Spring ahead
It’s that time of year again where we’re all getting ready to change the clocks.
This time we’ll spring ahead, so don’t worry about any early-rising babies, this one’s for you!
Keep in mind that the time on the clock on Sunday morning, March 12 will look like an hour later for your child but feel like an hour earlier (cause we’re moving the clock forward by one hour, essentially losing an hour). I know that sounds confusing.
for example, if your baby normally wakes at 6 am and has a bedtime of 6:30 pm, it will now look like a wake time of 7 am and a bedtime of 7:30 pm. You can either leave it at that or wake your baby up at their regular wake time (not allowing them to sleep in) in order to keep to their regular schedule, or you can let this baby sleep in. I will elaborate more below…
Keep in mind that babies will be tired a bit later for their naps and bedtime, so for the early risers you may want to put them down a bit later with the new to time to maintain that new schedule. And for babies who tend to wake on the later side you can put them down a drop earlier or at least at the new time on the clock- not later if you’re trying to shift that child’s schedule a bit earlier.
It’s a lot of confusing info! But know that whatever you choose to do, their bodies will adjust just like everyone else’s and it may take a few days, especially if you choose to go with the flow.
Are you wondering what the mornings will look like when we move the clocks forward?
When we spring ahead, it’s dark for an extra hour in the morning and then we gain an extra hour of light in the evening. So, when you wake up after the time change and you’re used to it being light outside, you may find that it’s still dark or maybe just starting to get light out (depending on when you normally wake).
If you are not used to getting up when it’s dark outside, your body may be a bit disoriented and groggy. You may even feel unrested, even if you ‘slept in’ with the same amount of sleep, merely because it’s dark outside. This can take a good 5 days to a week for your body to totally adjust to the new time and the same goes for your children as well.
A black out shade is now recommended for your kids at bedtime as opposed to early in the morning. The sunlight will likely be bright and shining, especially for ones who go to bed on the earlier side, so make sure to block out as much light as you can so your little one isn’t confused and think it’s time to party when you’re trying to tuck him into bed.
If you were to ask me what my number one tip was for adjusting to the time change, this is what it would be…
Get outside! Exposure to natural sunlight is the most effective and most natural way to regulate one’s body clock and get yourself and your kids back on their normal schedule. I give this advice for newborns who are experiencing day and night confusion and I also give this advice for people experiencing jet lag-mild or extreme.
Let me explain a bit more…
Your body’s circadian rhythm or body clock responds to light. Simple enough, right? Sunlight signals the brain to be alert and awake and the opposite is also true, darkness signals a sleepiness response. The circadian clock is most sensitive to light that’s why it’s recommended to shut off lights an hour or two before bed to start winding down and to start signaling to the brain that it’s nighttime.
Without getting too technical, Exposure to natural sunlight also directly affects the production of melatonin, the essential sleep-promoting hormone. And the more natural sunlight we get, the more synchronized our circadian rhythm will be with sunrise and sunset (I.e, awake and alert during the day and sleepy at night).
According to the Sleep Foundation, “Light is the most important external factor affecting sleep”.
Natural sunlight has so many other benefits other than regulating our sleep/wake cycles, which I won’t get into right now. But you can see why it would be my number one tip for dealing with the time change. So get your little ones outside, or even sit near a window if it’s too cold to get out. You won’t regret it
The night of the time change, put your baby/child down the same time you normally would. If they do sleep in 'an hour later' or until they wake naturally, remember you will have to shift naps and bedtime later as well for a few days.
On Sunday morning, wake them according to the new time on the clock. Refrain from allowing them to sleep in.
Here are three options for going about the time change:
Option 1: The week prior
The Sunday before the time change, start your day 10-20 minutes earlier each day to help shift the day an hour earlier. If wake time is 7:00 am, make it 6:50, 6:40, 6:30, etc...Wake windows remain the same and nap length remains the same.
The only thing you are changing is the start time of your day with the goal of naturally shifting the day an hour earlier over a period of one week.
Option 2: The weekend of the time change.
Start your morning 20-30 minutes earlier and in addition, if you can, put your baby for naps and bedtime 20-30 minutes earlier as well. The only thing that’s changing is your child’s wake time and their wake windows/naps/bedtime.
Note: You don't want to make naps or bedtime too early or they may not be able to fall asleep so easily.
Option 3: Wing it.
The night of the time change, put your baby/child down the same time you normally would. If they do sleep in 'an hour later' or until they wake naturally, remember you will have to shift naps and bedtime later as well for a few days. On Sunday morning, wake them according to the new time on the clock. Refrain from allowing them to sleep in.
Keep in mind...
That you are not really losing any sleep at all. You are getting the same amount of sleep you would on any other night, the only thing that's changing is the time on the clock.
Here is a sample of what bedtime should look like if you are planning to shift your child’s schedule. Whether you started the week before or you’re planning to start over the weekend, do it in small increments, as shown on the sample bedtime schedule so you can see what bedtime will look like nightly and when the clocks turn back. So Saturday night, your baby will be going to sleep an hour later than usual with the hope of shifting their wake time an hour later as well.
The goal with the shift is so that by the time Sunday morning November 6 comes along, hopefully you’ve managed to shift your little one’s schedule forward by one hour so that when the clock says 6 or 7 am, your baby’s body clock is ahead of the game and ‘sleeping in’ instead of waking up at their ‘old wake time’. You get me? I know it’s confusing sometimes!
But don’t worry, no matter what you do, whether you choose to prepare ahead of time or totally wing it, your child will adjust just like everyone else.
Now would be a good time to really use your blackout shades and making sure the room is dark in the morning to prevent early morning waking. It will start getting light out earlier (and darker earlier in the evening, too).
Does the time change affect newborns?
For the most part, the simple answer is not really, but there are a few reasons why the time change could affect newborns.
As I mentioned in the post, newborns are not born with any organized sleep patterns, they aren’t producing much melatonin until much later, their circadian rhythm is not yet established and they have zero concept of time!
So here’s how I break it down; for really young newborns the time change will have minimal to no affect, their sleep is anyway mostly erratic and probably isn’t organized yet even if you are implementing a routine for your little one. That being said, once they hit around 6-8 weeks (for some it’s around 2 months), the time change can start to affect their sleep-especially if you started implementing a schedule and a routine from day one, and yes, it’s totally possible to start this early.
So to simplify, if your baby is used to the schedule you’ve introduced to him and is used to waking up at a certain time in the morning and has organized feedings and naps, then yes, come the time change, and your baby will likely wake up an hour earlier that day. I say this from my own experience with my babies who have been affected at this age by the time change and my newborn clients who have experienced this as well.
What I will say is that if it does affect them, it’s not as severe as it is for older babies, children, and adults. They’re not as tired or out of sorts because of it (thanks to their immature circadian rhythm) and they’re easier to deal with because their wake windows are so short anyway that you can have them pretty much asleep for their naps whenever you want or need them to, so getting them back on track takes minimal effort.
Bottom line-it can affect them depending on what kind of schedule they have-if any at all, and no, there’s not much I would do but you absolutely can try and get them to their usual wake time, but I wouldn’t stress, they will adjust just like everyone else and probably a lot easier cause they’ll be minimally affected.
So there ya’ll go. Hopefully I have simplified how to hack the spring forward madness. It can be super confusing with all this info, so if it’s stressing you out, just wing it! You will be fine!
You got this!