This Sunday, March 8th, we set our clocks forward one hour at 2 a.m., resulting in one less hour of sleep that night. Your brain will experience it almost like mini jet lag, even though you didn’t travel!

So many of us will walk around feeling sluggish for days, and with good reason. Our brain relies on sleep to consolidate memories and clear metabolic waste through the glymphatic system, which works best during deep sleep. So when we lose that hour, our brain’s nightly “clean-up crew” gets less time to do its job.

Adjusting the time by one hour may not seem like a lot, but I want you to be mindful.

According to one 2020 study, the risk of fatal traffic accidents increases by 6% during the spring DST transition in the US.

This also tracks with:

• the 24% increase in heart attack rates the following day after the “spring forward”
• increases in traffic accidents
• workplace injuries
• increases in strokes​
• increase in suicide rates​
• and even the harshness of prison sentences by federal judges

Springing forward has harsh consequences for society!

After all, it has a significant impact on our circadian rhythm, the 24-hour cycle that is part of our body’s internal clock.

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) shares:

💤 🧠 BRAIN & SLEEP-FRIENDLY TIPS TO HELP YOU ADJUST:

The good news? With a few neuroscience-backed habits, you can help your brain adjust much faster. So here are some of my tried-and-true faves:

1. Get to the sun as soon as you wake up. Go outside and get exposure to morning sunlight. This will help regulate your internal clock. Do it again in the late afternoon, before sunset. It sets off a timer in your nervous system that dictates when the hormone melatonin will be secreted.

Our body's melatonin production is crucial for a good night's sleep since it helps regulate our sleep and our body's circadian rhythm. If the sun isn’t available to you, get yourself a high-quality vitamin D supplement to take daily. The Vitamin D Council recommends that healthy adults take 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily. ​

2. Stick to your schedule. Be consistent with eating, social, bed, and exercise times during the transition to Spring Forward.

3. Be mindful of your sleep hygiene 💤 Cutting off alcohol intake 3-4 hours before bed, stopping caffeine consumption 6 hours before bed, avoiding heavy meals 4 hours before bed, eliminating exposure to blue light in the last 60 minutes of your day, or clearing your mind with a relaxing activity are all great places to start.

4. Help your body adjust to “spring forward,” if possible, for you to start going to bed 15 to 30 minutes earlier than your usual bedtime (before the time changed) until you adjust. Your body needs that bit of extra time to make up for the lost hour.

5. Drink a relaxing tea 30 minutes–1 hour before bed to help you wind down 🛌🫖 (I like this one)

6. Rub magnesium oil on your feet before going to bed. I love this magnesium dry oil. I've never tried a magnesium oil like this one (and I've tried many!), and my REM sleep has never been better. I always recommend it to all my sleep optimization coaching clients.

It's very concentrated, so a little bit goes a long way + it's infused with organic essential oils that will further help you relax and regulate your nervous system [Use code CANDYCALDERON10 at checkout for a discount!].

7. If you work with computers a lot or cellphones after 7 pm, make sure to switch to the “yellow” light, which is easier on your eyes and won’t disrupt your sleep patterns. Exposure to the blue light of electronic gadgets before you go to bed significantly affects your sleep quality because it prevents your body from releasing melatonin, our SUPER IMPORTANT wake-sleep cycle hormone.

You can set it up on your computer directly, but I often find that the sunset setting from my Mac is not enough. I want it warmer! So I downloaded F.lux, and it works wonders. I suggest you download it too!​

F.lux makes the color of your computer's display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day. makes your computer screen look like the room you're in, all the time. When the sun sets, it makes your computer look like your indoor lights. In the morning, it makes things look like sunlight again.

It's so cool... and it's FREE!

8. You can also use blue light-blocking glasses! I love these glasses made by a company called Chroma. I use them in the evening and for late-night work sessions to help me block the blue light from screens that contributes to eye strain and fatigue while also allowing the more beneficial violet and cyan light to support focus and a healthy circadian rhythm.

9. And lastly... be patient with yourself! It can take your body 5-7 days to adjust, so if you feel more sluggish than usual, give yourself some grace.

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That's all from me today.

More next week!

- Candy

As usual, all opinions and suggestions of people, places, and products I love, are my own. All of the linked products are independently selected and curated by the CEO Wellness Club team, and me. If you love and buy something we link to, we may earn a commission. This newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice of any kind. The information provided should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease. Ask your doctor before trying any new regimens, herbs, or supplements.