
Remove your alarm safety net and fix your sleep - nwienert
http://natewienert.com/remove-your-alarm-safety-net
======
alexholehouse
I didn't used to know people used snooze at all - it always seems so futile -
you have two options (at least in my mind);

alarm @ 8:00 --> get up at 8:00

alarm @ 7:45 + snooze --> painfully lose 15 minutes of good quality sleep and
hate every second of it.

Why is that even a thing?

~~~
MartinCron
The sleep you get while you're "snoozing" is sleep that you're awake enough to
enjoy. At least for me, anyway.

~~~
majormajor
Yeah. It's almost like a drug.

~~~
firefoxman1
So true. I didn't even know _why_ I used snooze until now. I actually
password-protected my tablet with a very long password so I _wouldn't_ use
snooze, but I still did; I had to get to it!

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larrys
I'd like to point out something helpful here because it seems that the
majority of the comments in this thread are from people with a combination of
any or all of the following:

a) In their 20's

b) Stay up late (because you can)

c) No kids

d) Not married

e) In general, less stresses and responsibilities in life

So here it is. Sleep, and the management of sleep is probably the most
important thing you will ever have to tackle and manage in your life. As you
get older (and I'll leave it up to you as far as the definition of "older")
you will find it increasingly difficult to have good sleep for a wide variety
of reasons, such as:

\- Your kids, regardless of whether they are older or if babies or toddlers
and their demands and schedule.

\- Your spouse, their schedule and what responsibilities each of you have
(especially relative to your kids)

\- Your spouse and how they want you to spend your time (it is no longer all
about you. - oh by the way once you have kids the deal changes with spouses
many times lest you think the divorce rate comes from people who knew they
shouldn't have gotten married).

\- Health

\- The fact that as you get older it becomes naturally harder to get good
sleep.

My point is very simple. Start thinking now, before you get married, before
you have kids, before you overextend yourself on the vacation home and other
expenses (that you haven't even begun to think about) how your sleep will be
impacted by those choices you make.

The good news is it can be done. But it takes effort to structure things
before you go down a path that can't be reversed.

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voodoomagicman
I have always found getting out of bed early to an alarm painful, and would
often snooze my alarm long enough to skip morning classes in college.

Now I work with no fixed schedule, and I don't set an alarm at all. I find
that I naturally wake up early and feel well rested. My theory is that waking
up for an alarm would often wake me up in the middle of a sleep cycle, whereas
waking up naturally I get up after a cycle ends.

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Narretz
I have this cool Android app "I can't wake up", which I can only turn off by
scanning a bar code in my bathroom. It works very well; before I had problems
with snoozing, and if I don't set my alarm at all I consistently fall asleep
again after I first wake up. I have simply become addicted to the dreams I
have in this light sleep, so my rational thinking is completely overriden.

~~~
0x0
Does it prevent you from switching off your phone completely?

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SimonPStevens
Something that helped improve my mornings was using a light.

I brought a 6400k 5000 lux lamp for my bedside table.
(<http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001IPP2D6/>) I have it pointed right at my face
and connected to a timer plug which switches it on 15 minutes before my alarm
goes off.

Now, most mornings I'm already more or less awake when my alarm goes off, and
I'm ready to just get up. I've found the light wakes me gently without the
sudden jarring I get with an alarm. It's not unpleasant so there is no desire
to quickly turn the light off like there is with an alarm, but it's also hard
to stay asleep for long, so it gets you past the groggy stage where you
convince yourself you just need a few more minutes.

I also have F.lux (<http://stereopsis.com/flux/>) on all my home PCs to help
the light cycle at the other end of the day.

~~~
ChuckMcM
This is an interesting idea, I'm going to have to experiment with this to see
if I can get that effect.

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johngalt
Personal experience is always subjective. I've found that trying to wake from
a deep sleep directly will make me groggy all day. Conversely giving myself
another 15min of light sleep will clear my head.

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crazypyro
I have had the same experience. This year in college I had 8 am class M-F and
its really nice to be able to set my alarm for 7 and get up every single time.
I've only overslept and skipped my morning shower once. Compared to past
years, this is a complete change and I actually like it.

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lectrick
I have weaned myself off alarms.

Fuck alarms. Go to bed on time. That's the new alarm.

I find I still wake up at the exact same time every day. 7AM.

Still single and/or like to go out? Pick your battles.

