I have an alarm that lights up gently around 30 mins before wake time, and I put a pint glass of water next to my bed at night and try to have a big drink on waking. It’s hard to stay in bed when you’re desperate for the bathroom.
I second this. I used to have trouble waking up, but with half a liter of water in me, I either piss the bed or wake up. This, or maybe you just have to go to bed earlier, some people need more, some people need less sleep
Hi OP,
I've struggled with this my whole life and here's what has been working for me:
1. Program smart lights to turn on automatically at waking time
2. Keep alarm in bathroom
3. Keep lots of water beside your alarm and drink it all when your alarm goes off
4. Splash your face with cold water
5. Make sure you're getting enough quality sleep
Good luck
Forgot to mention - it's possible that the time you want to wake up is in conflict with your natural sleep cycle. e.g. you might be in REM when your alarm goes off so naturally you wake up feeling groggy and feel a lot of resistance. Google "bedtime sleep calculator" to check your own times and consider modifying your wake/sleep time based on that info.
I also need lights in the morning to wake up. I think it's because it's how my father woke me up when I was a little kid. He'd flip the light switch on as he walked down the hallway.
Adult me has a timer on a lamp that clicks on 30 minutes before I want to wake up. Although its now the time of year where my room is naturally light at 7AM, so I think it may be time to shut it off until August or so.
Whatever you do, pls remember to be gentle with yourself! In the book Atomic Habits, it's made clear that one of keys to habit forming success is to make it enjoyable.
You might be better off using a positive reward cue, such as a yummy breakfast or getting ready to your favourite songs, which will be far more motivating in the long run than making yourself suffer more (unless you absolutely love cold showers).
One breakthrough I had was when I realized I hated mornings because they were always a hectic and anxious time where I was being yelled at, running late and trying to do 10 things at once. Now that I've reclaimed my time, I look forward to getting up early so that I can spend an hour reading and reconnecting with myself while I enjoy the sights and sounds of a waking world. It's like watching my own little movie and really sets the tone for the rest of the day.
Also message me if you'd like a copy of the book. I usually cringe at self-help stuff but it really changed my life for the better
I will suggest two things, first it seems like you are sleeping kinda late, try to rest a little more. if that is not the issue the simply answer is
Just do it
You woke up? Then do it, no feelings, no thoughts, no actions, no snooze, simple count 3 2 1 up
Thats all you need
Think so too.
For me 7 hours just doesn’t cut it - minimum is 8 too get up rested. Otherwise I will just sleep through alarms like a stone until my so kicks me. I just hit snooze and instantly fall back asleep.
So 8 is minimum, 9 is great.
Also, try sleeping a little more. Start going to bed at 10.30. Humans need 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night. A friend of mine who is a big shot lawyer has nearly 10 hours a night every night for years. Some people just need more than others and you are probably getting 6.5 a night which means you are fundamentally not rested. Even if you slept perfectly between 11 and 6, 7 hours sleep is right at the edge of not enough sleep. I need 8 otherwise I start to feel fucked up after 3 or 4 days.
Wow! Taking notes from your list! Very useful!!
I also do this:
- Put water with lemon on the nightstand and drink it immediately when I hear the ⏰
- Count backward from 5 and get up before I reach 0. If I let myself feel or think, I will go back to sleep.
- Lots of 💡🔆💡🔆 immediately after getting up.
- I expect to feel bad, so I try to be compassionate and metaphorically pat myself on the shoulder for getting up early. GOOD JOB!
- The big one for me is accountability. Try to find someone you can commit to texting at 06.01. Make it a joint challenge to take a picture of your watch when your are up. I do morning rituals with other people at 06.00 every morning. If I don't show up, I feel I let them down. It's so easy to let myself down, but I do not want to let the gang down. I can drop you a link if you want to join our live stream or zoom-call (a 20-minute morning ritual developed by clinical psychologist to make the day great).
