Spring brings longer days, and we get to jump the gun a little with the start of Daylight Savings Time (DST). Okay, jokes have been made about how we cut off the top of the blanket and sew it to the bottom and then act like it's a longer blanket, and it's true the day doesn't actually get longer, but it sure does feel great to have an "extra" hour of daylight in the evening.
What doesn't feel so great is losing an hour of sleep on Saturday night. But with a little advance notice and planning, you can adjust your body to the change in just one week of very small, easy steps.
Sometimes we attempt to go to bed an hour early the night of the time change, but that's usually unproductive, as you most likely will be bored and frustrated, unable to fall asleep until your normal time, and so the next day, you'll be up and annoyed because not only did you lose an hour of sleep, you lost an hour lying in bed fruitlessly.
The key to success is an incremental approach that addresses your wake time as well as your sleep time. The week before the time change, start off by going to bed 15 minutes early and waking up at the normal time. The next night, go to bed at the same time as the night before, but get up 15 minutes earlier, then repeat the pattern until you have made the full transition, which will occur the night of the time change.
In other words, if you typically go to bed at 10pm and wake up at 6am, then:
On Saturday night, go to bed at 9:45 and wake up Sunday at the normal time (6:00)
On Sunday night . go to bed at 9:45 and wake up Monday at 5:45.
On Monday night, go to bed at 9:30 and wake up Tuesday at 5:45.
On Tuesday night, go to bed at 9:30 and wake up Wednesday at 5:30.
On Wednesday, go to bed at 9:15 and wake up Thursday at 5:30.
On Thursday, go to bed at 9:15 and wake up on Friday at 5:15.
On Friday, go to bed at 9:00 and wake up at Saturday at 5:15.
On Saturday, go to bed at 9:00 and wake up on Sunday at 6:00 (which will feel like 5:00, but you got your 8 hours!)
From Sunday on, you can go back to your normal times of 10pm - 6am.
So, always give yourself the 15 minutes first, and then make the adjustment the next night. Don't worry if you can't make yourself sleep the extra time; just getting relaxed and in bed will give your body the signals that it is bedtime and will help you adjust. The second night, you will be more used to it, and the third night, you will have gotten up early, so your body will be ready for that extra sleep! This also works to combat "jet lag" if you are planning to travel. You may want to change your sleep in larger increments, but always give yourself the extra, first; no sense in being exhausted.
As for getting up earlier than you "need" to for a few days, use the extra time to pack lunches, iron a shirt or two, have a real breakfast instead of a cup of coffee and an energy bar, do some gentle stretches to get limbered up, or hey, just take a little extra time to enjoy not having to rush!
This year the time change will occur Sunday, March 11th at 2:00 am (that's Saturday night to most of us). So hey, live it up tonight--you have an early bedtime tomorrow!
Image from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/en/alarm-clock-stand-up-morning-bed-1191561/
