The Quick Shift to Daylight Savings
Updated: Jul 11, 2023
Has anyone else been personally victimized by daylight savings as a parent?!
The fall time change often has me scratching my head when I try to talk about it (wait, what time.. no, it’s the new… crap now I’m confused). Anyone else? LOL
Okay, so there are A LOT of different ways you can handle this (and in our case, we don’t handle it… meaning, we do NOTHING different than our usual because our little ones are used to hanging out in their sleep space happily– if yours doesn’t, this wouldn’t be my recommendation).
Before we talk about different strategies to tackle daylight savings, we need to figure out what kind of child you have: super sensitive, super flexible, or somewhere in between? Some options may suit a more sensitive child best, whereas a flexible child probably won’t care how you handle a time change!
It also matters if your child is generally well-rested and independent with sleep already as they may be more accustomed to hanging out happily in their sleep space.
General tips and things to consider when a time change is coming up:
Ensure your child’s room is dark in those early morning hours (sneak in there for yourself and see!).
Remember that it should take one day per one hour of change, so if the clock is only changing an hour, it shouldn’t take several days to get back on track.
Don’t be surprised if your child naturally shifts in the week or two leading up to the time change (either by waking up earlier in the spring or sleeping later in the fall).
If your child isn’t currently sleeping well, you may consider working on that before the time change.
My recommendation is the “quick” shift!
This is often the quickest way (other than doing nothing) to handle the time change, especially if your little one goes to daycare, you have other morning activities that require a stable morning wake up, or you just prefer to rip the band aid off.
HERE’S HOW THE QUICK SHIFT TO DAYLIGHT SAVINGS WORKS:
The Friday before the time changes, you do your normal routine.
The Saturday before the time changes, you get your little one out of their bed 30 minutes later, their naps are 30 minutes later, and their bedtime is 30 minutes later.
On Sunday (the day the time has changed), you’ll get them up another 30 minutes later (except now, it’s the new time and your back to the usual routine) OR you can stick with the same 30 minutes
On Monday, you’re either business as usual or finishing up the 30 minute shift.
In number format, that looks like:
Friday– 7:00am wake up, 1:00pm nap, 7:30pm bedtime
Saturday– 7:30am out of crib, 1:30pm nap, 8:00pm bedtime
Sunday– 8:00am out of crib, 2:00pm nap, 8:00pm bedtime EXCEPT the time has changed and it’s now 7:00am, 1:00pm, 7:30pm which is exactly where you started
If you stick with 7:30, 1:30, and 8:00pm then it’s actually 6:30, 12:30, 7:00 on Sunday via the NEW clock and on Monday you’ll just finish it up to 7:00, 1:00, 7:30.
Clear as mud? Confused? Me too, sometimes. It’s okay. If you need more help, there’s a 30 minute training available + quick reference guide so that you can choose from 5 different strategies! We walk you through each one and how to choose one for your family! You can purchase the instant download, use code FALLBACK for $5 off and it’s yours forever!