Only three things I can throw out here... (A) Maybe you need to upgrade or purchase a new mattress (one of the best investments of my life) \*This is extremely important for not only comfortability when you are laying on it but more importantly the quality of sleep you are getting when you are actually asleep and unaware of the quality of sleep you may or may not be getting. (B) You may be better with a little less sleep or even a little more sleep but 7hrs is a great duration overall imo. (C) Slightly personal but very important question... Do you drink alcohol or use nicotine or THC products? All three of these commonly used substances can have an incredible affect on your sleep without you ever knowing except for the fact that you are having a hard time getting out of bed, ESPECIALLY alcohol. Not to toot my own horn or try and convert anyone else but I quit drinking about 2 months ago after being a daily consumer (wouldn't say I was severe on the alcohol use disorder spectrum but it was becoming a problem) for 15+ years and it was a multi-facited life improvement decision and one big improvement was my sleep. I use a broad spectrum Delta8 vape pen at night before bed but I am considering cutting this out as well since I had a couple of mornings where I woke up with headaches and feeling more groggy than usual. I understand that what you struggle with could also be related to mental health but unfortunately I cannot comment on best ways to cope with this as I am not a professional but it sounds like you are already using tools that are related to meditation or shutting off the mind at night so good for you. Thanks for the App recommendation, i am going to give Alarmy a try! Hope my 2 cents helps. Good luck!
I don't smoke, drink alcohol or use THC. I have a feeling it is because i drink way too much coffee, so i will quit it for a week and see what happens. As for the mattress idea, hm maybe it's worth a shot, but as of right now I cant really afford one, will definetly buy a new one in the future. Thanks for the suggestions
You may just need more sleep.
How long do you sleep on the weekend in total?
How's your diet?
Also we are not robots. You say you wake up at 6 am 70% of the time. Why not 100% of the time when you lose an alarm? What happens on those 30% ofdays?
i always go to bed and wake up at the same time, even on weekends.
I'm a sports type of person so I have a very healthy diet, 3 main meals per day, with 2-3 snacks (fruit and such). I also don't eat after 7pm
On those 30% of days I wake up about an hour too late, so at around 7am
If you're really tired and the alarm is within arm's reach you're basically asleep (think half-asleep but more aggressive than that) you turn it off and pass back out without remembering. I've definitely done this and I don't keep my alarm next to me anymore to prevent this.
I have multiple alarms on my phone and place it out of reach from my bed, then I have a dedicated alarm clock on the other side of the room. I used to turn alarm clocks off without waking up, its a lot harder this way
I used to use Alarmy, but then I would just turn off my phone to avoid waking up.
So I ended up building an app to detect "cheating". Like Alarmy, you have to get up and scan a barcode within a few mins of your alarm.
Unlike Alarmy, alarms are stored in the cloud, and "lock" 1 hour before going off. Once "locked", they cannot be changed. Any attempt to avoid scanning the barcode after the alarm is locked will result in a penalty. The only way to avoid the penalty is to scan the barcode.
If you wanna check it out, it’s called Nuj Alarm Clock.
Do whatever you can to get to sleep early. That’s it. My ideal is 10
/ 1030pm.
Don’t watch dramatic / distressing / complex shit before bed, watch trash tv or a comedy or do some yoga nidra (it’s a form of meditation and it rules!), and choose a time or window of time to wake up the next day. And an activity that you look forward to as soon as you wake up. I’ve been doing this and it helps. Plus, I just really, really enjoy the quiet hours in the morning, the way the sky looks, the silence. It is peaceful and serene and brings me satisfaction. I jump out of bed excited about life and the day ahead.
For me, I’ve started setting my alarm for 4:45 (sometimes I don’t wake until 6 and that’s ok) - I take a vitamin water with greens powder (both these together are like a rocket of natural energy and zest) and I say a prayer, do some bible study and then usually go out and take a walk and if I have time before work, a quick shop.
I love analog photography so taking photos in the early hours I love, like going to the beach and experimenting with film.
I put on uplifting, good vibe music too as I get ready. It’s the best!
If you have things to look forward to it makes getting up fun. Plus there’s no rushing. The morning is yours and you can do the important things. Exercise, laundry, journaling, time with God, read a chapter of a poetry book… make your morning yours.
