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Daylight saving time has its benefits, but many people end up complaining about the mess in their routines and especially the difficulty in sleeping when they still have no sleep and waking up earlier, when sleep is at its peak. Now imagine for children who cannot understand this change in schedule and end up suffering from these routine changes?
For those who do not know the reason, daylight saving time has been applied in Brazil since 1930 and serves as a way to minimize energy consumption during peak hours. As the hours of greatest consumption are in the late afternoon when people return home from their work, summer time serves to use more time in natural light, since it “takes” longer to get dark. So not only do people not have to turn on the lights in their homes, but companies and public lighting also take time to turn on their lights.
But ok, for us we can even adapt as the days go by, but how can we explain to the children that they will need to have a new routine and new schedules? We see many parents complaining mainly in the first week of summer time that the little ones are more agitated , losing sleep at night or giving too much trouble to fall asleep and this is very common, since during summer time the days are longer. These “longer” days give the feeling of fatigue, tiredness and alter the mood of the children.
Explaining daylight saving time to children days before the move can be an option for them to understand the reasons for having to sleep “earlier” and to remind them that they will also wake up earlier. For dads, patience will be essential to help them adapt, since in addition to sleep, hunger will come at different times and the adaptation of the stomach will also be necessary.
How to Help Children Adapt Daylight Savings Time
The benefits of daylight saving time are not only in saving energy and reducing the value of the electricity bill, but in taking advantage of the family day. A survey carried out by ANEEL (National Electric Energy Agency), families enjoy their time together much more, since they arrive home with a clear sky.
Outdoor walks are great options in this period too, as the use of sunlight provides more time for family fun. That way, children will not find these changes so bad!
If children have the option of parks, the swimming pool where they live can enjoy even more in this period, since the temperature also favors. They end up playing more, interacting with others and enjoying the time.
For the little ones who are having trouble sleeping, do n’t let the afternoon sleep delay , otherwise the lack of sleep will intensify. Let yourself play as much as you can and the exhaustion of the fun day will help you fall asleep with greater tranquility.
As for lack of appetite or hunger at “different” times, try dribbling with lighter snacks or fruit. As they will have to eat 1 hour earlier, it is normal for their biological clock to take a few days to adapt to new meal times.
> Avoid foods with a lot of sugar at night, as they act in a stimulating way for children and make it even more difficult to fall asleep outside of their hours. Create a peaceful environment at the new time and make him lie down early, a good reading in bed and a coffee can solve the problem more easily than you think! Children are fully adaptable and all they need is a good dose of patience in the first few days!
See Also: How to Create a Baby Routine?
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
