Summer has officially come to an end and those longer winter nights are upon us! On November 3rd the clocks will “Fall Back” by one hour. If you are like me, you are worried it will mean that those 530 am starts will become 430 am and those dreamy 7 am wake-ups will be dark and early 6 am!!
With a little preparation, it is possible to be ahead of the time change to ensure a consistent schedule for your family.
Fall Back – Option 1
Starting immediately, move your child’s schedule by 15 minutes every 2-3 days until you are officially one hour ahead of the usual schedule before it “falls back” by one hour.
Example:
Usually wakes at 6 am Leave in the crib until earliest 615
Usually naps at 945 am. Put down for the nap at 10 am
Usually naps at 215pm. Put down and 230 pm
Bedtime is usually at 7.00 pm Put down at 715pm
But what about being overtired?
Now lots of parents worry about being overtired. 15-30 minutes for a baby over 6 months won’t be hugely detrimental while making this change over the 7-10 days, so please don’t worry. If you have adjusted their schedule by 30 minutes and by day 6 your baby’s morning wake-up time has not changed at all, then please do not extend the times any further. Hold it there until the time change on November 3rd and then embrace the new wake times. This will still require some adjustment in the week afterwards but it is the best your baby can do.
Fall Back – Option 2
Don’t worry about it. On November 2nd, delay your child’s bedtime by 30 minutes and then treat the morning wake-up the next day as usual. In the days after, they may wake earlier than usual, but my tips for this are listed below.
Example
November 2nd bedtime is usually 700 pm, you are going to put him/her to bed at 7.30 pm.
Morning wake-up time would usually be anytime after 6 am, then honour that, if they wake before 6 am, treat it like a night wake-up and do your check-ins. In the days ahead you may experience wake-ups before 6 am, but you will need to stick with it to make sure this is not a permanent change.
Top Tip
If your child is not responding well to these adjustments or the morning wake-up time is very early, you can pick a morning wake-up time that suits your family for now, say 530 am. When you greet your child, keep the stimulation very low, no TV, don’t open the curtains, and delay the feeding until the desired wake-up time, say 6 am. This helps adjust their circadian rhythms even if their sleep isn’t adjusting yet.
Be patient, I know early morning for exhausted parents is challenging but we can’t program babies (I wish!). These things can take time and a little preparation.
