Daylight Savings Guide
The days are getting longer and Day Light Savings Time is just around the corner.
Every parent, even those with the best sleepers, dreads Day Light Savings Time.
On Sunday 2 October 2022 daylight savings starts and our clocks spring forward one hour at 2.00am. The introduction of daylight savings brings anxiety to a lot of parents as the lighter evenings often make settling challenging!
Light blocks the body’s availability to produce melatonin (the sleep hormone) which naturally increases in the evening. As light exposure is delayed due to the clocks moving forward, so is sleep onset.
It is virtually impossible to change your body clock in one night. When we try to we are out of sync i.e. our external time does not match our internal time resulting in the feeling of jet lag. Just like adults, the changing of times can interfere with your little one’s body clock and add extra challenges to naps and bedtime!
So, what does this mean for our little ones?
It means making a plan and adjusting your little one’s routine slowly!
If we do not make any changes to our little one’s routine their bedtime will be delayed until 8.00pm, essentially losing an hour’s sleep resulting in overtired grumpy kids!
Babies need time to adjust and this is why I recommend the process be done gradually over seven days. Whether you are proactive (the week before) or reactive (the week after) is entirely up to you. My personal preference is a proactive approach as the transition for your little one is more consistent. A reactive approach can often take longer for your little one to adjust to and overtiredness begins to creep in.
Our internal body clock (circadian rhythm) is entrained by food, light and social interaction. In order to shift our body clocks we need to re-entrain our bodies with all three of these cues. The aim is to gradually move these cues in small increments over seven days to get to the new time.
Start the process by adjusting your little one’s routine by 15 minute increments every two days. This means settling/waking your little one, shifting naps, feeds and meal times throughout the day and settling them 15 minutes earlier than usual for naps and bedtime. Then every two days adjust by a further 15 minutes and so on so by the end of the seven days – voila you will be at the new time! Most families make the common mistake of only shifting bedtime rather than naps, feeds and meal times as well.
Download Snug Bug’s easy to follow guide to help your little one transition into daylight savings with ease.
Important points to remember:-
Work with your little one’s tired signs.
Stick with your usual bedtime wind down routine.
Follow an age appropriate routine/awake times to ensure your little one is in their “sweet spot” for falling asleep.
With the lighter evenings, make sure your little one’s sleep environment is super dark as light blocks melatonin production.
Try to get early sun exposure as soon as you can in the morning to help entrain the body clock.
Most importantly stay consistent with your usual settling approach and avoid using negative sleep associations as a quick fix!
If you need help with the onset of daylight savings, schedule a Free 15 Minute Consultation at a time that suits you and we will give you a call then.