And I always use MyCircadianApp (code SARAHK) to keep track of UV index and gauge my time in the sun so I don't overdo it!
This month (JULY) - only - the app is 30% off your first year - download here and use code SARAHK for the discount.
Okay. Now to the packing.
Confession: this is the first trip longer than a night or two that I've taken since I was pregnant.
If you're a special needs parent, you don't need me to explain why. If you're not, here's the short version: leaving home is a logistical operation, and "spontaneous getaway" hasn't been in my vocabulary for a long time. So the fact that I'm about to spend real, unhurried time with my sisters, my nieces and my son? I'm excited about it!
And because I get asked this constantly, I'm pulling back the curtain on what actually goes in my bags. Fair warning: some of this is normal-mom stuff. Most of it is not. I've made peace with being the person who shows up with an air scrubber in the trunk wearing blue blockers 😂
Links are sprinkled throughout for the things people always ask about.
The "why is she covering the windows" category
Light is sneaky, and hotel and Airbnb bedrooms are the worst offenders, so I travel prepared to build a cave:
Black electrical tapea, for covering every tiny glowing light source (you know the ones, the smoke detector, alarm clocks that won't unplug)
An eye mask, for whatever the tape and curtains miss
My blue blockers, I use the Chroma red glasses - code SARAHK for evenings, since they're best for TV watching and let just a little violet light through for contrast.
My red flash light (which actually has therapeutic wavelengths and doubles as red light therapy on the go - code sarahk)
The "I will not be drinking mystery water" category
I'm particular about water and I don't apologize for it:
A door chime, because the Airbnb has a pool and my son is so young I need to know the second he's up in the night. We have one of these at home too, since my special needs daughter sometimes gets up and wanders. It's inexpensive and it is a lifesaver.
The Jaspr air purifier (code sarahk). Yes, I know. I'm bringing an air scrubber on vacation. But it's better than a standard purifier, we're staying somewhere that isn't our own space, and my son is incredibly sensitive to his environment. It fits in my car, even if a little awkwardly, and it's worth every inch of trunk space.
I'm sure I'm forgetting a few things, I always do, but this is what's packed.
If you've been waiting for permission to be "that person" who travels with their own water and tapes over the hotel lights, consider this it. Building a little pocket of what works for us is how trips like this stay doable instead of derailing everything.
In case you missed my latest article on Substack
Myth #1 -If you don’t see the actual sun coming over the horizon - you have FAILED.
Let me start by saying something that might surprise you for an article that’s about to push back on a popular idea: I love that people are excited about light, and I want to be clear up front, catching the sunrise is genuinely valuable. I’m not here to tell you it doesn’t matter. I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to do it perfectly to get real benefit.
Circadian and quantum biology are having a moment. More people than ever are talking about morning sunlight, protecting their sleep, getting outside, and understanding how light interacts with us right down to the cellular level. That is a good thing - so this series isn’t about proving anyone wrong or dunking on anyone.
It’s about a conversation that doesn’t get had often enough, the one that only happens after you’ve worked with real people, in real lives, for years.
Because here’s what I keep running into:
There’s a claim that circulates in the circadian world that goes something like this: “If you don’t actually see the sun come over the horizon, you’re not really getting any of the true benefits of sunrise”, and I am here to tell you that it doesn’t work that way.
It sounds like exclusive insider knowledge (which of course drives views and engagement)……and when an idealist says it to an audience, it sounds inspiring.
But I don’t work with an audience. I work with people.
I work with a mom whose son has special needs and whose mornings are not her own (and that’s my reality as well). I work with toddler moms who are lucky to find their own coffee, let alone an unobstructed eastern horizon at the exact right minute. I work with nurses and doctors coming off overnight shifts. I work with people whose bedroom window faces a wall, whose backyard is shaded by a trees or a mountain, whose street is lined with buildings. Real people, real constraints, real lives.
And when those people hear “if you can’t see the sun crest the horizon, you don’t get the benefit,” I watch something happen that breaks my heart a little every time: They shut down. They think, “Okay, well, this light stuff clearly isn’t for me. I’ll never be able to do it right, so why bother.” And they brush off what could honestly be one of the single biggest, most free, most life-changing levers for their energy and their health.
That’s the cost of the perfectionism - it makes people quit before they start.
So here’s the nuance I want you to hold, because both halves are true: yes, aim to catch some of the early light when you can. And no, living behind a mountain, in a city, or under a line of trees does not disqualify you. Let me show you why, with the actual science.
So, do you actually know what to do if you find a tick on yourself or a loved one?
Most people don't, until they're staring at a tick on their kid's leg trying to remember whether to twist or pull....
In this week's episode, we get into how to actually protect your family this season, the right way to remove a tick if you find one, and the holistic support options worth knowing about that go beyond the standard playbook. With summer here and everyone outside more, this is one of those topics where a little knowledge ahead of time changes everything.
