Sleeping through your alarm clock, or hitting snooze repeatedly, can become a huge issue. It can affect your sleep cycle and your self-esteem. It’s an issue many people struggle with, including myself. I’ve learned several methods that help me wake up easily and reliably, which I’ll share below.
Every time you hit snooze it feels like you’re giving yourself a little bit of extra sleep. But the light sleep you get between snoozes doesn’t help much. It’s not long enough to get back into deep sleep. This can leave you feeling even more exhausted.
Second, if you're always hitting snooze, you're most likely not getting enough sleep overall, which can lead to health problems like weight gain and even heart disease. Try to set your alarm for the actual time you need to get out of bed, and disable the snooze function if possible. You’ll recondition your brain to get out of the snooze habit.
If you go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, your brain will become accustomed to the routine. When you stick to a routine like this for long enough you probably won’t even need an alarm clock any more. You’ll automatically wake up at the proper time.
Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, and avoid watching TV or working on the computer in bed. Make sure your bedroom is dark, quiet, and cool, and avoid drinking caffeine or alcohol before bed. If you can't fall asleep after 20 minutes, get up and do something calming until you feel tired again.
Hydrating before and after sleeping is crucial for overall health. Drinking water before bed helps to hydrate your body and can lead to a more restful sleep. It may even help you wake up in the morning, because you’ll need to use the bathroom.
And drinking water after waking up helps to rehydrate your body and jump start your metabolism. Dehydration will make you feel more tired than you actually are.
Athletes and performers use this tactic all the time. Mentally prepare yourself to wake up the night before. You can do this by visualizing yourself waking up and going through your morning routine in your mind before going to sleep. Repeat your visualization several times if possible. This will prime your brain to be ready to wake up and you’ll know exactly what to do in the morning. Try to remind yourself what time you’ll be waking up, so that your mind is ready for it. The more you practice this technique, the easier it will become.
Most of us don’t want to let anyone down by missing an appointment. Whenever possible, set your appointments in the morning, so that you’re forced to get out of bed on time. Remind yourself of your appointments the night before, and think about how important it is to keep the appointment.
You can create a version of this by finding a wake up buddy. Find a friend who needs to get up on time every day as well, then call each other first thing when you wake up. You’ll feel compelled to get out of bed so that you don’t let your friend down.
Light up alarm clocks are a great way to wake up in the morning - they provide a gentle, natural light that gradually increases in intensity, which can help you wake up more easily and peacefully. It simulates the natural sunrise that our brains expect in the morning.
The extra light won't force you to wake up, but it certainly makes it more pleasant to wake up.
There are numerous alarm clocks and phone apps that are more effective than a traditional alarm clock. Some are insanely loud, some will move or fly around the room, some will ask math problems, and some require you to complete tasks before you can turn it off.
There is no one-size-fits-all alarm clock solution that will help everyone. You might need to test out several types of alarm clocks to see which one wakes you up reliably.
If you still have trouble waking up when your alarm goes off, it may be time to talk to your doctor. There are several health conditions that make waking up much more difficult.
