How do people sleep on planes?

neck pillow, eye mask, noise-cancelling headphones, and not comfortably

I am gonna be honest with you here. Some of us born with a gift, given directly from god. They can sleep, without thinking embarrassing memories, without using any medicine, without finding comfort itself. But you and I... and many others... we are not welcomed to this dream world of easy sleepers. We are not gifted.

The jet engine noise puts me to sleep. Those sweet delta waves.

Pure exhaustion from all the "hurry up and wait" of airport bullshit.

By the time I've gotten out of bed, gotten ready, travelled to the airport, dragged all my shit through the airport, unpacked and repacked half of it through security, boarded the plane ... my body just kinda gives up on being awake.

Drugs

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Like a baby. Just like a baby.

I've actually slept through a complete landing, disembarkation of half the plane, then taking off. Woke up completely unaware we did our stopoff already.

I may have been recovering from a hangover, but whatevs.

Noise cancelling headphones and the antihistamine tablets that say “will cause drowsiness do not operate machinery or drive” washed down with a pint of beer. Sleep for 6 hours no problems.

No idea but as SOON as we start to taxi I am out like a light...

I also fall asleep at the dentist so maybe it's just me?

Hot? I'm usually cold on airplanes. That would definitely make a difference for me.

Neck pillow for the neck kinks. I don't like the horseshoe shaped ones though, I like the trtl brand style. Expensive, but it became worth it when I took a job requiring a couple flights per month minimum.

Sensory reduction (earplugs, facemask) and some benadryl.

If it's hot in the plane, that might be blocking you from sleeping. Personally I'm always cold in planes and fall asleep relatively easily both on planes and elsewhere.

It also helps to be jet-lagged. Knocks you out right quick :P Only applies to return trips though.

Only time I could ever sleep on a plane was after a business trip were I worked 18 hours days for almost 2 weeks. I was so tired I fell asleep right after boarding and buckling in. Not even takeoff and landing woke me up. Flight attendant shook me awake. LOL

White noise. The white noise knocks me out almost immediately.

First you find a comfortable position. Sometimes a pillow helps. Then close your eyes.

The clouds are pretty. But speaking from experience, connecting flights/long flights will just let you drop in and out due to exhaustion. You will randomly wake up because of the weird positioning of your neck like 5 times. Heaphones help a lot to sleep. But I conclude, quality sleep can be found on airport floors(not joking).

Headphones in, zone out, drift off, wake up with a crooked neck.

I used to not be able to sleep on airliners, but then I got a job that required I fly on one once a week. By far the best way to make time pass fast.

Flip down the tray table and lay your arms and head on it. That's the only way I can do it

on my first trip to SE Asia I stsyed up overnight and planned to sleep the whole time on the plane. This was advice I was given to help combat jet lag for 12 hour difference of time. Turns out...I can't sleep on planes. I arrived delirious and. borderline hallucinating. I slept like 18 hours once at the hotel. I now power through the whole flight with caffeine and videogames after taking a nap at home as close to flight time as possible.

The noise of the engines tends to help me. Same with sleeping on a long car journey. They hum or white noise or whatever of the engine and the road really help. Also why I like to sleep with a fan on. Not only to help cool down. But also because the noise really gets me to fall asleep sooner.

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I used to fly a lot. I'm at the point where I board the plane, sit, close my eyes, and wake up when we start pulling into the gate at our destination.

I don't use a neck pillow or anything. Usually just grab a water bottle before boarding, because my mouth gets crazy dry.

At some point, the seats stopped leaning far back enough so that gravity kept my head in decline. That way I could sleep. Now that they don't lean back far enough, my head keeps dropping forward, so I constantly am kept in a state or awake.

I'm 6'4" (193cm). I don't.

Ambien, alcohol, etc

Can you fall asleep in a car? You know those metal cages tearing down roads where more people get killed than in those metal tunbes tearing through the sky...

So I actually have a lot of trouble sleeping, and have restless legs and periodic limb movement disorder. I also have pretty bad diagnosed ADHD and brown noise absolutely helps calm me down.... So that engine noise? Puts me right to sleep I don't know what it is about it.

Also I usually smoke a bunch of weed before going to the airport so that helps.

Tell you GP that you have anxiety when you fly. They’ll prescribe a benzo.

Enjoy your snooze.

How do people sleep on planes?

Neck pillow, earplugs, eyemask

Idk its pretty easy I'm usually tired and bored as shit

I couldnt sleep for shit when I took an overnight flight a long time ago. The air pressure messing with my ears made it too uncomfortable to do so.

Diphenhydramine, melatonin, neck pillow, and EYE MASK. Critical to block out light. Bonus for noise cancwlli headphones playing noise.

There is a good trick: Business class. As I only fly business class long haul as I only fly for the job.

And luckily I can force my clients to pay for it.

Otherwise, as a rather long and large person, I am fucked.

Badly.

I started wearing ear plugs and an eye mask every day. Eventually I got so used to it to the point that 1) it feels comfortable and 2) my body associates those things with sleep.

When on a plane I just put the ear plugs and eye mask on, and my brain just knows it's sleep time.

Also, not all neck pillows are created equal. I found the biggest factor is the pillow having straps to secure it to the head rest. It will do the work of holding your head and you won't drift sideways as you fall asleep.

The older I get, the easier it is to sleep just about anywhere.

Gummy and melatonin. Timed right, it actually works

I honestly have never had a problem sleeping on planes. If I'm tired before I get to the airport, I can often sleep through takeoff. On short flights I've only woken up after the plane lands.

For long haul flights I typically look to see what the local time of my destination will be when I arrive. If it's at night, I stay awake for the whole flight so I can crash as soon as I get where I'm going. If morning, I'll sleep the whole way so I can start the day fresh-ish. It really cuts down on jetlag.

