This coming Saturday night at midnight, it’s time to “Fall Back” and set your clocks back one hour, bringing Daylight Savings Time to an end.
It seems every year we hear more people struggling with this time change. I mean hey, who doesn’t love the idea of it getting dark at practically 4pm, right?!?
We thought we’d talk to local wellness expert Chantal Ough at Clear Paths Reflexology, and get her ideas about why the end of Daylight Savings Time affects us so much, and here’s what she had to say:
“Gaining an hour at the End of Daylight Savings Time may seem fantastic but it can really affect your body’s circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a daily cycle and respond primarily to light and darkness. These rhythms affect your hormones, brain wave activity, cell regeneration and a host of other biological activities. The most important body systems that are affected are the sleep-wake cycle, the temperature regulation system and your endocrine system.”
Chantal says, some tips to help make the transition smoother are:
- Have your meals earlier. Especially your last meal of the day. Shifting those to an earlier time will help your body adjust more smoothly.
- Try to avoid building up a sleep debt in the days before the change. Don’t stay up late Friday and Saturday night because you’re going to gain an hour at the end of your weekend. This just aggravates your circadian rhythms.
- Limit your alcohol, caffeine and nicotine the day before the time change. There are many studies that show that these substances impact your ability to fall asleep.
We also found this great article that had 9 simple tips we thought we’d share with you HERE.
Chantal also reminds us, “remember that your pets notice the time change as well. We set the routines for our fur-babies that live indoors with us. Animals living outside are also affected when we bring their food an hour differently than what they are used to.”