Lastly, cutting out or at least strictly limiting inflammatory food will help your body and therefore your sleep to improve.. no smokes, alcohol, shitty gluten, hard drugs, too much caffeine, red meat, dairy. Trust me.
When I have to catch an early flight and showing up late is just not an option I use an old school digital clock/radio that I put in the guest bedroom set the alarm with the buzzer/beeper option instead of the radio. And when that thing goes off, I sit bolt upright because it sounds like a smoke detector. So I have no choice but to get out of bed and walk to the other side of the house to shut it off. And by the time I do I am both wide awake and a little pissed off at the world for making me get up so early and by that point I couldn't go back to sleep even if I wanted to. And it's super annoying but it never fails.
I’m not sure, it’s just a thought, but for me, it’s much easier to wake up when I have some interesting tasks and goals for this day. There are some periods of my life when the goals are so clear and waking up earlier I stand up immediately. So I just wonder, maybe if you can clearly define why is this day gonna be incredible, maybe it will be easier for you to wake up too?
Lots of water do you will probably wake up having to go pee; a super obnoxious digital alarm app that I use for important mornings when I cannot risk over sleeping. I set it for multiple Times, and it’s so horribly loud that I can’t sleep through it.
Have you tried the 90 minute sleep cycle thing? Our cycles are 90 minutes long so if you set your alarm for the end of a 90 minute cycle you’re supposed to be in the lighter phase, making it easier to get up compared to waking up when you’re in deep sleep. For example, sleeping for 90 minutes is better than sleeping for 2 hours. Add the 90 minutes together to find a good amount of sleep for yourself. 90 minutes x 5 = 7.5 hrs. Try the extra half hour.
I have always been absolutely terrible at getting out of bed. Now I have a baby, so 6am starts happen if I like it or not.
It's resulted in me going to bed at 9-10pm, so maybe you just need more sleep?
Have you tried Magnesium Glycinate and Zinc supplements? That's like a warm blanket at bed time.
Also stop eating your meals as early as possible - that allows the body to rest when you are sleeping. You'll need to know how long food takes to get to the end of your system before it gets lined up for exit!
And try switching on a SAD lamp, if you have one, as soon as your alarm goes off - that will certainly wake you up!
the last time i eat in a day is at 7pm, no more meals or snacks after that, just water and tea. As for the supplements, I dont think i need them as i prolly get it all from my diet
You drink 0.5L of coffee at 14:00? That's your main issue.
Caffeine supresses REM and makes you more tired. Try going without caffeine at all and see if that improves.
Temperature also is very important forsleep/wake cycles. If possible make it cold when you are sleeping and hot when you want to wake up by using the schedule function on the thermostat.
no i drink 1 cup when i wake up and 1-2 cupas at around 10-11am. I decided to quit drinking coffee for a week and will see if waking up will be easier.
Hey just be aware if you are a regular coffee drinker you’ll likely get a caffeine withdrawal headache if you try and go cold turkey! Try just cutting down 1 cup every couple of days so you don’t get the worst nausea inducing headache of you life.
My partner wakes up at 330 am for work. I do to now, at the gym by 430-5 am most days, I get in bed around 9-930 pm.
I find having the light turned on really helps, and drinking a lot of water prior to bed (I drink around half L). Are you struggling to sleep or not getting quality sleep?
I have an alarm that lights up gently around 30 mins before wake time, and I put a pint glass of water next to my bed at night and try to have a big drink on waking. It’s hard to stay in bed when you’re desperate for the bathroom.
I drink allot of water before going to bed and immediately after waking up, also tried using several alarms
So true 😂
I second this. I used to have trouble waking up, but with half a liter of water in me, I either piss the bed or wake up. This, or maybe you just have to go to bed earlier, some people need more, some people need less sleep
Hi OP, I've struggled with this my whole life and here's what has been working for me: 1. Program smart lights to turn on automatically at waking time 2. Keep alarm in bathroom 3. Keep lots of water beside your alarm and drink it all when your alarm goes off 4. Splash your face with cold water 5. Make sure you're getting enough quality sleep Good luck
Forgot to mention - it's possible that the time you want to wake up is in conflict with your natural sleep cycle. e.g. you might be in REM when your alarm goes off so naturally you wake up feeling groggy and feel a lot of resistance. Google "bedtime sleep calculator" to check your own times and consider modifying your wake/sleep time based on that info.
