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<\/p>\nCentral Florida mental health therapist discusses daylight saving disruptions, adjustments<\/p>\n
Licensed marriage and family therapist, Cherlette McCullough, joins WESH 2 to explain internal clocks and the toll our minds, bodies take on during the natural recalibration <\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tONE WEEK INTO SPRINGING FORWARD. AND WHEN OUR PHYSICAL CLOCKS CHANGE, OUR INTERNAL CLOCKS DUE TO, EXPERTS SAY LOSING JUST ONE HOUR NOT ONLY THROWS UP OUR SLEEP, BUT IT CAN IMPACT OUR MOOD AND OUR FOCUS. AND SO IF YOU\u2019RE STILL STRUGGLING TO ADJUST LIKE ME, ONE, YOU\u2019RE NOT ALONE. AND TWO, I\u2019M TOLD THIS IS NORMAL. IT IS NORMAL. SO THE EXPERTS SAY. JOINING ME NOW TO HELP US ALL RESET IS PSYCHOTHERAPIST. CALL US. GOOD MORNING. I\u2019M GLAD TO BE HERE. I WAS JUST TELLING YOU WE ARE ENTERING THE SECOND WEEK AND I AM STILL SO MESSED UP FROM IT. THIS IS NORMAL AND I THINK A LOT OF US ARE. I\u2019M SEEING A LOT OF MY CLIENTS ARE FEELING THAT WAY AS WELL. AND THIS WEEK, GIVE YOURSELF SOME GRACE. YOU KNOW, JUST TO GO THROUGH THIS ENTIRE DIFFERENCE. THIS IS AN ADJUSTMENT, YOU KNOW, AND RIGHT NOW WHAT WE\u2019RE TRYING TO DO, OUR BRAINS ARE TRYING TO DO IS JUST TRYING TO ADJUST TO THIS ONE HOUR. AND SOMETIMES WE THINK JUST BECAUSE IT\u2019S ONE HOUR THAT IT SHOULD BE OKAY, RIGHT? BUT YOUR BRAIN DON\u2019T AUTOMATICALLY ADJUST BECAUSE OUR CLOCKS ADJUST. SO WHAT IS IT THAT OUR BRAINS ARE TRYING TO FILTER? ACTUALLY, OUR INTERNAL CLOCKS, RIGHT? IT\u2019S TRYING TO RECALIBRATE TO THAT ONE HOUR OF SLEEP BECAUSE WE DID LOSE AN HOUR OF SLEEP, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE THIS THING CALLED, AND YOU PROBABLY HEARD THE CIRCADIAN RHYTHM, RIGHT? IT\u2019S OUR INTERNAL BIOLOGICAL CLOCK AND IT TELLS US WHEN TO WAKE UP, WHEN TO GO TO SLEEP, WHEN TO FEEL ALERT. AND SO WHEN THESE CHANGES HAPPEN, OUR BRAINS ARE LIKE, WHAT\u2019S GOING ON? HOW DO I RECALIBRATE? HOW DO I GET ON THIS SCHEDULE? YEAH. AND WE\u2019RE SEEING A LOT OF MOOD CHANGES TOO. I FEEL LIKE ACROSS THE BOARD, WHAT DOES IT DO TO OUR MOOD? WELL, YOU KNOW, THAT\u2019S A REALLY GOOD QUESTION. MOOD AND SLEEP ARE VERY CLOSELY RELATED. YOU KNOW LACK OF SLEEP WILL CAUSE MOODINESS. IT WILL CAUSE US TO HAVE EMOTIONAL MELTDOWNS. CONCENTRATION ISSUES, FEELING FOGGY AND THINGS LIKE THAT. YES. YEAH. AND I HAVE TWO KIDS. BOTH OF THEM ARE MESSED UP TOO. I\u2019VE GOT A SIX MONTH OLD AND A TWO AND A HALF YEAR OLD, AND THEY MESSED UP TOO WELL, THE SLEEP, IT\u2019S