For context, I got a remote job in 2016 and went full digital nomad basically until covid hit. I was living out of a single suitcase and flying once a month on average. I genuinely love flying. Pretty over the whole fascination with travel though.. In some ways it kinda ruins you. Now I'll only go somewhere if there are things I know I can only buy in the destination or if I'm going to visit friends or family. I have zero interest left for any tourist destinations, historical sites, museums, etc..

Like a baby. The older I've gotten I've gained the ability to fall asleep virtually anywhere. My wife is super jealous that I'm able to be asleep for an entire 5-7 hour flight.

Personally, drugs

With my face pasted against the window. After a while, all those tiny clouds look like a field of sheep 💤

Alcohol and Benadryl. Its worth noting that I never feel like I've slept. To me it feels like I am just hovering on the edge of sleep the entire time, but my wife says I do sleep for a solid hour or two at a time.

I can’t. I book day flights.

I like what comedian Ismo said, there are two types of people: people who can sleep anywhere and people who can't sleep anywhere. I'm from the first. You seem to be in the middle. I can fall asleep standing up.

I was recently on a 12 hour long flight and I couldn't sleep for more than 1 hour. If I am taking a domestic flight, I sleep like a baby. I had the hostess' wake me up for meals and it was always embarassing arrrrr

Ambien. Anyway, I have a Zzzband "pillow" that's essentially a large eye mask that has straps to strap your head to the headrest of your seat, great "travel pillow" I've ever used and I fly about 40 times a year.

I haven’t been on a very long flight. Longest was 2 hours. Every time I keep my Kindle ready. Have multiple podcasts etc. But right after take-off, I go off like a bulb and wake up only after landing

Something to do with a combination of pressure difference, engine noise and all. Also it’s pretty cold usually

Google credit card churning. Work your way through amex and other point systems. Get free / cheap business class tickets with lay flat seats.

Melatonin helps. It’s a natural chemical your brain releases to help make you drowsy at bedtime and you can get it over the counter to help sleep. It also resets your biological clock which makes it helpful for jet lag.

That with noise cancelling headphones or earplugs, a sleep mask to cover the eyes, and laying as flat as possible (even paying for business class) all help.

The only time I ever slept comfortably in coach was when I was younger and on drugs.

These days, whenever it's reasonable, I upgrade.

If I have a partner to travel with me, I can sleep by holding their hand and leaning on them or by laying on their lap.

I have also slept on semi-strangers lap once.... I'll give some context... We all were apart of an event ... Staff all knew who everyone was, so there was some implicit trust amongst us peers. As a result, I figured I'd ask this one person I was sitting with to hold their hand. The person later asked if I was tired & invited me to lay on their lap, so I could sleep. In any other travel, asking strangers to do such thing could have larger risks obviously.

Before: Turtl Travel Pillow. It's not easy, but it helps.

Now: Business class. I fly enough to rack up enough air miles that a seat upgrade is affordable if not free.

Ear plugs, hat over my face, and fatigue. Sure I'm sore afterwards, but if i can sleep through at least half the flight I'm happy.

Forgive the Amazon link

SkySiesta SNUG Travel Pillow - Head Support with L Shaped, Fiber Filled Sides. Patented Design. https://a.co/d/6cdbI2i

Gentle turbulence actually helps, believe it or not.

A neck pillow and noise cancelling headphones makes the trick for me.

Alcohol and Dramamine. At least, that's how I do it so I'm not having a panic attack the entire flight.

I've only ever been comfortable in a small plane where I can see the pilot because I'm sitting like next to or behind them. If the engines cut out, those can glide a lot easier than a huge jumbo.

I have two wolves in me. One wishes he could be pilot. The other is afraid of flying.

1-2mg of Melatonin, remain motionless with eyes closed for ~20 minutes, you'll be out like a light. Make sure you take a smaller dose - most gummies are 5 or 10 mg, it honestly works better if you subdivide.

I once read somewhere that it's something to do with the altitude or the cabin air pressure that make people feel sleepy.

Personally. I can't do it and I find it very uncomfortable even trying to get to sleep on those long journeys. Even if I do fall asleep, hoping to paas the time and it ends up not being long and time has never passed.

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I've never been on a long flight, but on overnight Amtrak routes I can only sleep with earbuds and music

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Alcohol makes me sleepy, so I'll drink a little and then listen to rainstorms with my headphones.

For me it's the gentle lullof the motor and mild sway of the plane. I just can't stay awake if I try

I actually find it easier to fall a sleep on a plane - not that I have any issues anywhere else 😁 but as soon as I get on that plane, you bet I'm gonna get some zzz time. Even if its just a 2hr flight

I rarely sleep longer than 90 minutes at a time, unless I'm physically exhausted already. And yes, the neck hurts, but exhaustion hurts more.

idk mate, I just decide to sleep and eventually I do.

The one time I slept in a plane for more than an hour was when I wrapped my head in a blanket and had an empty seat next to me to lean on.

Watch a movie on the in-flight entertainment. I can never finish a movie on a plane. No matter what I do, I fall asleep. If I don’t watch anything, I can’t sleep.

I've been on, like, fewer than 50 flights, so I don't think I've slept on one.

Zopiclone, mostly.

Business class lie flat seat for long haul flights. Tickets are insanely expensive.. fortunately I have a ton of air miles from company travel. Once you try it there's no going back.

Zopiclone baby

Benzos

Those little neck pillows they board the plane wearing.

Idk I can't sleep on planes either.

I fall asleep long before we ever take off usually by putting a podcast on the earbuds, wrapping a sweater stiff around my neck and focusing on the vibrations from the engine. Usually wake up around landing announcements. Never realized this was a blessing.