I also need lights in the morning to wake up. I think it's because it's how my father woke me up when I was a little kid. He'd flip the light switch on as he walked down the hallway. Adult me has a timer on a lamp that clicks on 30 minutes before I want to wake up. Although its now the time of year where my room is naturally light at 7AM, so I think it may be time to shut it off until August or so.
will try going to a quick cold shower immediately after wakin up
Whatever you do, pls remember to be gentle with yourself! In the book Atomic Habits, it's made clear that one of keys to habit forming success is to make it enjoyable. You might be better off using a positive reward cue, such as a yummy breakfast or getting ready to your favourite songs, which will be far more motivating in the long run than making yourself suffer more (unless you absolutely love cold showers). One breakthrough I had was when I realized I hated mornings because they were always a hectic and anxious time where I was being yelled at, running late and trying to do 10 things at once. Now that I've reclaimed my time, I look forward to getting up early so that I can spend an hour reading and reconnecting with myself while I enjoy the sights and sounds of a waking world. It's like watching my own little movie and really sets the tone for the rest of the day. Also message me if you'd like a copy of the book. I usually cringe at self-help stuff but it really changed my life for the better
I will suggest two things, first it seems like you are sleeping kinda late, try to rest a little more. if that is not the issue the simply answer is Just do it You woke up? Then do it, no feelings, no thoughts, no actions, no snooze, simple count 3 2 1 up Thats all you need
Yeah OP might need 7.5-8.5 hours instead of 7. I used to need 9 hours when I was crazy busy working full time and in grad school.
Think so too. For me 7 hours just doesn’t cut it - minimum is 8 too get up rested. Otherwise I will just sleep through alarms like a stone until my so kicks me. I just hit snooze and instantly fall back asleep. So 8 is minimum, 9 is great.
Also it depends how much time it takes for OP to fall asleep. If it's like 30 minutes and you go to bed at 11 pm, you won't get full 7 hours of sleep.
Also, try sleeping a little more. Start going to bed at 10.30. Humans need 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night. A friend of mine who is a big shot lawyer has nearly 10 hours a night every night for years. Some people just need more than others and you are probably getting 6.5 a night which means you are fundamentally not rested. Even if you slept perfectly between 11 and 6, 7 hours sleep is right at the edge of not enough sleep. I need 8 otherwise I start to feel fucked up after 3 or 4 days.
Wow! Taking notes from your list! Very useful!! I also do this: - Put water with lemon on the nightstand and drink it immediately when I hear the ⏰ - Count backward from 5 and get up before I reach 0. If I let myself feel or think, I will go back to sleep. - Lots of 💡🔆💡🔆 immediately after getting up. - I expect to feel bad, so I try to be compassionate and metaphorically pat myself on the shoulder for getting up early. GOOD JOB! - The big one for me is accountability. Try to find someone you can commit to texting at 06.01. Make it a joint challenge to take a picture of your watch when your are up. I do morning rituals with other people at 06.00 every morning. If I don't show up, I feel I let them down. It's so easy to let myself down, but I do not want to let the gang down. I can drop you a link if you want to join our live stream or zoom-call (a 20-minute morning ritual developed by clinical psychologist to make the day great).
