Why does your body hurt after traveling?

Nerves and tension can cause muscles to tense, resulting in pain following a flight.



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Think of it as a flying desert. Besides sleepiness, lack of fluid can make you confused or dizzy. Your head may throb. These are warning signals that your body needs attention.

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All that seat time causes blood to pool up in your lower legs. This puts more pressure on the veins and leads to swelling. You might experience the symptoms early on in the trip or not until after you've arrived. Achy, tight or tender muscles in the your lower legs and thighs are the most obvious signs.

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The pain may be mistaken for a muscle cramp, but it can indicate formation of a deep vein clot resulting from sludging of blood in static leg muscles. Typically, the clot dissolves and pain subsides after air travelers reach their destination and have an opportunity to walk around.

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People commonly experience musculoskeletal pain with plane travel such as back pain, jaw pain, neck pain, foot and ankle pain. But common doesn't mean it needs to be necessary! In fact the list continues with bloating and jet lag being other common complaints post flight.

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Jet lag is a temporary sleep disorder, but not temporary enough for many travelers. If you're flying from San Francisco to Rome for a 10-day trip, for example, it may take six to nine days to fully recover. That's because it can take up to a day for each time zone crossed for your body to adjust to the local time.

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Jet lag is a temporary sleep disorder that occurs when a person's circadian rhythm is out of sync with the time zone they are in. Jet lag symptoms like fatigue, insomnia, and irritability typically improve within a few days as your body adapts.

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The best way to recover after a long travel day
  1. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Travel, especially on a plane, can be dehydrating. ...
  2. If you're not napping, stay engaged. ...
  3. Keep your blood flowing. ...
  4. Start moving ASAP. ...
  5. Get outside. ...
  6. Refuel with something satisfying or healthy. ...
  7. Prioritize rest. ...
  8. Take a shower or steam.


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You could be experiencing a burnout if you ever wake up feeling dejected and exhausted, like you want to give up on the day before it has even started. These are the days when all you want to do is crawl back under the covers and not move all day.

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Travel fatigue is a total exhaustion caused by too many days or weeks of constantly being on “alert” while you travel. It manifests as apathy toward travel activities that usually excite you, and a lack of motivation to enjoy local culture and cuisine.

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There are plenty of reasons you might opt to drink, said Slater, who worked for TWA and Delta before moving to JetBlue. “The fact that you're away from home, you're away from your social support, you miss your holidays, you miss your weekends. You're isolated a lot. It's going to be very, very lonely.

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As annoying (and uncomfortabe) as it can be, Trotman reminds us that “some degree of bloating after a plane trip is normal, and it should typically resolve itself within a couple of days.

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Airplane travel and sleep disturbances caused by air travel are frequently reported. Passengers who travel regularly are likely to change time zones and can experience circadian rhythm misalignment, leading to jet lag disorder (JLD). The incidence of jet lag increases with the number of time zones crossed.

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How to aid recovery from long-haul flights
  1. Avoid alcohol for at least 24 hours.
  2. Go for a short burst of cardio. ...
  3. Keep drinking water.
  4. Sleep, or if you can't sleep, rest in a darkened room very soon after arriving at your final destination.
  5. And finally, if you can, get a massage within the first 24 hours of landing.


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The cramped conditions and long periods of being less active on a flight can cause pain, stiffness or swelling of your legs. Being less active can lead to slow blood flow in your veins which increases your risk of developing a blood clot, known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVTs most commonly form in the legs.

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Post-flight recovery
  1. Elevate your feet. If you're uncomfortable, grab a seat at the arrival gate where you can elevate your feet. ...
  2. Soak your feet or take a bath when you arrive at your accommodations. Just as a hot tub or jacuzzi increases blood flow, a hot bath can have the same effect. ...
  3. Take a walk or exercise.


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Tips for Overcoming Post-Travel Depression Stay active: Exercise, hobbies, and other physical activities can help improve your mood and give you a sense of structure. For example, you could start a new workout routine, join a sports team, or take up a new hobby like painting or gardening.

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Travel is generally enjoyable and sometimes life transforming, but it can be stressful. Lack of familiar support systems, disrupted daily routines, language barriers, culture shock, and unexpected situations can intensify stress levels rather than alleviate them.

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