Moving the clocks back one hour is a scary prospect, not only because you know it has the potential to get your kids’ schedules all out of whack, but also you have to mentally prepare yourself for having to go around switching up all of the clocks in your house the next morning too.
Here’s the good news- at least you’ll get a little extra time to sleep in (fingers crossed)!
Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. Not gonna lie, I like spring a little better, because that means summer is close… but there’s just something about that time of year when the temperature dips, the leaves start to change color, and I can actually sit on my porch and drink a hot cup of tea without watching a million tourists pass by (the only bad thing about living in a tourist town by the beach).
Keep reading for my top 10 tips to help your babe make a smooth transition to the new time.
- On Saturday, don’t change a darn thing. Enjoy your weekend, leave those clocks alone, and don’t stress. (Maybe have a glass of wine?)
- On Sunday, get up at your regular time. Don’t bother setting an alarm- your body might even wake up earlier than it goes off.
- Same thing goes for your little one- although it’s quite possible their internal clock will wake them a full hour earlier at their “normal” time. For example, if they usually wake up at 7:00am, that day they may wake up at 6:00am.
- From there, you’ll “split the difference”, starting with the first nap.
- If, for example, your little one usually takes a morning nap around 10:00am, you will adjust this to 9:30am 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 her schedule. Do the same for the afternoon nap.
- Do the same for the afternoon nap. From when your child wakes up, follow the recommend wake time until their next nap.
- For bedtime, you will also split the difference. For example, if your child’s regular bedtime is 7:00pm, I recommend putting your child down for lights out at 6:30pm (This will FEEL like 7:30pm to your child). Do this for the next 3 days following the time change.
- On the fourth day, again make another 30-minute adjustment, for naps, as well as bedtime. This will take you the rest of the way toward the full time change adjustment.
- If you see early wakings, do your best to encourage your child to go back to sleep by comforting them, but keeping them in their crib until your new adjusted time.
- Big changes to our schedules take a little time for our bodies to fully adjust. Expect to take about a week for things to even out. The more consistent you are, the better!
My goal is to make this as straightforward of a process as possible. I hope you find these tips super helpful in making your adjustments with the time change. If you have any questions along the way, please reach out- either schedule a phone call appointment, or send me an email.
If you are thinking to yourself: HA! I wish my only sleep issue was dealing with the time change, my babe is up all hours of the night and has no rhyme or reason to his schedule! Then we need to talk! Click this link to a free, 15-minute discovery call, and let’s schedule a time to talk.