The Pump Station & Nurtury Blog: Prepare Your Baby for the Time Change

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Prepare Your Baby for the Time Change

Jill Spivack, LCSW and Jennifer Waldburger, LCSW of Sleepy Planet offer their expert advice on how to ensure the time shift fo Daylight Savings goes as smoothly as possible for babies, toddlers and older kids:

For Babies
1. Put your child to sleep as his normal bedtime on Saturday night.

2. Your child will likely wake up 1 hour earlier by the new clock than he normally does, say at 5:00 AM (which still feels to him like 6:00 AM). Psychologically, it can be painful to see 5:00 AM on your clock and deal with a child who's bright and perky. There's not a lot you can do about his energy level on this first morning, so just get up with him.

3. If your child still naps, stretch him as much as you can toward his normal first nap time (according to the current clock). So, if your child wakes at 5:00 AM (according to the current clock), his body will want to nap 1 hour earlier than normal. Don't let him! Instead, do whatever it takes to keep him awake. Give him a bath or do the Hokey Pokey around the house to keep him up as close to his normal first nap time as possible, then follow his usual schedule thereafter. Don't let him nap too long, as doing so may continue to cause early morning wakings.

If your child has outgrown napping, you still need to allow him to wake up at the early new time once the clocks have changed (bummer). However, spend your day eating and doing activities according to the usual time (even thought the clock has changed). Do your best to keep him up all the way to his regular bedtime at night, by the new clock (or as close as you can get without breaking him). Yes, he'll be a bit cranky in the evening temporarily, but after a few days, he'll adjust!

Excerpt from:
The Sleepeasy Solution: The Exhausted Parent's Guide to Getting Your Child to Sleep from Birth to Age 5.

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