The Brain’s Nightly Shift: Sleep, Hormones, and Adjusting to Daylight Savings
Chinese Medicine Clock
Each evening, as the light fades and night arrives, our brain and body begin a quiet transformation. This isn’t simply about shutting down for the day, it’s a finely tuned rhythm where hormones, brain waves, and energy move into states designed for rest and renewal.
As a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine and part of Dr Joe Dispenza’s Inner Health team, I see this not just as physiology, but as an alchemy of body, mind, and spirit. When we sleep, we don’t just rest, we heal, we reset, and we create the inner environment for balance and wellbeing. By becoming aware of these nightly changes, we positively influence our hormones, and this has a natural flow-on effect for fertility.
With daylight savings beginning after the long weekend, our inner clocks will be asked to shift, too. For many, this can disrupt sleep, hormones, and mood, but with awareness and support, it can also be an invitation to return to rhythm.
Melatonin — Yin Rising with the Night
As darkness falls, melatonin rises. It lowers alertness, cools the body, and signals us to soften.
Balance: melatonin resets the circadian rhythm, guiding us into deep rest.
Wellbeing: it anchors restorative sleep, where the body repairs and renews.
Fertility: by reducing oxidative stress, melatonin supports reproductive health and hormonal harmony.
TCM view: This is Yin rising as Yang declines. Nighttime nourishes the Kidneys, the foundation of balance and vitality, while calming the Shen (spirit).
Cortisol — Letting Stress Fall Away
Cortisol, the “day hormone,” naturally drops at night, softening the nervous system.
Balance: its fall allows the body to downshift into rest.
Wellbeing: stress dissolves, and the system moves into repair.
Fertility: lowered cortisol supports hormone regulation, ovulation, and implantation.
TCM view: At night, the Liver stores the Blood, calming the Heart and easing the Shen. When this cycle is honoured, the whole system feels safe to rest.
Brain Waves — Moving from Beta to Delta
During the day, the brain hums in beta waves, alert, busy, and often stressed. As we prepare for sleep, the waves naturally slow:
Alpha opens calm awareness.
Theta allows dreaming, creativity, and subconscious processing.
Delta anchors deep, restorative sleep.
In Dr Joe’s work, moving from high-beta into alpha and theta is key for coherence and healing. In TCM, this reflects Yin–Yang transformation: Yang activity dissolves into Yin stillness, where Jing (essence) is restored.
Neurotransmitters — The Night’s Messengers
At night, GABA rises to quiet the mind, adenosine builds sleep pressure, while serotonin and dopamine adjust mood and memory.
Balance: they stabilise the nervous system and circadian flow.
Wellbeing: you wake clearer, calmer, and more resilient.
Fertility: neurotransmitter harmony strengthens the brain–reproductive connection.
The Glymphatic System — A Nightly Cleanse
As we sleep, the brain clears waste, washing away what no longer serves.
Balance: This nightly detox keeps the system light and clear.
Wellbeing: You rise refreshed, with clarity for the day ahead.
Fertility: By lowering inflammation, this cleansing process creates a healthier hormonal environment.
TCM view: This reflects the Kidney–Bladder system, quietly conserving essence and supporting long-term vitality.
Circadian Rhythm and Daylight Savings
The circadian rhythm ties all these processes together, guiding hormone release, neurotransmitter shifts, and brain waves. Living in rhythm creates flow.
With daylight savings beginning after the long weekend, we’ll all shift an hour forward. For many, this can feel unsettling, with sleep, mood, and hormones needing time to adapt. Supporting your circadian rhythm with acupuncture, herbal medicine, and breathwork helps the body realign smoothly, maintaining balance, protecting wellbeing, and keeping fertility supported.
A Closing Reflection
When you go to bed, you’re not just switching off. You’re entering a rhythm where hormones and brain waves move you into renewal. Awareness of these nightly changes allows you to harness them positively, restoring balance, deepening wellbeing, and naturally supporting fertility.
And as the clocks change, it’s a reminder: your body holds its own wisdom. Supporting it through this shift helps you feel grounded, clear, and deeply well.
Support for Balance, Wellbeing, and Fertility
At Beattie Street Health, I bring together Traditional Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture, and Breathwork to help restore harmony in body, mind, and spirit. Whether you’re seeking steadier energy, deeper sleep, emotional calm, or fertility support, there are gentle and effective ways to guide your system back into flow.
If you’re ready to nurture your sleep, your hormones, and your overall health, I’d love to support you.
Or begin with community and breath, join my Monday Night Group Breathwork Class at 7:00 pm in the studio.
Especially with the daylight savings change, this class helps regulate the nervous system, balance brain waves, and prepare your body for deeper, more restorative sleep.
