Welcome to the fourth and final episode of my special Heidi at Home series, in partnership with CBeebies BeddyByes.

The clocks are going back, and while the idea of an extra hour in bed sounds lovely, anyone with a toddler who already thinks 5.30am is a perfectly reasonable time to start the day might be feeling slightly less enthusiastic! 😂

On Sunday 25 October, the clocks go back by an hour. But unfortunately, our children's body clocks don't automatically change with them.

So, do we need to start preparing? Should we move bedtime? What happens to naps? And what on earth do we do if our child starts waking at 5am?!

In this final episode, I'm talking about circadian rhythms, children's sleep and how to approach the autumn clock change without turning your entire family routine upside down.

We cover:

• What your child's circadian rhythm actually is and how it influences sleep
• Why the clocks changing can temporarily disrupt sleep and wake times
• Whether you really need to prepare your child in advance
• How to gradually adjust bedtime and daily routines for children who are more sensitive to change
• Why daylight is so important for helping reset the body clock
• What to do if your child starts waking an hour earlier
• How to approach naps during the transition
• Why familiar routines and predictable cues can make a difference
• How to create a gentler wind-down towards bedtime
• Why some children adjust quickly while others need a little longer

One of the biggest things I want parents to take away from this episode is that you don't necessarily need to do anything at all!

If your child is generally a good sleeper and fairly adaptable, you may find that keeping your usual routines and allowing their body clock to catch up naturally works absolutely fine.

For children who are more sensitive to change, particularly early risers or those who struggle when overtired, a little preparation can help.

We also talk about how our children's bodies use familiar signals throughout the day to understand when it's time to be awake and when it's time to slow down.

Things like daylight, mealtimes, activity levels, lighting and the predictability of the evening routine can all play a part.

And if screen time is part of your family's routine, choosing slower, more mindful content such as CBeebies BeddyByes can be one of those familiar cues that the pace of the day is beginning to change.

Used earlier in the evening, before screens go off and you move into bath time, stories and cuddles, it can become part of a gentle transition towards bedtime.

Because ultimately, the clocks might change overnight, but your child's body clock needs a little time to catch up.

And there's no need to turn that into a military operation!

Find CBeebies BeddyByes

You can watch CBeebies BeddyByes on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer.

Follow @beddybyesofficial on:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beddybyesofficial
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beddybyesofficial/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beddybyesofficial

You can also find more episodes of Heidi at Home on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube.

And if you've missed the earlier episodes in this special series, we've covered after-school overwhelm, connection at bedtime, and helping children with night-time fears, nightmares and night terrors.

Thank you so much for listening to this special series. I really hope it's helped you understand a little more about your child's sleep, emotions and the transitions that can sometimes feel so tricky.

Heidi x

This series shares general parenting guidance drawn from child development research and my 17 years working with families. It isn't a substitute for individual medical, psychological or educational advice. If you're worried about your child's sleep, anxiety or development, please speak to your GP, health visitor or another qualified professional.

Paid partnership with CBeebies BeddyByes.

Welcome to episode three of my special four-part Heidi at Home series, in partnership with CBeebies BeddyByes.

Monsters under the bed. Suddenly being scared of the dark. Not wanting you to leave. Waking in the night after a bad dream.

As children’s imaginations develop, bedtime can sometimes become the moment when all sorts of worries and fears suddenly appear.

And when your child is genuinely frightened, telling them “there’s nothing to be scared of” doesn’t always help.

In this episode, I’m talking about night-time fears, anxiety, nightmares and night terrors, what’s going on for children when night suddenly feels scary, and how we can help them feel safe without accidentally making the fear bigger.

We cover:

• Why fears can suddenly appear as children get older and their imagination develops
• How to validate the feeling of fear without confirming that there really is something dangerous
• Why worries and experiences from the daytime often show up at bedtime
• The difference between nightmares and night terrors
• What to do if your child experiences a night terror
• Why trying to wake or reason with a child during a night terror often isn’t helpful
• Practical ways to support a child who is becoming anxious about bedtime
• Why talking about worries during the daytime can be easier than tackling everything at bedtime
• How predictable routines, transitional objects and connection can help children feel safer
• Why things like checking repeatedly for monsters can sometimes reinforce the idea that there really might be something there

One of the biggest things I want parents to take from this episode is that the goal isn’t for our children to never feel frightened.

