I'm a pediatric sleep doctor, author, and in my day job I run the Yale Pediatric Sleep Center. I've been writing about pediatric sleep issues for tired parents since 2012. Join my newsletter to get the best information about sleep problems (and solutions) in children.
"Springing ahead" rules for teens (or anyone who struggles to get up in the morning)
|
Daylight savings time begins on Sunday, March 9th. This was a bummer before I had kids, as it meant losing an hour of sleep. I would feel pretty cruddy for about a week afterwards. Then, my kids were early risers, so I liked it. Why? The beginning of DST shifts their apparent wake time a bit earlier. So a kid who was waking up at 5:30 AM was getting up at 6:30 AM literally overnight. (A "later" bedtime was the cost of this but I'm not a morning lark, so it was a fair trade-off). However, it is now painful again as I now two teenagers in my house. It's hard if if someone in your house (be it an older child, teenager, or ahem yourself) struggles to get up in the morning. If you know someone who is already struggling to get up in the morning, here's an article I wrote on avoiding trouble when "springing ahead". PS Sorry to be getting this out a bit late this week-- had some unexpected issues to deal with this week. |
Craig Canapari MD
I'm a pediatric sleep doctor, author, and in my day job I run the Yale Pediatric Sleep Center. I've been writing about pediatric sleep issues for tired parents since 2012. Join my newsletter to get the best information about sleep problems (and solutions) in children.
SUBJECT LINE: Quick update from last week: I sent you a quick note about holiday travel sleep survival and asked for your biggest worries. You responded—and wow, did you respond. Many of you shared your specific situations. Room-sharing chaos. Jet lag fears. The dreaded “driving home at bedtime” scenario. Disney trip panic. I read every single question and took representative examples and turned it into a comprehensive blog post. Your questions became the guide. Read the complete Holiday...
Here’s the truth about holiday travel and sleep: most of what you’re worrying about doesn’t matter. I get it. You’ve worked hard on your child’s sleep schedule. Maybe you just finished sleep training. Maybe you finally got consistent bedtimes working. And now you’re about to spend 3 days at Grandma’s house sharing a queen sized bed with a dog, a toddler, and a 14 month old who demands to exit the Pack N Play at 3am. You’re expecting disaster. But here’s what I’ve learned after 15 years of...
Hi everyone, Nap transitions are one of the most confusing parts of early childhood sleep. One week your baby is taking three predictable naps… and the next week everything is chaos. Naps get shorter, bedtimes get later, and suddenly you’re Googling “is my child dropping a nap??” at 3 AM. This week on The Sleep Edit, Arielle and I break down the messy reality of nap transitions — from 3→2 naps, 2→1 nap, and eventually the big one: dropping naps entirely. Using real cases, practical sleep...