Tips for the Time Change (Fall edition)
It’s the most wonderful time of the year!! I absolutely love coming off of daylight savings time and returning to standard time. I mean I REALLY love it! I’ll be skipping to work singing showtunes on the Monday morning after this time change, feeling like a million bucks. Why? Because I’ve gotten an extra hour of sleep and the whole word just joined me on my natural circadian rhythm.
Here are a few tips to make this the best Monday of your year!
Wake with the sun. The time shift means that the sky is brightening up an hour earlier than before. This is a perfect time of year to start a new routine of getting up an hour earlier to exercise, meditate, read, prepare for your day, and whatever else you were thinking of doing with an extra morning hour. Normally wake at 7? Set the alarm for 6, and guess what? It won’t feel any different than 7! You typically start circulating stress hormones and other wake-up signals about an hour before you usually wake up, preparing your brain and body for the wake up. Waking up an hour earlier than usual (like we do when daylight savings starts- shudder!) is hard on the body because we aren’t ready for it. But with this time change, you can set the alarm clock an hour earlier and your body won’t really mind, because it’s still tuned to DST!
Work with the sun. Light is the most important input for the time-keeping controls of the brain. At any time of year -but especially when we have time changes or daylight is short- it’s important to get plenty of sunlight. Open the curtains and blinds early in the day, shift your work station close to a window, take hourly breaks to step outside for a minute- maybe on a walk to the restroom or water cooler. Even on a cloudy day the outdoor light is 1000 times brighter than indoor lighting (even though it may not seem like it!). By setting your circadian rhythm to the naturally occurring sunlight every system in your body will function more smoothly.
Take the cues and go to bed earlier. The time-keeper of your brain (the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus- or SCN for short) is taking note of the evening light as it dims and is sending messages to your pineal gland to release melatonin- a naturally-occurring hormone that makes you feel sleepy. You could fight the fatigue for hours, engaging in hobbies, snacking, smartphone use and more, but chances are that you’ll end up stopping melatonin secretion and disrupting your normal sleep patterns, resulting in staying up way too late and feeling more tired the next day. Instead, try for an earlier bedtime during the darker, wintry months.
The end of daylight saving time can be a fantastic time to implement new routines in your personal and professional life to help you get the most out of every day. Contact me for more thoughts and advice on how you can use neuroscience knowledge to improve your daily life.
Want more? Watch my interview with Cheryl Miller on Virginia this Morning on WTVR/CBS6 for more tips on how Falling Back Might Affect Your Brain.
