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How To Adjust Your Baby’s Sleep When The Clocks Change

The Mum Club21 October 2024

How To Adjust Your Baby’s Sleep When The Clocks Change

Welcome to the week where everyone else gets a lie in.

The idea of messing with sleep times can feel daunting, when you’re a new parent that’s fighting for every little bit of rest they can get.

So we’ve teamed up with Just Chill Mama aka Rosey Davidson to bring you a few ways to approach the clock change and help your little ones adjust in advance.

The Best Ways to Prepare for The Clock Change

This autumn, on Sunday, October 30th, our clocks go backwards. This means that if your children wake up at 6 a.m., it will actually be 5 a.m. *Yelp!

If you’re feeling apprehensive, here are some things you can do to navigate the change.

1. Prepare a few nights before

Does your child go to sleep and wake at a similar time every day? Rosey says, “I highly recommend preparing for the clock change in advance.”
“You can do this by pushing their bedtime forward by 15 minutes each day for the few days in the lead-up to the clock change. You will also need to adjust the rest of their schedule (naps, meals, feeds etc.) by the same amount of time.”

2. Make a last minute adjustment

Rosey says, “The night before the clock change (dependant on which way they’re going) put your little one to bed half an hour later (if the clocks go backwards).
In theory, this could be the little tweak that will help get them closer to the ‘new time.’”

3. Make early wake up times really dull

If your baby is waking up ridiculously early, Rosey advises “To keep things dark and boring for a little while to signal that it’s not quite time to get up yet. They will gradually adjust with time.” Wake up clocks can also help with older children.

4. Make some changes to your routine

We all take a bit of time to adjust to the clock change, but Rosey says, “There are things we can do to help our internal body clocks to catch up.”
The following things will help both you and your children sleep better:

-Get lots of fresh air and natural light.

-Eat at new times.

-Reduce screen time before bed.

-Continue with a predictable and relaxing bedtime routine.

5. Try not to stress about it

“Remember that the effects of the clock change will be short-lived – within a week or so everyone should be back to normal!” says Rosey.

6. Look after yourself

“It is also really important to look after yourself”, says Rosey. “Make sure you go to bed earlier than usual to prepare for the possibility that your little one might wake quite early while they are adjusting to the ‘new time.’”

The best products to help your baby sleep

Need some extra tools? Here are a few TMC picks that might help both babies, and parents sleep better.

Baby Bedtime Bubble Bath 500ml

JOHNSON’S®

£3.50

Humming Bunny Night Light

Moonie

£59.95

Sleep Mist

Childs Farm

£7.50

Portable Blackout Blind

Tommee Tippee

£32.99

Coco Mat

Naturalmat Baby

£235

Groclock Sleep Trainer

Tommee Tippee

£29.99 (Sale)

3 Steps to Help Babies Sleep

To help parents and children adjust, JOHNSON’S suggests a tried and tested routine to help babies and toddlers sleep better in just one week.

Step One: Warm Bath

Bath time is the perfect, relaxing way to start baby’s pre-bed routine. Along with engaging your baby’s sense of smell, bath time encourages skin-to-skin contact, which can lead to improved physiological, cognitive, emotional and social development. JOHNSON’S Bedtime Bath is designed to gently cleanse baby’s delicate skin and leave it feeling healthy.

Step Two: Gentle Massage

Research has shown that routine touch and massage improves sleep quality and quantity when part of a before-bed routine. A soothing baby massage can also help you recognise and respond to your baby’s body language and is the perfect way to make your baby feel secure, loved, and ready for sleep.

Step Three: Quiet Time

After giving your baby a warm bath and a relaxing massage, it’s time to send your baby off to sleep with a little quiet time together. Close contact between you and your little one helps calm your baby’s breathing, relaxing your baby for bed — a great reason for a post-bath cuddle. Keep the atmosphere calm and cosy and help your baby wind down further by reading or singing softly.