The clocks are set to go back this weekend, marking that time of year again.
While most of us relish the extra hour in bed, parents often face a different scenario. The aim is to get little ones to sleep in as much as possible, but their body clocks are about to shift.
This could make it somewhat challenging to keep them in bed. However, a health visitor has recently revealed two straightforward techniques to encourage babies to sleep more – and they’re simple to implement.
Ruth Watts, known on TikTok as @ruthwattshv, shared a frank video detailing what people can do to assist with the seasonal change. There are two methods you can use to improve your children’s sleep.
In her candid video, she stated: “Let’s talk about the clocks going back at the end of the month. So, in England, the clocks are going back.”
She added: “So, if your child is waking up at 6.30am in the morning, it’s going to become 5.30am in the morning. These are my two different ways in which you can tackle the clock change.
“Number one, and this is the one I tend to do, just go with it. You may have a couple of bad nights but, the clocks will go back, so actually we’ll be putting them down a little bit earlier. They will catch up quite quickly.”
If you choose this method, she advised people to select a day and start following the new time. Alternatively, if you want to try something different, you can gradually adjust to the change.
Ruth recommended that parents gently adjust their children’s bedtimes a few days prior to the clock change. For example, if they usually go to bed at 7pm, you should put them down at 6.50pm the next night, then 6.40pm and so on.
The video where Ruth shares this sleep adjustment technique racked up over 100 views, and sparked a lively discussion among viewers. She admits it used to stress her out as her kids were terrible sleepers, but she assures they adapt quite fast.
According to her tips, in just a couple of days, little ones should settle into the new routine smoothly.
Parents shared numerous sleep-inducing strategies, with one remarking: “I tend to just go with it and give it time.”
Another reported: “Mine is currently going to bed at 8.30pm and waking up at 8am, so praying he keeps it up until then so it shifts to a 7am wake-up.”
A different user shared their own tip, writing: “My trick is when my husband leaves for work at 5am, bring him in with me. It guarantees he’ll sleep longer.”