Daylight Savings Time: Spring Forward

I know many of you are probably stressing about how daylight savings time this weekend is going to affect sleep. I’m here to give you some good news.

This is the easy one!

If you have been wanting a later wake time but babe is an early rise, this time change can actually fix this for you!

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Here are 3 ways to help adjust to the time change:

Strategy #1: Do Nothing

Personally, this is my favorite for this one. You essentially proceed as if the time change never happened, but instead you just shift your schedule an hour later for everything. Here’s an example:

If your child already has an 8pm bedtime, this may not be 100% feasible for you to jump to a 9pm bedtime, nor do we want to stay there! That’s when you will want to look at a different approach.

Strategy #2: Gradual Shift

Starting a few days before the time change, start by waking your child 15 minutes earlier than normal. So, for example, if they normally wake at 7, you will get them up at 6:45. Then the next morning 6:30, then the next morning 6:15, and then the next at 6am.

When Sunday rolls around, you’ll be right back to that 7am wake time with the time change! This is great for families who can’t just go with the flow and still have to get up at a particular time in the morning.

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Things You Can Do:

Ultimately, they just need time to adjust. Try not to stress out about this and attempt to micromanage their sleep. You’ll just stress yourself and them out. Focus on the things you can control, and things will fall in place.

Keep your routines the same. This is where sleep cues and routines work their magic. Continue with their usual bedtime routine. If they aren’t tired enough yet, add extra books and use the opportunity for more connection.

Expose them to morning light. This is SO powerful for setting their circadian rhythm (inner sleep clock). Aim to get outside for that first wake window, even if just for a few minutes! Trust me, I live in Maine so I get that’s not always enjoyable, but this is going to help SO much!

Check the darkness. Blacking out their room is going to be extra important now that morning late will be back to creeping in early. Even a little bit triggers your baby’s brain to surge cortisol and wake up for the day. Go in during the middle of the day and shut everything up to be sure it is completely blacked out.

Use light as a trigger. An hour before bedtime, start dimming lights and pulling curtains shut. If your child really struggles with winding down, remove screens an hour prior to bedtime as well (blue light coming from devices signals to our brains to wake up!)

This adjustment can take anywhere from a few days to a week. Be patient and know that this too shall pass. Focus on what you can control!

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Need More Help?

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