Fear is a normal human emotion. What we can help them learn is:

“I can feel scared and still be safe.”

We also talk about why calming and mindfulness skills are much easier for children to access if they’ve experienced them before they're in the middle of a frightened or dysregulated moment.

That’s where CBeebies BeddyByes fits so naturally into this conversation. Its slower, mindful approach gives children opportunities to experience things like slowing down, noticing their bodies and moving towards calm in an everyday, low-pressure way.

Because 2am, when your child is convinced there is something underneath their bed, probably isn't the ideal moment to introduce deep breathing for the very first time!

If night-time has suddenly become a source of worry in your house, or you're not quite sure whether what you're seeing is a nightmare or a night terror, this episode is for you.

Find CBeebies BeddyByes

You can watch CBeebies BeddyByes on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer.

Follow @beddybyesofficial on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.

And you can find more episodes of Heidi at Home on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This series shares general parenting guidance drawn from child development research and my 17 years working with families. It isn't a substitute for individual medical, psychological or educational advice. If you're worried about your child's sleep, anxiety or development, please speak to your GP, health visitor or another qualified professional.

Welcome to episode two of my special four-part Heidi at Home series, in partnership with CBeebies BeddyByes.

One more drink. One more wee. The wrong teddy. Another cuddle. A question they absolutely HAVE to ask you right now. And somehow a story about something that happened three Tuesdays ago…

Why is it that the moment we say goodnight, our children suddenly need us for EVERYTHING?

In this episode, I’m looking at bedtime through the lens of connection and separation, and what might actually be going on underneath all that stalling, silliness and resistance.

Because bedtime is a big transition. We’re asking our children to move from the activity and connection of the day towards sleep, and ultimately to separate from us for the night.

We talk about:

• Why children often seek more connection as bedtime approaches
• What bedtime stalling can actually be communicating
• Why connection doesn’t have to mean endlessly extending bedtime
• The difference between more attention and predictable, meaningful connection
• Simple ways to build connection into the evening without adding another enormous job to your list
• Why the hour or two before bed matters
• How light, noise, activity, screens and even our own energy can affect the transition towards sleep
• How to hold a bedtime boundary while still staying connected
• What happens when we, as parents, become activated at bedtime
• Why responding to your child at night doesn’t mean you’re creating a “bad habit”

I also talk about something I’ve done with my own three children, even as they’ve got bigger: getting into the bath with them.

Warm water, skin-to-skin contact, chatting and laughing together can give us a little pocket of connection at the end of a busy day. Your version might be ten minutes of child-led play, a cuddle on the sofa, a story or simply lying beside them while they tell you about their day.

It doesn’t need to be elaborate. Often, knowing when and how connection is coming is just as important for children as how long it lasts.

We also look at the “runway” towards bedtime and how we can make the gear change from busy to calm feel a little smoother.

If screen time is part of your family’s evening, thinking about the pace of what children are watching can be part of that too. CBeebies BeddyByes uses slower, mindful content to support those gentler transitions, so that it can sit earlier in that wind-down before screens go off and you move into your usual bath, stories, cuddles and bedtime routine.

My question for you after this episode is a simple one:

Does your child know when and how they're going to get connection with you before you ask them to separate for the night?

Sometimes that’s a really useful place to start.

Find CBeebies BeddyByes

You can watch CBeebies BeddyByes on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer.

Follow @beddybyesofficial on:

YouTube: @beddybyesofficial
Instagram: @beddybyesofficial
TikTok: @beddybyesofficial

And you can find more episodes of Heidi at Home on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This series shares general parenting guidance drawn from child development research and my 17 years working with families. It isn't a substitute for individual medical, psychological or educational advice. If you're worried about your child's sleep, anxiety or development, please speak to your GP, health visitor or another qualified professional.

Paid partnership with CBeebies BeddyByes.