5 Ways to Help Kids Adjust to Daylight Saving Time
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Health Tip of the Week It’s almost time for the end of daylight saving time, and for many children, it’s also the beginning of a short period of sleep difficulties that occur as their bodies get used to the time change.
Many parents and caregivers don’t get to take advantage of that “gain of an extra hour” because it takes children longer than one night to adjust to a new schedule. For children, a wake-up time of 7 a.m. feels like 8 a.m. This can be a good thing if you have teenagers who may be in need of extra sleep, but if you have little ones who are early birds, it may seem like you’re having to get up earlier than ever. On the other hand, time for bed at 8 p.m. feels to them like 9 p.m. and they may feel tired earlier.
“Every year, on the Monday after the daylight saving time changes, I have many messages from parents whose children are having sleep issues,” says pediatric psychologist Melisa E. Moore, PhD, a member of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia’s (CHOP) Sleep Center team. “I’m not sure how the end of daylight saving might affect families this year, given how COVID-19 has already impacted school schedules.”
For many families, the time change can make for cranky kids who either can’t stay up until bedtime, are waking too early in the morning or have circadian clocks that are just “off” for a bit.
Want to help your kids quickly adjust to the time change?
It’s up to the family whether or not they want to start the process in advance of the daylight saving change, but regardless, Dr. Moore advises families to start with small steps. For a child who has a 7 p.m. bedtime, maybe that first night you try to push them to stay up an extra 15 or 30 minutes later with a fun game.
Sticking to a consistent bedtime routine is key. “Having a bedtime routine, where you follow the same steps every night, tells the brain it’s time to calm down and get ready to fall asleep and stay asleep, no matter what time the clock says,” explains Dr. Moore.
Whether your child is an infant or a teenager, it’s never too late to start a nightly sleep routine. Even if children are attending school virtually and can have a looser schedule, it’s still a good idea to have a predictable schedule. To help kids adjust to the time change now and avoid sleep issues when we restart daylight saving time in the spring, Dr. Moore offers the following five tips for creating a bedtime routine:
With a bedtime routine in place, your child should adjust to the end of daylight saving time within about a week or two. If it’s taking longer than that, talk with your child’s pediatrician about whether it’s time to speak with a sleep specialist.
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Categories: Sleep