3 Ways To Plan for Daylight Savings Ending.

Having worked as a psychologist for over a decade now, I've begun to see that the calendar year has certain predictable trends and patterns. One of those is the emergence of mental health symptoms as daylight savings kicks into effect.

Here are 3 ways to plan for the end of daylight savings if you find that you are often affected by this time of year.

1. Be aware of the change in the weeks and days leading up to daylight savings ending.

Being aware ahead of time that daylight saving is ending can be a really effective way to manage symptoms. So often people are surprised when daylight savings ends, and might not become even when their mobile phone automatically updates in the early hours of the morning. When I was a kid, we used to have to set all the clocks back in the house, and yes, even wristwatches. This encouraged a pause and chance to take stock of the changes.

2. Plan a Summery holiday

If you are very affected by the cold and the shorter days, it may be worth considering taking annual leave around this time of year, and go on a Summery holiday. It breaks up the seasons of Autumn and Winter, and people often find that it can really make a difference to their mental health knowing they have a holiday coming up around the same time that they are already weeks into leaving work when it is already dark.

3. Schedule time to be active during daylight hours

If you have gone for a jog after work during Spring and Summer, consider moving your jog to lunch times or the early morning. Similarly, anything active that you do would benefit from being looked at from the perspective of whether it needs to be shifted to daylight hours. Weekends are also a fantastic opportunity to take advantage of the sunny weather, given that it's not raining of-course!