Short and sweet, because time is of the essence (we’re losing an hour this Saturday night, and that’s no fun at all except perhaps for those who have kids who wake up at 5am. At least with the time change, parents of early risers can feel like things are a bit better!).
A lot of worry goes into the time change and how it will impact your family’s routines and your baby’s sleep. Much of that worry can end up impacting sleep more than the actual time change! Although the time change is an arbitrary, human-made event, there are still ways to let nature (both outdoors and your family’s natural rhythm) help smooth the way for a smooth adjustment.
Time change woes? Here are three perspectives:
1. Nature has a way
Use nature to keep everyone on routine (outdoors and exposed to indirect sunshine in the afternoon, or better yet, for as much of the day as possible). The days are longer --get out before dinner, or head to a park right after daycare pick up.
2. Go with the flow
The time change is arbitrary, but the natural rhythm of your day will gently move everyone towards the new routine. Mealtimes and other activities that tend to happen at the same time every day will help nudge things along.
3. Don't sweat it.
If you gradual move your routine earlier every day leading up to "spring forward" (dinner 15 minutes earlier, bath routine 15 minutes earlier) or if you don't do anything at all ahead of time, it will still be a few days to a week to get it all sorted out. Either way is just fine --it is an adjustment, and it will happen all in good time!
If you have time pressures (such as work, school drop offs, or other responsibilities that are heavily clock-dependent) starting a few days early, having lots of outdoor time on Sunday, and getting to bed early can help. If you already have an early riser you may be just fine! If you have a sleeper-inner, you will be fine too (it just may take a wee bit more work to get through those first few mornings).
Losing an hour doesn’t need to mean losing sleep
It can feel like this loss of an hour is happening at the worst time: you finally got a great routine down pat, or sleep is already feeling rocky. Or maybe you are losing sleep because you just plain dread the effort of figuring out how to change the clock on the stove (let’s not even talk about the clock in the car!).
In the end, nature’s rhythm, and your family’s rhythm will guide the transition.
Use the rhythm of the day (especially the sun!) to help guide a smooth shift to the new time.
Three options to get you through:
Do nothing. Even without any deliberate action on your part (aside from changing the clocks!), the time change will inevitably start impacting when you make dinner, when you go out to run errands, and when you call your mother-in-law. Eventually, you’ll shift your day (and your baby’s day) with touchpoints that are already built into your routines.
This option may be easiest for those on leave or for primary non-working caregivers, where the start of a work day or commitments outside the home are less of an issue.
This may be helpful for those with early risers, too, with one caveat: pretend the time hasn’t changed at all. Delay changing the clocks, or make a point of sticking to the “old time”.
(Update for 2021: or a global pandemic: that may mean fewer things on your schedule relative to most years.)
Go slow and steady. Spend the week leading up to the time change slowly moving your routines earlier by 15 minutes every other day. Sleep may not come earlier (that’s driven by circadian rhythm, and sleep pressure, not an artibtrary new time on the clock). So be prepared to lengthen the sleep routine (read more books, nurse a little longer), but stick to ‘starting early’ to shift things gradually. Use wake up times as a powerful way to support this change too. Make it dramatic, but slightly earlier.
This option may be helpful for those with flexibility and commitment. It takes some resolve to move things forward slowly and consistently. And it takes your availability to start things earlier. If you have a schedule that is not as finely timed as a Swiss Watch, you may be able to start routines earlier more easily.
As fast as lightening. If you use this approach, be respectful of your own sleep needs (accidents, injuries, and heart attacks are all more likely after the spring forward time change). In this appraoch change all the clocks on Saturday night and don’t look back! It’s spring FORWARD afterall. This can feel mildly jet-laggy, but after a few days, the routines and rhythms will help set this shift.
McCall Gordon, an associate professor and sleep coach who works with families of children with highly sensitive temperaments, suggests that quick and abrupt changes may be helpful for highly sensitive kiddos. They often find small changes to feel just as disruptive as big ones.: it may be that one big change is less disruptive than many small changes.
It will be darker in the morning again, and lighter at night, so be sure to use the natural daylight (a morning walk and afternoon time at the park) to set the stage for healthy circadian-based sleep. Afterall, regardless of what approach you take, we all need a certain amount of sleep to feel optimal. And no time change will change that.