Originally Posted by
findark
Some people have routines for enduring the misery and want to fly the fewest number of hours possible. Some people chart stopovers or overnight transfers to allow for rest in a hotel, as you suggest.
Yep - this is the basic choice, assuming premium cabin isn't financially doable. I think once you're past ~24 hours "in transit" it's highly worth trying to figure out a stopover of some sort, which might be just a night in a cheap hotel near the airport or, if doable, a day in a layover city where you can see something worthwhile. In your case (OP's) you had Singapore and San Francisco to do this in, and perhaps in retrospect (or next time) building a stopover in at either of those points (if not both) would have been time/money well spent. Again - not to criticize but more in the spirit of what to do differently next time.