How Daylight Savings Time Affects Your Sleep

If you’ve seen memes about Daylight Savings Time in March, they’ll usually involve a comically oversized cup of coffee. That’s because setting your clock back an hour takes away an hour of sleep. So what happens in November when Daylight Savings ends and you’re setting the clock forward to Standard Time? That means you get to sleep an extra hour! This may sound great on the surface, but it can actually slightly throw off your circadian rhythm, which is your natural 24-hour sleep/wake cycle. This can affect how you function during the day. The extra hour in November is usually less troubling as the lost hour in March. If you’ve been habitually sleep-deprived, this can come as a blessing. Here are 5 ways that Daylight Savings affects your sleep and your waking hours:

1. You could feel extra rested throughout the day.

If you’ve only been sleeping six hours a night, now you’ll get seven. That one extra hour can make the difference between feeling sleep-deprived and groggy throughout the day. However, living up to this popularized assumption of extra sleep will only happen if you go to sleep at the same time. So make sure to set your bedtime and stick to it! (Psst, it’s easier to fall asleep when you’ve got a comfortable mattress).

2. You might wake up earlier, naturally.

If you’re already going to bed on time, you might not even need that extra hour. That means you’ll naturally wake up earlier with no assistance from your jarring alarm clock. Waking up an hour earlier can open up some new routine changes, such as being able to cook a fancier breakfast and brew your own coffee rather than hurriedly grabbing a muffin and latte at a café. Maybe you can finally start that multi-step skincare morning routine from your favorite YouTuber.

3. You might get tired earlier in the day.

As a consequence of #2, you might find yourself wanting to sleep an hour earlier. If you were normally sleeping from 12 AM to 7 AM but woke up at 6 AM on the dawn of Daylight Savings, you might feel like sleeping at 11 PM. That’s because the clock may read 11 PM, but your body’s circadian rhythm is still wired to believe it’s still 12 AM. Depending on your schedule, this may or may not be a tremendous change. It’s your choice to embrace this time shift or to push yourself to stay awake until 12 AM again.

4. If you sleep more, you’ll be in a better mood and feel more productive and focused.

If you do end up getting some extra sleep, especially if it’s just the right amount to push you from sleep-deprived to well-rested, you’ll experience a host of benefits in just one day. Check out our blog post discussing some ways your day will be better from a good night’s sleep!

5. It might be easier to wake up in the morning.

Even though it’ll be dark when you get out of work (or finish working from home), it’ll be brighter out during the mornings. Light is a driving factor behind your circadian rhythm -- brighter light helps to wake you up and keeps you awake. Regardless of how much better your sleep gets, it’s always even better with a great mattress. That’s one of the reasons why Lull’s offering $250 off any premium memory foam mattress, so you can sleep more, pay less, and enjoy a seamless transition back to Standard Time.