The clocks spring forward. The clocks fall back. The time change is only an hour’s difference, but shifts in our regular sleeping patterns can really throw off our bodies’ natural rhythms and rest patterns—in both adults and kids. Better sleep for children is always a top priority for families.
A lack of sleep and regular routine for your body will not only leave you feeling tired during the day, it may also leave you feeling wired at night. As a mother, I’m sure you’ll agree, there is nothing quite as exhausting as trying to get your rambunctious children to settle down to sleep without losing your mind.
So how can you outsmart the time change and keep your systems in balance? Let’s look at supplements, tips, and products that can make catching some shut eye as easy as it sounds.
Supplements for Better Sleep for Grown-Ups
Supplements That Can Work for Your Family
I often get asked about sleep supplements: what works, who needs what, and how can they help my family sleep? Here is a quick review of the top three most frequently asked about supplements.
Melatonin
Most people suffering from sleep issues will try melatonin, and although it can work for some people (usually shift-workers or big travellers who are truly deficient in melatonin), I find the majority of people have little success or find that the effects are not long-lasting. If you’re wondering how to ensure that you’re getting enough melatonin, supplementation may be beneficial, but it is far more advantageous (and certainly less expensive) to have your body produce its own melatonin.
If you are lacking in melatonin, small quantities can be found in foods like Goji berries, sunflower seeds, coriander, cherries, and almonds (check out my recipe for these healthy almond bites). When you optimize your own production you will get the perfect dose of melatonin for you.
Magnesium
Another supplement that is highly touted for sleep, Magnesium acts as a muscle relaxant. Therefore, it may benefit people for whom body tension causes poor sleep. If muscle tension is not your problem, however, magnesium might not help you get the zzzs you are looking for and could loosen your bowels, waking you up for a different reason!
Passion Flower
For most moms, sleep difficulties do not stem from issues with overactive muscles, but rather overactive brains. We try to fall asleep or stay asleep, but our minds are just too busy to turn off or focus. This is where a key supplement called passionflower comes in. Passionflower is not a sedative, so it does not actually put you to sleep, but by calming the thoughts that are keeping us up at night, it allows the body to fall asleep naturally. It is easy to get back to natural sleep with passionflower: a single high-dose tablet such as Pascoflair works within 30 minutes. It can even be used by teens as young as 13 years old, if they too have too much on their minds at night.
Tips & Ideas for Better Sleep for Children
Consistency
Maintain your child’s regular sleep, wake, and nap times. Be careful not to compensate for the time change by trying to delay your child’s bedtime or allowing your child to sleep in too much. This strategy can increase the time it takes to transition.
Transition
Aim to make gradual adjustments. You might even want to try making a slow transition starting on Wednesday or Thursday evening before the time change, moving your child’s bedtime back by 10-15 minutes each night. By Sunday night you and your family should be back on track.
Don’t be afraid of the dark
This is crucial to a good night’s sleep. If there is any level of light coming into the room your body receives signals for your brain to stay alert and stay ‘working’—even while you’re trying to sleep. Even the slightest bit of light in a bedroom can disrupt the biological clock and pineal gland’s melatonin production. Blackout curtains or a great sleep mask are a must for the best sleep-inducing environment: I have blackout curtains on all our bedroom windows..
Banish technology
Keep your phone away from your head and be sure to turn it to airplane mode to help reduce EMF’s (Electromagnetic fields). A great rule that we have in our home is to keep technology out of the bedrooms completely. This means, no TVs, phones, ipads, or anything that tempts us to just take that one last look before bed. Books, note pads, and magazines are all great choices for unwinding before bedtime.
Pillow talk
If your physical space is uncomfortable then it’s going to be even harder to hit the hay. Invest in a good quality pillow to rest your precious head down on at night.
Nourishment
My final tip would be to ensure that you are nourishing your children well from morning until dinner. One of my go-to quick, easy and delish breakfasts are my Oatmeal Pancakes. They’re easy to prep and cook and everyone loves them!
If we start their little bellies and bodies off with simple carbs like high-sugar cereal, toast with jam, or juice, their blood sugar rockets only to drop in class an hour later leading to difficulty with focus and engagement.
One new step or small shift at a time implementing the tips I have shared with you will not only soften any effects from the time change but in your everyday sleep habits, patterns and overall sense of feeling fully rested and restored.
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