Jetlagged in Jeddah: The aftermath

AFTER MANY DAYS since the end of the holy month of fasting, i.e. Ramadan, and I’m still jetlagged. No I haven’t been traveling long distances, I am jetlagged from Ramadan! How can that be you may ask?
Of course those of you who live in Saudi Arabia know what I am talking about, and perhaps some of you are still suffering Ramadan jetlag just as badly as I am. You see, in Saudi Arabia, Ramadan is a whole production; life turns upside down as if we are transported to another time zone. Employees in both the private and government sectors are allowed to work shorter hours in Ramadan, but even then it’s hard to concentrate on that single document you’ve been staring at for hours. The reason is not just lack of food or caffeine or nicotine. It’s also because of lack of proper sleep. After iftar, the breaking of the fast, we generally resist sleeping at a reasonable hour. It’s almost a crime to waste valuable time on mere sleep when you could be eating, drinking, socializing, shopping or most importantly praying. Since Ramadan happened to coincide with the summer holidays, the youth had an added reason to stay up all night and sleep all day, much to their parents’ exasperation.
And it’s not just a few people who rush around until 3 a.m. and go to sleep after dawn. Most shops, malls, restaurants and other service based businesses, are either closed or open for a few hours during the day, but then operate at night until 2 a.m. Even workers at construction sites work mostly during Ramadan evenings until dawn.
I believe Saudi Arabia is almost unique in this Ramadan life style. I have fasted in several countries, where you can hardly perceive a change in your life’s rhythm besides the fact that you are fasting. For example, in London, when Ramadan coincides with the summer season, the days are very long. Dawn is at around 2.30 a.m. and sunset is around 9.30 p.m.
It is a very tough time for fasting Muslims, because they don’t have the luxury to turn their days and nights around. Not only that, but in some countries where there are few Muslims, you feel almost isolated from society around you, as others go about their daily routines, eating and drinking. No calls for prayer to be heard, no one to share your experience with and you cannot feel the spirituality of Ramadan that usually surrounds you in Saudi Arabia. I do feel sorry for our non-Muslim expats in Ramadan. They cannot eat or drink in public, since that would be considered a great offense in Saudi Arabia that could also lead to serious consequences.
More importantly, even if they want to keep normal hours, it must be very difficult, when most of the population is not. So, is this sudden change of routine every Ramadan and Eid a good or a bad thing? I suppose it depends on your point of view, and the life-style you lead. There of course some who say that their daily lives differ very little from normal, but I am sure they are the minority.
For me, spending Ramadan in Saudi Arabia is perfect, except for the dramatic increase of traffic at night, but that’s another topic! Still, after five weeks of this change in routine, it is extremely hard for many people to adjust their biological clock in a matter of a day or two.
After the end Ramadan and Eid, people on Twitter have been sharing their woes about getting their body clocks in-sync once again with normal waking, working and sleeping hours. All sorts of suggestions have been discussed on how to actually get back on track. From not sleeping for 24 hours and then crashing early, avoiding caffeine, to taking sleeping pills.
Thus, dear readers, if you also have suffered, or not, from Ramadan jetlag or have any suggestions on how to readjust quickly, please do share your experiences via e-mail, or comment online.