Daylight Savings is quickly coming to an end on November 1st, where we will be turning our clocks back an hour. Your office mates may be celebrating the extra hour of sleep, but you know it means your kiddo waking up for the day at 5 AM. If you’re looking to prevent those early wakings, here’s what you should do:
A week or so before the time change, start shifting your child’s sleep times back gradually by 15 minutes or so. So, if your child’s usual naps start at 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM, change it to 9:15 AM and 1:15 PM as well as pushing bedtime back 15 minutes. On day two, it will be 30 minutes later than the usual nap and bedtimes. On day three, 45 minutes later and on day four it will be an hour later than the original sleep times. The earlier your begin in the week, the more gradually you are able to do this, so if 15 minutes sounds like a big jump, start a little earlier and go a little slower. By Sunday, your kiddos should be totally adjusted to the time change and back to their usual sleep times! Let’s look at an example schedule below:
Regular Sleep Times:
Morning Nap: 9:00 AM
Afternoon Nap: 1:00 PM
Bedtime: 6:30 PM
Day One Adjusted Sleep Times:
Morning Nap: 9:15 AM
Afternoon Nap: 1:15PM
Bedtime: 6:45 PM
Day Two Adjusted Sleep Times:
Morning Nap: 9:30 AM
Afternoon Nap: 1:30PM
Bedtime: 7:00 PM
Day Three Adjusted Sleep Times:
Morning Nap: 9:45AM
Afternoon Nap: 1:45PM
Bedtime: 7:15 PM
Day Four Adjusted Sleep Times:
Morning Nap: 10:00AM
Afternoon Nap: 2:00PM
Bedtime: 7:30 PM
The same rule applies if your toddler only takes one nap, just push the nap and bedtime by 15 minutes over a few days.
If you happen to be reading this on the night before, don’t panic! Just prepare for a couple early mornings while your kiddos adjust. Treat yourself to a fancy coffee and things will be back to normal soon.
As always email me at kathleen@thewellrestedclub.com to schedule a free introductory call. Sleep is possible and I would love to help you join The Well Rested Club!
thewellrestedclub.com 