Traveling, time zone change, etc. « Back to Group Discussions

[Ree Tee]

Hello Mamas. I'm headed back to the East Coast and will likely be there for about 2 months. Baby is on west coast time, and I wanted to know if any of you have tips regarding how to adjust to the new time when it comes to sleep...If I was only going for a week or so, I'd have no problem but we'll be away long enough for the 3-hour time difference to have some kind of effect. Does anyone have experience with this type of situation?

[cat13]

We traveled for about 4 days in a time zone that was 4 hours later than us. I thought he'd be all messed up by it, but it wasn't that big of a deal actually. We did take a red-eye flight and arrived the next afternoon, so maybe that just reset us completely? I just tried to follow the clock to encourage him to nap at his usual times. 

Have fun on the East Coast again!

[Ree Tee]

Thanks, Cat!

I'm not sure how long I'll be back East, but it may be up to 2 months (possibly more!). I bought blackout curtains and am considering keeping baby on West Coast time, which means he'll go to sleep around 11:00pm, instead of his usual 8:00.

[cat13]

I say go with the time zone you are currently in. 2 months in baby-time is like 2 years in adult time... just think about what our babies were doing back at the end of January!

[Peony]

Just go with whatever time zone you are in. Doing it any other way it going to be  major PIA. They actually adjust fairly easy. 

[HawaiianBlesing]

I usually stay on West Coast time when I go back East.  It's just easier for me and I think it will be easier for DS too.  We are headed back for only 15 days though.

[Ree Tee]

Thanx for all the advice. I'll see what happens when I get there. I'll leave it up to the baby, see what he does naturally.

[Baby_Cakes]

You might have a rough week or so (I'm thinking about how messed up things were with daylight savings time) but my guess is that he'll adjust fairly quickly. 

[Ree Tee]

Thanx, Carrie, it turns out I might be coming back sooner. If so, I'll try and stick to west coast time, we'll see...