Well, most of us in the U.S. have set our clocks back for one hour. It’s that seasonal time change we undergo twice a year. If you’re like me, it can take a few days to adjust so that you don’t automatically wake up an hour earlier than you should (your internal clock will say it’s 7 a.m. while your clock now reads 6 a.m.) or get sleepy an hour earlier than your usual bedtime (the clock will say 10 p.m., but your body will say it’s 11 p.m.). Plus, those of you used to having your Elevenses Tea Time and your Afternoon Tea (at 4 p.m.) will find yourselves wanting tea at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. respectively. Tea can definitely help you make this adjustment to the seasonal time change. Here’s how.

Staying Awake Longer

This is a little tricky. You can have a nice strong cuppa tea such as matcha or a breakfast blend in mid-evening to keep you alert a bit longer. Then, switch to a nice cuppa chamomile infusion about a half hour before bedtime (the new one, that is) to help calm you and get you ready for sleep. Timing is critical. But so is avoiding taking in too much fluids shortly before going to bed. Your common sense will have to be the real judge here.

Staying Asleep Longer

If you follow the advice above but also don’t drink too much of the chamomile, you will be very likely to sleep until your alarm goes off. (Nothing is worse than waking up ahead of that alarm and then trying to get back to sleep just to be awaked by the alarm just as you have managed to doze off.) Another option is a cuppa tea with warm milk in it at bedtime. It will help you sleep deeper which will assure you don’t wake too early.

Adjusting Your Tea Times

This is going to take some willpower on your part. Or you can apply a little trick I’ve learned. Have an extra cuppa at breakfast. If this doesn’t work, though, you might try having your Elevenses tea time early – about 10:30 a.m. – and your Afternoon Tea also early by about a half hour. A couple of days of this will help you last until the new normal time.

Yes, resetting our clocks can lead to periods of adjustment. But with a bit of help from tea, you can cope!

See more of A.C. Cargill’s articles here.

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