We arrived back from the Bahamas on New Year's Eve, and for 10 days the twins, nearly 10 months now, were a nightmare.

With a 10-hour flight from Miami, plus four-hour stopover and brief flight from Grand Bahama Island, they were jet-lagged and shell-shocked. They woke in the night as they hadn't since they were a few months' old. Then, for the first time, last night they slept all the way through and stayed awake most of the day. It seems normal life may resume at last.

As always, I'm not alone. One of the most frequent queries I receive from readers is how to deal with jet lag in young children. So I called the Guardian's doctor, Ann Robinson, for advice. I knew there must be a method to ensure it took less than a week to readjust.

"You could try Vallergan or Phenergan - anti-histamines you should have if you're travelling with children anyway," said Dr Robinson, who took her first child to Vancouver at four months. "They have the side effect of making them sleepy. But you must do a trial run at home first as it can occasionally have the opposite effect, and make them very, very active. And make sure they're not dehydrated from the long flight, as that will make them wake up in the night because they're thirsty. But really there's absolutely nothing you can do."

So I went to the internet, and discovered that travelwithyourkids.com recommended as much sun as possible to induce wakefulness (difficult in Britain at this time of year). But if you have to sleep at an inappropriate time, keep the curtains open, so at least they wake up in the light.

This seemed to work. It made the daytime naps shorter, and encouraged them to distinguish day from night again.

Now it's only me who needs a siesta.

If you have any experiences you wish to share about travelling with kids, email deabirkett@cs.com