With seasons changing from summer to fall we get a break from the heat, pumpkin spice everything and the dreaded time change. For many of us “Fall Forward” means one more blissful hour of sleep.  However, for children the time change can lead to a stressful change in sleep quality. The good news is, it doesn’t have to be! With a few tips, you can fall forward like a champ and avoid any unnecessary stress. 

    As tempting as it may be to keep your kiddos up an extra hour the night before daylight savings, don’t do it. Unfortunately, the extra hour awake will not equate to an extra hour of sleep in the morning. Put your child to bed on time the night before the change. Let them sleep till their scheduled wake up time- they may be up before due to the time change, but let them stay in their crib/bed as close to their wake time as possible. This applies to feeding too, keeping your baby on schedule is the best way to deal with daylight savings.  

      Throughout the day keep up with the new time. Take advantage of the cool weather, play outside, go on walks or to the park. Your child may start to feel the time change before their nap, but hold out as best you can. Being consistent is important, keep up with regular routines and utilize tools such as black out curtains and sound machines. After about three to five days of adjusting to these changes, you and your little one will be back on track.

Melissa O'Neill is a registered nurse who specialized in NICU and Labor & Delivery for over twelve years. With three kids of her own, she is a wonderful resource for all new parents. After the birth of her first child, she became increasingly interested in studies on the sleep habits of newborns, and saw a need for quality in-home newborn nursing care and education for new parents in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Melissa founded Newborn Nightingales in 2012 and is committed to helping parents establish a nurturing, caring and calm environment.  Melissa was recently elected to the board for the Mother’s Milk Bank of North Texas. In addition, she was a featured speaker for the Bump, Baby & Beyond event in Dallas in 2014 and The Dallas Mom’s Blog Bloom event in 2016. 

If you are interested in getting some help with night-time sleep care, please reach out to Newborn Nightingales through https://newbornnightingales.com/contact-us/