5 Ways to Survive the End of Daylight Saving Time

This time of year seriously depresses me. I’m a child of the sun, and I get hit pretty hard with SAD, also known as The Winter Blues. I’m a morning person, and I’ve been waking up around 5:30 and having to wait TWO WHOLE HOURS for the sun to come up! Ain’t nobody got time for dat! Luckily I use light therapy, but it would be so much better if the sun would just be up soon after I get up. Once Daylight Saving Time ends I’ll have sun early… for a while at least… but it will be pitch black when I get home from work. Ugh. Boo. Hiss. Lame. Why can’t I just hibernate like a bear?
Here are some tips on surviving the Fall Back time change:

Image Credit: Chuck Coker via Flickr

1. Slowly adjust to the time change by going to bed 15 minutes later. You’re going to be getting an extra hour of sleep Sunday night, and you don’t want to take up an hour earlier, do you?
2. Keep your routine. Don’t go crazy and stay up half the night. Definitely don’t take advantage of the extra hour to hang out in a bar and drink longer. That’s just silly. 😉 You still need your sleep.
3. Take advantage of the morning sun. Sit in the sunlight while you drink your morning coffee. If it’s warm enough, sit outside so you can take advantage of unfiltered sunshine. Get extra stuff done outside before work if you need to.
4. Take an outdoor walk during your lunch break. If you work a regular old 9 to 5 job, there won’t be any sunlight to enjoy when you clock out, so you may as well take advantage of the warmest part of the day to get outside. A brisk walk in the sunshine will help you stave off that 2 pm slump, too. Vitamin D is good for you!
5. Use candles to brighten up your evenings. Yes, we need electric lights to see in those dark, cold evenings, but candles can add a visual warmth to the room, and are comforting. Even more comforting is a wood burning fireplace, if you’re lucky enough to have one. (And if you do, I’m like, so totally jelly.)

Hibernation mode commencing! How do you deal with the time change and inevitable arrival of sun only when you’re at work? (Seriously, this sucks.) Let me know in the comments!