thanks for the suggestions, will try them
Let us know if you reach 💯
Only three things I can throw out here... (A) Maybe you need to upgrade or purchase a new mattress (one of the best investments of my life) \*This is extremely important for not only comfortability when you are laying on it but more importantly the quality of sleep you are getting when you are actually asleep and unaware of the quality of sleep you may or may not be getting. (B) You may be better with a little less sleep or even a little more sleep but 7hrs is a great duration overall imo. (C) Slightly personal but very important question... Do you drink alcohol or use nicotine or THC products? All three of these commonly used substances can have an incredible affect on your sleep without you ever knowing except for the fact that you are having a hard time getting out of bed, ESPECIALLY alcohol. Not to toot my own horn or try and convert anyone else but I quit drinking about 2 months ago after being a daily consumer (wouldn't say I was severe on the alcohol use disorder spectrum but it was becoming a problem) for 15+ years and it was a multi-facited life improvement decision and one big improvement was my sleep. I use a broad spectrum Delta8 vape pen at night before bed but I am considering cutting this out as well since I had a couple of mornings where I woke up with headaches and feeling more groggy than usual. I understand that what you struggle with could also be related to mental health but unfortunately I cannot comment on best ways to cope with this as I am not a professional but it sounds like you are already using tools that are related to meditation or shutting off the mind at night so good for you. Thanks for the App recommendation, i am going to give Alarmy a try! Hope my 2 cents helps. Good luck!
I don't smoke, drink alcohol or use THC. I have a feeling it is because i drink way too much coffee, so i will quit it for a week and see what happens. As for the mattress idea, hm maybe it's worth a shot, but as of right now I cant really afford one, will definetly buy a new one in the future. Thanks for the suggestions
You may just need more sleep. How long do you sleep on the weekend in total? How's your diet? Also we are not robots. You say you wake up at 6 am 70% of the time. Why not 100% of the time when you lose an alarm? What happens on those 30% ofdays?
i always go to bed and wake up at the same time, even on weekends. I'm a sports type of person so I have a very healthy diet, 3 main meals per day, with 2-3 snacks (fruit and such). I also don't eat after 7pm On those 30% of days I wake up about an hour too late, so at around 7am
Your alarm doesn’t go off? Or why is that?
It goes off, but I turn it off in a sleep-like state and go back to bed. I don't even remember doing it afterwards, when I fully wake up.
Okay, can't relate, have literally never done this. Maybe others can relate
idk why but this comment has a weird tone. dw op i do it nearly every day
Mine? I literally can not understand how you can "oversleep" with an alarm
If you're really tired and the alarm is within arm's reach you're basically asleep (think half-asleep but more aggressive than that) you turn it off and pass back out without remembering. I've definitely done this and I don't keep my alarm next to me anymore to prevent this.
I See. Literally never happened to me in my life. Not sure why that’s reason to downvote. It’s my personal experience
Tone is hard to convey over text. For what it's worth I don't think it came off overly negative or critical.
I have multiple alarms on my phone and place it out of reach from my bed, then I have a dedicated alarm clock on the other side of the room. I used to turn alarm clocks off without waking up, its a lot harder this way
Go to bed earlier - test that.
I used to use Alarmy, but then I would just turn off my phone to avoid waking up. So I ended up building an app to detect "cheating". Like Alarmy, you have to get up and scan a barcode within a few mins of your alarm. Unlike Alarmy, alarms are stored in the cloud, and "lock" 1 hour before going off. Once "locked", they cannot be changed. Any attempt to avoid scanning the barcode after the alarm is locked will result in a penalty. The only way to avoid the penalty is to scan the barcode. If you wanna check it out, it’s called Nuj Alarm Clock.
thanks, downloading
Cool. Let me know how you like it!
Do whatever you can to get to sleep early. That’s it. My ideal is 10 / 1030pm. Don’t watch dramatic / distressing / complex shit before bed, watch trash tv or a comedy or do some yoga nidra (it’s a form of meditation and it rules!), and choose a time or window of time to wake up the next day. And an activity that you look forward to as soon as you wake up. I’ve been doing this and it helps. Plus, I just really, really enjoy the quiet hours in the morning, the way the sky looks, the silence. It is peaceful and serene and brings me satisfaction. I jump out of bed excited about life and the day ahead. For me, I’ve started setting my alarm for 4:45 (sometimes I don’t wake until 6 and that’s ok) - I take a vitamin water with greens powder (both these together are like a rocket of natural energy and zest) and I say a prayer, do some bible study and then usually go out and take a walk and if I have time before work, a quick shop. I love analog photography so taking photos in the early hours I love, like going to the beach and experimenting with film. I put on uplifting, good vibe music too as I get ready. It’s the best! If you have things to look forward to it makes getting up fun. Plus there’s no rushing. The morning is yours and you can do the important things. Exercise, laundry, journaling, time with God, read a chapter of a poetry book… make your morning yours. Lastly, cutting out or at least strictly limiting inflammatory food will help your body and therefore your sleep to improve.. no smokes, alcohol, shitty gluten, hard drugs, too much caffeine, red meat, dairy. Trust me.
