Daylight Saving Time

The scariest part of Fall for most parents isn’t Halloween…it’s Daylight Saving Time.  On November 3, 2024 we will ‘fall back’ one hour.  This doesn’t seem like it should be a big deal. After all, our kids get one hour less sleep or one hour more sleep on plenty of nights. In fact, for kids with autism, it seems like they rail against any kind of sleep schedule at all – so why would one hour make any difference?

I have no scientific answer for this…but I know it disturbs many people’s sleep schedules for weeks.

What To Do

Here’s a trick I learned when my kids were young.  In preparation for one hour jumping back, start to gradually move bedtime back by 5-10 minutes each night.  If you’re doing ten minutes a night, you would start 6 days ahead. If you’re doing five minutes per night, start 12 days ahead.  This way, your child is adjusting gradually to the time change.

That way, by the time the ‘fall back’ occurs, your child will already be going to bed at the new time.

As I am baffled by the massive disruption, I’m equally unsure exactly why this helps so much, but it is at least worth a try if Daylight Saving Time causes major problems in your house.