Do we fall back or spring forward in November? Prepare for daylight saving time to end

You would think after more than 50 years of changing our clocks back and forth for daylight saving time, we’d inherently know the answer to this question.

There’s even a fun memory device to go with it.

“Do we fall back or spring forward this time?”

In November, we fall back — setting our clocks an hour earlier. In March, at the start of spring, we jump ahead.

At 2 a.m. on Nov. 5, clocks will turn backward. That means you get an extra hour of sleep. It also means it will get dark starting closer to 5 p.m.

We end daylight saving time (Pacific Daylight Time) and enter standard time (Pacific Standard Time).

Don’t be surprised if, as your sleep schedule shifts, so does your mood.

“This decrease in sunlight may disrupt your body’s internal clock and lead to feelings of depression,” the Mayo Clinic wrote on its website.

Reduced sunlight can cause serotonin levels — which affect mood — to drop. The disruption to your sleep schedule can change your melatonin levels, too, which are important for sleep patterns, The Sacramento Bee previously reported.

Daylight saving time has existed in some form since the early 20th century, but wasn’t regulated in the United States until the Uniform Time Act of 1966, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Only Hawaii and most of Arizona observe permanent standard time.

This story was originally published October 23, 2023 at 10:03 AM with the headline "Do we fall back or spring forward in November? Prepare for daylight saving time to end."