Don't forget to spring forward this Sunday!

Here are a couple of tips for managing daylight savings time.

This weekend is of course daylight savings time! When you lose an hour of sleep it does take some time to bounce back. I will definitely be up early with my daughter on Sunday. Her internal clock helps us wake up on time every morning at 7 am. But you can do a few simple things to prepare your family and yourself for that dreaded time change. Here are a couple of tips to help manage losing an hour on Sunday.

Start now!

1. Go to bed early: I know it is hard, but remember way back when you were training your kids on bedtimes. You start with a certain time and keep moving that time up until you achieve bedtime goals. Start now with 30 minutes and hopefully by Sunday it will help.
2. Exercise: Exercise is good for so many things. Even if you can walk or add an extra 30 minutes of exercise to your day, it will help you sleep better all year long. A heavy workout will definitely help you go to bed early.
3. Open the blinds: The days will become longer and that sun will start peering into your room a little earlier everyday. If you open up those blinds it will help your body wake up naturally with that bright Vitamin D shining in your face.
4. Cut back on Alcohol:  I know this is hard one for some of us. I always thought drinking more would help you sleep better. This is quite the contrary.  Some substances like alcohol and caffeine will actually interfere with sleep.  If you know you have a hard time sleeping after you have consumed alcohol, try and finish your drinks around 5 hours before you go to bed.
5. De-stress: If it is hard for you to turn your mind off before bed like me, it can cause us to struggle with sleep. Try and read a book, jump in the hot tub, a little meditation, turn on the white noise channel on Pandora for some soothing music, or whatever you retreat to when you are looking to calm down.

Just remember, do what feels comfortable for you and your family. I hope one of these tips works for you. With sleep deprivation at an all time high in our generation, we could all use an extra hour or two. But I do love the extra time and sunshine in the evening. It is also a sign of the warm weather heading our way.

Start now!