Managing the time change is the hardest part about travel- especially as your infant gets closer to toddler-hood.
As an infant/baby, it wasn’t as big of an issue for us. Claire would always adjust quickly and fairly seamlessly. Once Claire got to 15/16 months, it suddenly was a challenge- especially when we had a 9-hour time change going to Paris!
I mean, think about it- how tricky is it for us, as adults to adjust (I know I’m usually dragging and feeling a bit cranky), imagine how out of sorts a toddler is when they are trying to figure out the world around them and then they are all out of wack and aren’t sure why.
Luckily, there are a couple things you can do to help mitigate the time change until you get to the other side and are adjusted:
Mentally prepare yourself ahead of time. That’s where I lacked when were in Paris. I just didn’t realize how difficult it would be or what to expect. Just understanding that helping your little one adjust will probably be tricky is helpful in itself. For me, nights 2-4 were the toughest. In the middle of the night Claire would either be wide awake, running around the bed, wanting to play or crying hysterically and inconsolable. This would go on for a couple hours in the middle of the night. I had no idea what “adjusting to a time change” looked like at the time, but if I did, I think it would have been much easier to get through if I were more prepared.
Start to shift your child’s bedtime and wakeup time before your trip. This is if you are opting to adjust your child to a new time zone to begin with. For one week leading up to the trip, you can move up your child’s bedtime and wake up time 15-30 minutes every day. Every little bit helps!
Take care of your mental and physical needs so that you are in good shape to stretch your patience and help during the night. That means being well fed! Now is not the time for calorie deprivation, a hangry parent is not a helpful parent!
Start adjusting right away. Resist the urge to let them sleep all day the first few days. Get them out of the stroller and running around! Try to keep their regular nap times, adjusted for the local time, and get them in early. I’ve been told that it takes a day for every hour time difference and I found that to be pretty true.
Get outside into the sunlight. This is so important to adjusting your circadian rhythm, possibly the most important! Go outside and get 15-30 minutes of sunlight as soon as you wake up and throughout the day.
Drink water. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! All of you!
Don’t nap for too long. Use your judgement here- if you suspect your child is under the weather, you can stretch out the nap longer if they need it.
When it gets tough place your child in the crib, take a deep breath and regroup. Adjusting to a 9-hour time change from LA to Paris with a 16month old by myself (Clem was working in Germany at the time) was THE hardest and most trying time in my parenthood- even more so than when Claire was an infant and we were all sleep-deprived.
And remember, it’s easier when traveling from West to East. As they say, “East is a beast, west is the best”. It makes sense, it’s easier to stay up later than it is to wake up earlier.
All in all, adjusting to a new time zone is not easy, but not impossible. Don’t let it discourage you from traveling and don’t let it put a damper on your good times while you are there!
For more on traveling when there is a time change, check out:
The Time Change- to Adjust or not to Adjust?