Is Daylight Savings a Four Letter Word?
Remember those days when autumn daylight savings meant an extra hour of sleep? “Fall back” you’d whisper in bliss. You’d roll over and look at the clock and you didn’t have to get up yet!
Babies don’t read clocks.
Daylight savings, can make for new sleeping challenges with your baby. Their schedule will be thrown off as you start to serve meals and schedule naps to match the new time. Your baby might resist naps, sleep less, be cranky, or cry more.
So what can you do?
1. Start shifting baby’s schedule now
Try shifting your day by 10-15 minutes every day. If bedtime is always 7:30 pm, tonight, make it 7:45. You might have a little extra crankiness tonight, but you will have a lot less on Monday.
2. Get outside during the day.
Part of what helps all of us to regulate our sleep is the difference in light from day to night. Being outside during the day will allow your baby to be out in the bright sunshine, and enjoy this beautiful weather while it lasts! Then at nap or bedtimes, you can dim the lights in the environment to aid in a restful sleep.
3. Keep your nap and bedtime rituals
Do you have a consistent bedtime ritual with your baby? Many families choose a bath and a book as their bedtime routine. Keep that consistent as you make the switch to Daylight Savings. This is your babies “clock”, it helps to remind them that it is time for sleep.
4. Hire an overnight doula
Do you not feel like dealing with this? Let us help you. We can help your little one adjust to the new time and let you keep that extra hour of sleep!