Summer has a funny relationship with bedtime.
The sun stays out later. Vacations happen. Kids stay up for movies, sleepovers, travel, and the occasional evening when everyone looks at the clock and realizes, “Wait, it’s HOW late?”
Then suddenly, school starts.
And at 9:00 p.m. the night before the first day, we announce: Okay everybody, back to normal! Go to sleep!
If only our brains worked that way.
As families prepare for another school year, sleep experts recommend gradually moving children’s bedtimes earlier rather than trying to reset their schedules all at once. Even shifting bedtime by 15 to 30 minutes each night can help the body adjust.
And sleep matters. Depending on their age, school-aged children and teenagers generally need somewhere between 8 and 12 hours each night. Adequate sleep helps kids pay attention, learn, regulate their emotions, and function throughout the day.
But there is another important piece here.
Going to bed and falling asleep are not the same thing.
The first days of school bring plenty for young minds to think about: new teachers, new classmates, new schedules, new expectations, and sometimes entirely new schools. Telling an anxious brain that it really needs to fall asleep because tomorrow is a big day is rarely an effective relaxation technique.
Instead, we can help the brain gradually slow down.
Reduce screens before bed. Dim the lights. Read. Take a shower. Talk through worries about the next day. If something specific is causing anxiety, consider practicing it ahead of time, a visit to the school, walking through the morning routine, or attending an open house.
And don’t forget about mornings. Exposure to daylight after waking helps our internal clock recognize that the day has begun.
There’s a larger lesson here that applies to adults, too.
Transitions take time.
We sometimes expect ourselves to move instantly from work to relaxation, vacation to routine, stress to sleep, or one responsibility to another.
Our brains aren’t light switches.
Sometimes they need a dimmer.
The takeaway:
As the school year begins, don’t worry about creating the perfect sleep routine overnight. Start moving in the right direction and give everyone’s body, including yours, a little time to catch up.
Today’s challenge:
Move one part of tonight’s routine 15 minutes earlier.
Then give yourself permission to call that progress.