One of the biggest drags about traveling is the brain fog that develops when your body clock crosses several time zones. During a trip and after, jet lag can suck the life, or at least the energy, from you for days. Who has time for that? We moms and dads have to hit the ground running to keep up with our rascals!
When I recently traveled to Indonesia with my husband and stepson, we tried an experiment to see which of the natural remedies we had would work best. My husband would do acupuncture, I would do acupressure and my teenage stepson would look at us like we were crazy and do nothing. He would be the control group.

Acupuncture Magnets © Rina Nehdar
Acupuncture
My husband had been seeing Dr. Stephen Stiteler, who practices acupuncture with powerful little magnets placed around the hands. He gave my husband a sheet to follow where he would tape the magnets in various positions around his hands. He would relocate the little magnets every two hours based on the different time zones we’d fly over. Yes, he could stop if he were to fall asleep but then resume upon awaking. Did this work? Yes. My husband felt fine when we arrived in Padang and we were able to enjoy our evening before we set out to our next destination in the morning.
Acupressure
I recently attended the Travel and Adventure Show where I met scientist and lecturer Dr. Charles Krebs, who claimed he found the cure for jet lag. Tired of losing effective time between his travels from Australia to other countries, he discovered a way to reset his body’s internal clock and alter its biorhythms through acupressure. His friends marveled at his success and begged him to share his secrets, so he created an easy-to-use app called UpLift. UpLift asks travelers to input their departure destinations and time they left as well as their arrival time and place. Based on that, acupressure points are assigned and a video can be played to show where to find the exact spots. Yep, for $9.99 a year you can relieve jet lag. Did it work for me? Yes. The first time and every time I’ve remembered to use it after, I literally felt my eyeballs pop open as I finished my second set of points.
My stepson did none of these techniques and he was fine in Indonesia, but I suspect that had something to do with the unusual amount of surfing he did when we arrived. However, upon our return, he was a zombie, so there you have it. Overall, I found it much less of a commitment and way less time intensive to use the UpLift app when we arrived than to keep repositioning the magnets through the whole plane ride. However, my husband said the magnets did work, so, really, it’d be up to the user to decide. And, of course, drink tons of water because plane travel dehydrates your body. Also, caffeine and alcohol are diuretics and make it worse, so you might want to consider waiting until you arrive without jet lag to your destination before you start partaking.
Read This Next
Camping Essentials for the Whole Family
Travel Tips
Feb 1, 2023#WhereverFamily
Insta FeedDestinations / Europe
Mar 16, 2023Kids’ Guide to Ancient Sites in England
Kids are fascinated by mysteries, so spotting the enigmatic stone structures dotting the English countryside can be a great treasure hunt to keep kids engaged during your family’s travels in England. These stones and the museums that explain the larger ones are a tantalizing glimpse into the Bronze and Iron Ages.
Sponsored Content
United Airlines Celebrates its First Class of United Aviate Graduates
As the only major U.S. airline to own a flight school, United Airlines already hit a major milestone, and now the carrier celebrates another important — and historic — step as the inaugural class of United Aviate Academy pilots graduates, leading the next generation of aviators. The 51 students in the graduating class were majority, at 80 percent, women and people of color — another stride toward United’s goal of training 5,000 new pilots by 2030 with half women or POC.
News
Mar 16, 2023Airlines Introducing, Altering Family Seating Policies
Anyone who has traveled with family knows the difficulty in not only booking seats together but also avoiding an extra charge to group a family together. Now, however, several airlines announce upgrades and changes to family seating policies in the wake of the Biden administration cracking down on airlines charging families to sit together.
Destinations / North America
Mar 16, 20236 Wisconsin Cities for Family Travel in 2023
Finding the right destination to cater to all age groups can sometimes be difficult for family travelers, but Wisconsin offers a wide variety of great family-friendly cities for those looking for a Midwest vacation this year. Here are six Wisconsin cities to consider adding to your family’s travels in 2023:
Destinations / North America
Mar 16, 20235 Family-Friendly Museum Restaurants in Florida
Combine culture with culinary during family travel to Florida at these five family-friendly museum restaurants.
Slideshow
Mar 16, 20237 Tbilisi, Georgia, Destinations for Family Travel
It’s time to start dreaming of your next family trip. Here’s some destination inspiration for you. Take a visual journey through Tbilisi, Georgia, with us.
ShareThis