How to Reset Your Body Clock After Daylight Savings (and Feel Better All Winter)

Written By Rebecca Kennedy

It’s that time of year again... Daylight Savings Time is ending. 

I’m always excited when we “fall back” because it means an extra hour of sleep and brighter mornings (at least for a little while). But every year, it messes me up for weeks.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, the darker, moodier days are my favorite — but even I notice the shift in energy. (More on why that’s not necessarily a bad thing in a bit).

Wherever you live in the Northern Hemisphere, this time of year you might struggle to get up in the morning, feel foggier, and crave more carbs or coffee.

But it’s not necessarily just a sudden lack of willpower because it’s darker and cloudier. There is, in fact, a biological reason!

Your body runs on a 24-hour internal clock called your circadian rhythm. It’s the master system that controls your sleep, hormones, mood, and energy. Every cell in your body takes cues from this clock.

And here’s the important part: the main signal that keeps this rhythm running on-time is light.

When the clocks shift back, or the days get darker, your circadian rhythm can get thrown off, which means your energy, motivation, and even mental health can take a hit.

The good news is that with a few simple shifts in your routine, you can reset your internal clock, protect your mood, and make the seasonal change work with you instead of against you.

What Happens When We “Fall Back”

Gaining an extra hour of sleep looks good on paper, but research shows that any disruption to your circadian rhythm, even just one hour, can affect your body more than you’d think.

Studies have found that transitions in and out of Daylight Saving Time are linked with higher rates of fatigue, irritability, mood changes, and even an increase in accidents and hospital visits in the days following. Crazy, right?!

Our brains and hormones rely on consistent timing cues, and when that rhythm shifts suddenly, it can take days or even weeks to fully adjust.

So, no, the time change slog isn’t just in your head. 

If you already struggle with low energy, anxiety, or sleep issues, this change can feel especially rough — like you just can’t get your feet under you. 

But don’t worry, there are some simple things you can do to help you ease into the season and we’ll cover that below.

Why Light Matters So Much

First, this piece is important to understand — and it’s also fascinating:

When light enters your eyes in the morning, specialized cells in your retina send a signal to your brain’s master clock (the suprachiasmatic nucleus, or SCN). This signal triggers a rise in cortisol  and sets the timer for when melatonin will rise later that night.

Cortisol is not just your “stress” hormone, it’s also your body’s natural “get up and go” hormone. And it’s naturally higher in the morning, or at least it should be. 

This whole process of feeling awake begins when sunlight hits your eyes. Morning light basically tells your body, “It’s morning, time to wake up and get your day started.”

This shouldn’t surprise us because we are diurnal creatures. We are designed to be awake when the sun is up. Almost all of our body systems are wired to function at their highest capacity during daylight hours. And that’s why—when we disrupt that cycle—we start to feel really crummy. Just ask night shift workers. 

A super simple way to bring our system back into balance and support how it already wants to function is: expose your eyes to light first thing in the morning.

Even on a cloudy day, outdoor light is hundreds of times brighter than indoor light, which is why getting outside first thing in the morning can make a huge difference in how alert, focused, and calm you feel throughout the day.

It’s so simple, but so many of us struggle to prioritize this. 

When we spend most of our mornings under dim indoor lighting, or scroll our phones in the dark before sunrise, our timing signal gets blurred. Then, when we turn on bright lights or stare at screens late at night, we confuse our body again — suppressing melatonin — and making it that much harder to fall asleep later. 

If this is you, here are some things to try:

  • Get outside for 5–10 minutes within an hour of waking, even if it’s cloudy—just stay outside a little longer.

  • If you’re waking up before the sun, use a 10,000 Lux Bright Light Lamp to mimic natural sunlight and help your brain wake up. 20-30 minutes during the first hour of waking. Dr. Andrew Huberman recommends THIS ONE.

  • In the evening, use red light (like Lumebox Red Light Therapy) or warm-toned bulbs to help your body wind down naturally. I use THIS ONE.

  • Use Blue Light blocking glasses if you are going to be on screens in the evening before bed. There are a ton on Amazon. I got THESE ONES.

