Bipolar Happens Blog – Julie Fast

Here is a question about travel from Karen:

Julie, was your plan to adjust your sleep schedule a week ahead of time successful?  My BP husband must travel from the West coast to East next month and I have been frantically searching for ways to help him do this without becoming ill.  Thank you in advance for your answer!

Karen

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Karen wrote this question in a comment about my blog post on how I deal with time changes now that I can travel again- if you go to the menu on the right, you can click on travel and the post will come up called Traveling to the NAMI Convention in Florida. It helps to read that before you read this post.

Hi Karen,

I always tell people with bipolar disorder to think way, way ahead about time changes when they travel.

Have you ever noticed that when we hear a tragic story about bipolar disorder in the news-  the cause of the mood swing was often travel where a person’s sleep and medications got off schedule?  I listen to these stories whether it be of a football player who misses the Super Bowl- or someone who became ill after traveling to a wildly different time zone such as going to South America and I think- we HAVE to have a plan for everything we do. Bipolar disorder does NOT like change, especially time changes.

Bipolar disorder runs on a very strict biological clock- which is why shift work is considered one of the top triggers of bipolar disorder- in fact, my coauthor Dr. John Preston lists this second after drugs and alcohol as a main trigger!

The answer to your question is YES- planning ahead for my travels to the East Coast has been very successful- but it takes a strict plan.

I’m speaking at the DBSA conference in Virginia in two weeks. This is a three hour time change- which may not seem like much- but it is to us with bipolar biological clocks. Here is what I’m going to do and what your husband can do as well. :

1. Start to get on East coast time one week before the trip- this simply means going to bed one hour earlier for a few nights- you then go to bed two hours earlier for a few nights and then three hours earlier the two nights before. This is actually very easy from this direction as it just means you get up really early.  For many people, simply not watching TV at all the week before the trip really helps. No late night news, sports games, etc. No karaoke with friends for me!

2.  I have to repeat this one, no late night television or computer use for a week before the trip. These activities are really stimulating!

3. Change your eating patterns to fit East coast time.

4. If possible, book a flight that fits the East coast time zone. In other words, leave early in the morning!

5. Have your bag packed WAY ahead of time! This avoids the late night rush that many people have before a trip.

6. I then do the reverse for the way back. I go to bed later and later to prepare for the return home. We often don’t work on our last travel day- so we can sleep in a lot more.  When I was in Florida- I stayed up until 2AM and slept until 9AM. I have to use sleep meds to do this. 

It really does make a huge difference- I use the hotel call service for my alarm.

7. I don’t drink at night or go to karaoke, night clubs or late dinners when I’m on a work trip. It’s too stimulating.  Luckily the hotels have movies!

8. It’s also essential that you regulate your meds along with your travel- keep them in a pill box in your pocket as well as a supply in your room. I take a double supply with me- one in my purse and one in my travel bag. You can’t miss meds while traveling! That will really miss things up.

9. If you need sleep help to accomplish all of this, that’s fine. Talk with your doctor about using an anti anxiety med like Ativan or Klonopin to sleep or ask about Ambien, Tylenol PM and Benedryl. Alcohol does not work!

These are such simple steps. They don’t cost any money and they are one of the reasons I can travel again. I’m a machine when I travel- I have a schedule that I stick to. I go to my room to recharge. I skip the stimulating stuff even though it can be really hard to do so! I guess I can say I have controlled fun when I travel! It’s a learning process. My next trip to Virginia is going to be a success! I know your husband’s trip can be a success as well!

Julie

PS: If you have the Health Cards Treatment System for Bipolar Disorder, I would definitely make  a travel card! They really help!