FREE Extra Hour! Daylight Saving Time is Beginning… Set Clocks Back 1 Hour… Again!
I have a hate, hate relationship with Daylight Saving Time.
First, it is “Saving” time, not “Savings” time. I just realized I have been saying it wrong my entire life!
Second, I can never- and I mean never- remember if DST is starting or ending. I actually had to look it up before I started this newsletter!
And third, it creates havoc on my energy, sleep, and routines for nearly a week after the change.
Due to losing an hour of sleep (instead of gaining one), I find springing forward is much harder than falling back.
If you struggle with springing forward like I do, I want to support you to navigate it with a bit more ease.
In today’s newsletter I am sharing some tips from experts as well as one of my own hacks I came up with last year in the hopes that something in here might be helpful to you, too!
Daylight Saving Time:
A Brief History
Apparently Daylight Saving Time originally started in Germany during World War I as a way to conserve fuel. I find that ironic as it does the opposite for my “fuel”, aka: my energy. Instead of conserving it, it drains it.
All states except Hawaii and Arizona observe DST. However, only about 40% of other countries currently participate in the twice annual time changes.
Impact
According to WebMD: “DST forces our internal clocks to compete with our watches. Our internal clocks regulate processes including liver function, the immune system, and our body’s physiology, which means any disruption can have significant effects.”
Studies show Daylight Saving Time is linked to an increase in the incidences of:
- Traffic Accidents
- Strokes
- Heart Attacks
Yup, that’s right. DST can be deadly!
Tips
Some DST strategies shared on WebMD:
- Start going to bed 15-20 minutes early in the days leading up to the change.
- Avoid alcohol and caffeine.
- Support your future self with a lighter, schedule, if possible, the first few days after the change.
- Get some exercise during the day.
- Get some time in the sun (with sunscreen).
- Avoid heavy meals within a couple of hours of bedtime.
- Avoid too much screen time before bed.
- Create a sleep-friendly environment.
In 2021, on the Friday before the upcoming “spring forward” time change for DST, I realized that since we were in the middle of a pandemic, I had nothing “anchoring” me to the time for the rest of the weekend. So, to make it easier to tolerate the loss of an hour of sleep, I started treating the time change as if it had happened already (on Friday). Here’s what I did:
At 4 pm on Friday I went around my house and moved all my clocks ahead 1 hour to 5 pm- 2 days BEFORE DST! I just decided DST had already happened.
- Doing this simple act was like magic! It felt like a choice I was making (instead of something I was resenting and dreading).
- I went to bed about 30 minutes later on Friday night and I set an alarm to get up on Saturday morning.
- I did the same thing on Saturday night, but I forgot about the Sunday morning alarm. (Oh, well!)
- I still was able to fall asleep at my normal time on Sunday night and felt pretty dang normal Monday morning.
- I captured this experience in my POM (Personal Owner’s Manual), because I didn’t want to forget what I did and how well it worked, so I could put it in place again this year.
- I am now looking forward to springing forward for the first time EVER!!