Understanding how much light impacts our system is like a cheat code for optimal health. But it’s not the only thing that impacts how we feel each day. 

The Cortisol Connection

Here’s the next important piece: We want to balance our cortisol. 

Cortisol gets a bad rap because it’s known as our “stress hormone,” but in reality, it’s one of your most important circadian anchors.

Cortisol naturally rises in the morning to help you feel alert and energetic, then slowly tapers down through the afternoon so melatonin can rise at night. But when your rhythm gets thrown off — from inconsistent sleep, chronic stress, too much screen light at night, or even the time change—cortisol can become dysregulated.

You might notice it as feeling wired but tired, afternoon crashes, or trouble falling asleep even when you’re exhausted.

Add to that an already dysregulated nervous system, and your cortisol ends up too high when it should be low and too low when it should be high. 

One of the best ways to positively impact not only your circadian rhythm, but how you’re managing your cortisol all day long, is by the way you start your day. 

Most of us check our phone as soon as we wake up. We have coffee before water or food and we read all the headlines before our eyes are even fully open. A lot of times we heighten our stress levels before we’ve even gotten out of bed. 

And that higher stress then stays with you all day long. 

Sound familiar?

This is why easing into your morning is so important. Supporting your body with what you’re consuming physically and mentally. We want to utilize those naturally higher levels of cortisol in the morning, but we don’t want to add to it. 

And if creating change here is hard for you, this is why I created my Rise + Reset mini course: to help you build a morning routine that supports your cortisol rhythm, balances your energy, and teaches your body how to wake up naturally alert again.

How to Support Your Circadian Rhythm This Fall

Once you understand how light and cortisol affect your rhythm, the next step is to support your body with simple daily habits. Here are a few things that can have a big impact:

Get sunlight within an hour of waking.
Even just a few minutes outside helps anchor your internal clock and improves sleep at night. I love combining this with grounding or going for a walk. 

Wait 90 minutes before your first caffeine.
I know I know, but this can make a huge difference! Avoiding caffeine lets your natural cortisol rise on its own first, instead of masking fatigue with caffeine. Take baby steps to get yourself there. 

Move your body early.
A morning walk, stretching, or gentle exercise helps reinforce your daytime rhythm. One thing I’ve recently added is 100 jumps up and down. It wakes me up and gets my lymph moving first thing. Add some fun music and it’s a great way to start the day! 

Dim the lights after sunset.
Swap bright overheads for lamps, candles, or red light to signal your brain that evening has arrived.

Unplug from screens before bed.
The blue light from devices tricks your brain into thinking it’s still daytime. If this is hard for you, a baby step might be no devices in bed. Let your sleeping area be free of screens. 

Keep a consistent sleep schedule.
Your body loves predictability—try to go to bed and wake up around the same time every day. Set an alarm on your phone to go off each night at the time you want to start winding down. 

When the Days Get Darker

As we mentioned before, when the daylight fades earlier and the nights grow longer, many people notice a drop in mood or motivation. While we do want to support our bodies as much as we can, there's also wisdom in this season. 

Fall is nature’s cue to slow down. The trees conserve energy. The animals rest more. The earth settles down. 

You don’t need to push at the same pace you did in summer. It’s okay to leave more space in your day for rest, reflection, and renewal. Take the slower walks. Light the candles. Eat warm, grounding meals. Give yourself permission to do less and be more.

Sometimes the healthiest thing you can do is align yourself with the rhythm of nature again.

Your Seasonal Reset

As we turn the clocks back, it’s the perfect time to turn inward — to reset your mornings, nourish your energy, and bring your body back into rhythm with the natural world.

Rise + Reset: The Cortisol-Conscious Morning course walks you step-by-step through creating a morning routine that supports your energy, hormones, and mood—especially during the darker months ahead.

Because when you support your circadian rhythm, you’re not just improving your sleep; you’re creating the foundation for calm, focus, and resilience—no matter the season.

You don’t need to fight your body’s rhythm. You just have to learn to work with it.

The season ahead can feel slower and darker, but with intention, it can also feel deeply restorative. 

Sources & Further Reading

Rebecca Kennedy
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