THE SLEEP, I THINK. AND YOU KNOW, HOW DOES THIS SHOWCASE IN CHILDREN? SEEN IT\u2019S HARD FOR THEM TO WAKE UP. THEY\u2019RE NOT WANTING TO GET UP. YOU\u2019RE PROBABLY SEEING EMOTIONAL MELTDOWNS. YOU MIGHT SEE SOME BEHAVIORS IN SCHOOL. YOU MIGHT SEE THEM ACTING IN A WAY THAT\u2019S NOT NORMAL FOR THEM, BUT IT\u2019S THEIR BRAINS JUST TRYING TO RECALIBRATE TO THIS CHANGE. AND WHAT\u2019S IMPORTANT FOR PARENTS IS TO CONTINUE WITH THAT CONSISTENCY OF ROUTINE FOR THEM. THOSE WAKE HOURS, THOSE SLEEP HOURS, TAKING AWAY SCREEN TIME BEFORE BED, ALL THOSE THINGS CONTINUE DOING THAT EVEN THOUGH THEY MAY HAVE MELTDOWNS, EVEN THOUGH THEY MAY SAY, I DON\u2019T WANT TO GO TO BED, YOU KNOW, OR I DON\u2019T WANT TO GET UP RIGHT NOW, OR I DON\u2019T WANT JUST RECOGNIZE THEY\u2019RE TRYING TO RECALIBRATE AS WELL. OKAY. AND WHAT ARE SOME STEPS THAT WE CAN TAKE TO HELP OUR ENTIRE FAMILY? THIS IS THE REALLY, REALLY GOOD STUFF. ONE IS GETTING SUNLIGHT WITHIN 30 MINUTES OF WAKING UP. DO YOUR BEST TO GET INTO SUNLIGHT BECAUSE WHAT SUNLIGHT DOES, IT SENDS A SIGNAL TO YOUR BRAIN TO TELL YOU THAT IT\u2019S TIME TO WAKE UP. AND YOU NEED THAT DURING THIS TIME, BECAUSE A LOT OF US JUST WANT TO SLEEP IN AND LIKE WE HAVE HERE ON THE SCREEN, SETTING YOUR BEDTIME AND YOUR WAKE TIME, NOT JUST BEDTIME, YOUR WAKE TIME AS WELL. IT HELPS YOU GET BACK IN THE ROUTINE OF WAKING UP ON TIME, GOING TO BED ON TIME, AND HAVING THAT FEELING OF RESET AND REST. ANOTHER ONE LIMITING YOUR CAFFEINE INTAKE. SANIKA. OH, I\u2019M ON MY THIRD CUP OF COFFEE. YES. WELL, YOU KNOW, IN THE MORNING IT\u2019S FINE, BUT LATE AFTERNOON OR LATE EVENING? OKAY. ANOTHER ONE IS LIMITING YOUR SCREEN TIME 1 OR 2 HOURS BEFORE BED. AND THAT INCLUDES YOUR TELEVISION AS WELL. ALL RIGHT. THESE ARE ALL GREAT TIPS. WE\u2019RE GOING TO HAVE THEM FOR YOU ON WESH.COM AS WELL. CHARLOTTE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HELPING US NAVIGATE THIS. I DON\u2019T THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE REALIZE EVEN THE SECOND WEEK INTO THIS TIME CHANGE, IT\u2019S VERY NORMAL. REMEMBER, GIVE YOURSELF GRACE AND THOSE AROUND YOU. GIVE THEM\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Central Florida mental health therapist discusses daylight saving disruptions, adjustments<\/p>\n
Licensed marriage and family therapist, Cherlette McCullough, joins WESH 2 to explain internal clocks and the toll our minds, bodies take on during the natural recalibration <\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\tUpdated: 9:27 AM EDT Mar 16, 2026\n\t\t<\/p>\n