your seat, tell the flight attendant and get your claim in early!
7.Avoid Coffee and Pop
If you are someone who can't sleep after drinking caffeine, then stay off it for a few hours before and during the flight. Remember that some soft drinks and tea also have caffeine.
Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT)
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A DVT is a blood clot in a deep vein, commonly in the legs. It is life-threatening because a piece of the clot can break off and travel to the lungs where it can cause a pulmonary embolism (a blockage of a main artery to the lung).
There has been a lot of controversy about whether flying by plane, especially on long haul journeys, raises the risk of DVT. The jury is still out about this to some extent, but several studies done as part of Phase I of the World Health Organization's Research Into Global Hazards of Travel (the WRIGHT project) suggest that the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE, of which DVT is an example) may double after 4 hours of flying. The main cause appears to be prolonged immobility, so there is also the same risk if you sit for long periods on a long car, train or bus journey, or even at home or the office.
The longer the period of prolonged seated immobility, the higher the risk, and there is a tendency for longer flights to carry a higher risk of DVT than shorter flights for this reason. The risk also goes up with multiple flights within a short period.
The risk is raised significantly in the presence of other known risk factors for DVT, which are: being over 40, having had a DVT or blood clot in the lung before, having a history of blood clots in the family, hormonal effects of being pregnant or being on HRT or using oral contraceptives. Recent surgery or trauma, and also many types of cancer can also raise DVT risk.
The WRIGHT project found that the absolute risk of VTE per flight of more than four hours, in a cohort of healthy individuals, was 1 in 6,000.
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There is some evidence that compression stockings can reduce risk of DVT in passengers on long haul flights. These are routinely used in hospital, where patients share some similar characteristics to long haul passengers: they can become dehydrated, breathe in air of low humidity, and tend to be immobile for long periods.
Drink adequate amounts of non-alcoholic beverages
The CAA also recommends drinking "adequate amounts of non-alcoholic beverages" on long flights to reduce risk of DVT. There have been discussions about the pros and cons of using aspirin as a way to reduce risk of DVT, but the CAA advises against it: "the balance between benefit and harm is not in favour of aspirin and thus its routine use cannot be recommended", they say in their website's FAQ section on DVT.
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