Daylight Savings Time and Your Childs Sleep
With daylight savings time fast approaching in many parts of the world, I thought it would be helpful to share my advice on handling this. Most parents do not mind it so much in the fall/autumn when they gain an extra hour, but it sends fear through people when they hear they are going to have to lose an hour of sleep!
Every year I get a lot of questions asking for the best way to handle daylight savings time and children’s sleep. If I had my way, there would not be a daylight savings time, and here in the Middle East, lucky for us there isn’t.
I think it really does affect not only children’s sleep patterns but our own, too. In fact, statistically, there is an 8% increase in traffic accidents the Monday after daylight savings time kicks in - did you know that?
It really does have an effect on all of us, and it can increase sleep debt – especially in children, who tend to be much more structured with going to bed at the same time every night and waking up at the same time every morning. That is usually why people notice it the most in young children.
So, what is the best way to handle it?
My advice is to “split the difference.” For “Fall Back,” my recommendation to all parents is just to leave the clocks alone so it is not a psychologically upsetting event to see your little one up an hour earlier. Just get up at your usual time and start the day.
After your cup of coffee and breakfast, then you can go around changing the clocks. It will feel much better this way, trust me! If, for example, your little one usually takes a morning nap around 9:30, you will adjust this to 9:00 for the three days after the time change.
It will be a bit of a push for your child, but not so much that it will cause much damage to their schedule. Do the same for the afternoon nap. Let us say your child usually goes to bed at 7pm I recommend putting that child to bed at 6:30pm for the first three days following the time change. Please remember this will FEEL like 7:30 to your child. And it will take about a week for your child’s body to get used to this. It takes everybody’s body roughly one week to adjust any kind of change in sleeping habits.
If you have children over the age of two, you can put a digital clock in the room and put a piece of tape over the minutes, so that they can see if it is 6 o’clock or 7 o’clock, but they cannot see the minutes, which often confuses toddlers. Just set the clock forward half an hour so that at 6:30 it says 7:00 and let them get up a little earlier than normal, knowing that, by the end of the week, they will be back on track and sleep until their normal wakeup time.
If you are dealing with a baby, you cannot do that. Do not rush in as soon as you hear your baby waking up, because you do not want to send a message that getting up at 6:00am is okay now. So if your baby normally wakes at 7:00am, but is now up at 6:00am, you should wait until 6:10am the first day, and then 6:20am after the next, then 6:30am the next day and, by the end of the week, your baby’s schedule should be adjusted to the new time and waking up at their usual hour. On the fourth night, just get in line with the new time so your baby is back to going to bed when the clock says 7:00pm. Adjust naps to the correct time on day 4 as well.
What about spring forward?
For “Spring Forward,” the same “split the difference” rule applies. So, if nap time was usually 9:30am, it’s now 10:00am. The same goes for the afternoon nap, and bedtime is 7:30pm. This will mean that your baby is going to bed a little earlier or sooner than the normal wait between sleeps, but again it is not so much so that it is going to interfere with her schedule too much.
It may take her a bit more time to fall asleep since she may not be as tired, but in a week’s time she will be back on track again. On day and night 4, move to the correct time on the clock again. Give it time and know that your baby will get back on schedule within a week, possibly two.
When you're making bedtime later, hopefully your child is not waking too early, but it is possible this can happen since anytime there is a shift in sleeping patterns, our cycles can feel a bit off. If your child wakes before the schedule morning time, try allowing them time in their crib/cot or room to hang out (assuming they do not become upset) and encourage that independent time before getting them up. You also want to make sure their room is completely dark in the morning and that sunlight is not causing early morning risings.
Our body's internal sleep cycles (circadian rhythm) are regulated by light and darkness and heavily influenced by our environment. Therefore, we often become sleepy once it starts to get dark and many of us wake up with the sun. You can help your child's 24-hour sleep cycle by exposing them to light once you get them up in the morning and throughout the day, with their last sun exposure around 5:00pm for a 7:00pm bedtime.
I would recommend holding off on sleepovers or any major travel if you can help it before "fall back." While you cannot necessarily deposit sleep into a bank to accrue, lack of sleep can result in chronic over-tiredness which will further the challenge in adjusting to a new sleep schedule.
The more rested your child is leading up to this transition, the better!
As we all know, the effects of sleep deprivation impact the entire family. Children are just as confused about the time change as we are, and although our bodies will adjust naturally (eventually), some have a harder time than others. If you notice meltdowns become a bit more frequent after the time change, try and remember that lack of sleep could be the culprit. I encourage you to set aside more quiet time and maybe even an extra nap while you all try to adjust to this new season.
Just remember, you will get through this time and try not to worry or change anything drastically to over-correct sleep. Each year this shift happens and each year we adjust so remind yourself that it is just another season!
Please feel free to contact us if you have any more questions or are looking to improve yours or your child's sleep.
