Daylight Savings and Dysregulation: Why Moms Feel Extra Exhausted

It is Thursday and we fell back on Sunday. Your nervous system and your child’s nervous system are still catching up. The shift messes with light cues that set sleep, appetite, mood, and focus, which is why kids are waking earlier and everyone feels grumpier. Expect 7 to 14 days of extra crankiness, odd wake times, and bigger feelings. Treat this as a recovery window: morning light, protein at breakfast, short movement bursts, a “quiet minute” in the afternoon, and a simpler, slightly earlier bedtime. If old triggers feel sharper, that is biology plus history. Small nervous system resets and kind expectations work better than trying to force a perfect schedule.