~~~
oillio
I agree. The best thing I have ever done was get a job without a set schedule.
Turning off the damn alarm is awesome.

The funny thing is, a couple months after I dumped my alarm, I started getting
up early on my own. Now, I am up well before I used to get up with an alarm,
and I don't feel like shit all morning.

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smattiso
I used to have terrible sleep problems. Insomnia, restless sleep, etc. I
changed two things. No caffeine. No alarm clock.

I sleep amazingly well. I'm rested every morning and I wake up at the same
time everyday.

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janezhu
I think this argument really depends on how much sleep you're
getting/missing-- not just for that night but _over an extended period of
time._ As a student, I didn't just use snooze-- I actually set 3 or 4 separate
alarms in addition to having snooze enabled on every alarm. The reason for
this being that I wouldn't even hear the first alarm and would often
unconsciously hit the snooze button without knowing it. At one point I had up
to 4 different alarm times with different ringtones, volumes, and snooze
durations using both my smartphone and a regular alarm clock! And I remember
still not waking up for a few classes during long periods of sleep
deprivation.

After graduating this year. I started sleeping on a regular schedule. I
consistently slept from 2am - 11am (9 hours) for over two months and now I can
get up each morning at 9am using one alarm, and automatically 9:30am-10am
without an alarm at all.

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NDizzle
The thing I'm most jealous of in this article are the times.

Mine is set at 5:45 and not too long ago, 4:45.

These times let you squeeze in some early morning progress before the kids get
up. Most of the time.

------
axusgrad
Small child wakes me up between 7:15 - 7:30 very reliably!

~~~
jdechko
My 2-year old wakes us up between 6:15 and 7:30 every day, so he's not
reliable. I think I'm going to need a better alarm clock.

Unfortunately, the later he goes to bed, the earlier he wakes up. How messed
up is that?

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khet
I have a day job like the OP and I love making apps by night. I usually end up
working late into the night until 3am almost everyday and then wakeup by 7:45
early in the morning. Somedays I get more sleep if I dont feel like working.
(I dont push myself, I only work when I really want to)

I would love to do what the OP does and go for an early morning jog/run/swim.

If you are in the same boat, what advice do you have for someone like me?

~~~
patrickk
As a longtime chronic insomniac: don't screw around and take your sleep for
granted. It sounds like you are seriously sleep-depriving yourself. Take it as
seriously as proper exercise and nutrition. If you make apps, your mind being
sharp is critical. An athlete wouldn't pig out on junk food and avoid exercise
would they?

I'm following a series of exercise videos, which I try to do first thing after
arriving home from work in the evening. Find a routine that suits you. Don't
feel guilty if Random Joe Blogger's routine doesn't suit your situation. If
you are blessed with great sleep: seize it with both hands!

------
tgrass
Find out how many hours you sleep before you wake up naturally. Go to bed at
an hour where you wake up at the right time without an alarm clock.

~~~
baddox
That doesn't work for people with regular jobs and
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-24-hour_sleep-wake_disorder> or non-chronic
similar symptoms.

~~~
alexPetrov
So that's what it's called. For longest time people just told me to go to
sleep earlier. Other people told me my sleep schedule would stabilize after
college (when I stop depriving myself of sleep). Four months graduated and I
still wake up later everyday. It's good I found a job where I can go at any
time of day. No longer sleepy and I can exercise a lot better.

Not needing an alarm clock anymore is really nice.

It's too bad, my favourite time to wake up is 2 a.m. I'd do that everyday if I
could only fall asleep around 4-6 p.m. everyday.

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nicholassmith
I used to be firmly in the snooze lover camp, but I recently started trying to
get back in shape so needed to be up early. However, instead of getting up
later but with less snooze I'd get up at the same early time and force my mind
awake before exercising. Seems to work very well for me, but possibly not for
everyone.

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dzuc
Put it on the other side of the room so you have to physically get out of bed
to do anything to it.

~~~
sliverstorm
All that does is teach you how to get out of bed, cross the room, and turn off
your alarm clock without waking up.

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bmasci
I've found that moving my alarm clock from the nightstand to my dresser has
made all the difference.

------
TazeTSchnitzel
<http://sleepyti.me/>

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gte910h
tldr: Snooze is bad. Just get up when it goes off.

~~~
nwienert
More like: Turn off snooze, set alarm to exact time you need. Then eventually
set it earlier.

But yes, thats just about it. Plus a bunch of personal anecdotes.