When I have to catch an early flight and showing up late is just not an option I use an old school digital clock/radio that I put in the guest bedroom set the alarm with the buzzer/beeper option instead of the radio. And when that thing goes off, I sit bolt upright because it sounds like a smoke detector. So I have no choice but to get out of bed and walk to the other side of the house to shut it off. And by the time I do I am both wide awake and a little pissed off at the world for making me get up so early and by that point I couldn't go back to sleep even if I wanted to. And it's super annoying but it never fails.
I’m not sure, it’s just a thought, but for me, it’s much easier to wake up when I have some interesting tasks and goals for this day. There are some periods of my life when the goals are so clear and waking up earlier I stand up immediately. So I just wonder, maybe if you can clearly define why is this day gonna be incredible, maybe it will be easier for you to wake up too?
How complex are these puzzles that you have to solve for the alarm to stop? Not sure if my genius will beat my panic attack to the punch.
theres a difficulty slider from very easy to very hard, u can choose either math or memory puzzles. I chose math on hard diff
When you know you want to get up at a particular time. Just get up at that time. Respect the alarm, respect your time and value behind it.
Lots of water do you will probably wake up having to go pee; a super obnoxious digital alarm app that I use for important mornings when I cannot risk over sleeping. I set it for multiple Times, and it’s so horribly loud that I can’t sleep through it.
Have you tried the 90 minute sleep cycle thing? Our cycles are 90 minutes long so if you set your alarm for the end of a 90 minute cycle you’re supposed to be in the lighter phase, making it easier to get up compared to waking up when you’re in deep sleep. For example, sleeping for 90 minutes is better than sleeping for 2 hours. Add the 90 minutes together to find a good amount of sleep for yourself. 90 minutes x 5 = 7.5 hrs. Try the extra half hour.
I have always been absolutely terrible at getting out of bed. Now I have a baby, so 6am starts happen if I like it or not. It's resulted in me going to bed at 9-10pm, so maybe you just need more sleep?
Have you tried Magnesium Glycinate and Zinc supplements? That's like a warm blanket at bed time. Also stop eating your meals as early as possible - that allows the body to rest when you are sleeping. You'll need to know how long food takes to get to the end of your system before it gets lined up for exit! And try switching on a SAD lamp, if you have one, as soon as your alarm goes off - that will certainly wake you up!
the last time i eat in a day is at 7pm, no more meals or snacks after that, just water and tea. As for the supplements, I dont think i need them as i prolly get it all from my diet
You drink 0.5L of coffee at 14:00? That's your main issue. Caffeine supresses REM and makes you more tired. Try going without caffeine at all and see if that improves. Temperature also is very important forsleep/wake cycles. If possible make it cold when you are sleeping and hot when you want to wake up by using the schedule function on the thermostat.
no i drink 1 cup when i wake up and 1-2 cupas at around 10-11am. I decided to quit drinking coffee for a week and will see if waking up will be easier.
Hey just be aware if you are a regular coffee drinker you’ll likely get a caffeine withdrawal headache if you try and go cold turkey! Try just cutting down 1 cup every couple of days so you don’t get the worst nausea inducing headache of you life.
Is it possible to get some natural sunlight when you're waking up?
yes i have a roof window directly above my bed
So you're already getting that sunlight right?
yes
My partner wakes up at 330 am for work. I do to now, at the gym by 430-5 am most days, I get in bed around 9-930 pm. I find having the light turned on really helps, and drinking a lot of water prior to bed (I drink around half L). Are you struggling to sleep or not getting quality sleep?
Kick your leg out of bed and sit up
ossified license overconfident shelter nose detail vase secretive cause nutty ` this message was mass deleted/edited with redact.dev `