How do you "become" a morning person?

[plumhill]

Thanks everyone for all of the suggestions!

I'm aware of the 90-min sleep cycle pattern and I've been timing sleeping and such to make sure I get some interval of 90-min sleep cycles. What worries me though is that I still have issues waking up even if I go to bed early. This quarter, I've gone to bed at or before midnight every single day of the week except for two instances, and even still I can't wake up early. My phone stays on the other side of the room (as it has for the last year or so), and I've consumed way too much coffee for my own good. I have a weekly quiz for one of my classes at 7:15 AM and I have made it to every single one, but I'm always extremely nauseous until about 10 or 11 AM...is this still my body attempting to readjust, or is this more serious?

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[Stumpyman]

These alarm clocks look awesome.... Also look like they would break easily.

Very easily. The concept of them is great, but the designers can't make 'em last more than a couple months.

 

[Jennet]

I've read some pretty convincing material about the natural rhythms of sleep/life hacks for night owls (as I am one too). The idea is that you need to adjust the length of your sleep to accommodate the sleep cycle not the standard "get 7-8 hours". Apparently people average at a 90 minute sleep cycle so you should be adjusting your sleeping and waking to that amount. Try and wake up at the end of a cycle before you begin another (like 6 hours which is 4 cycles). Helps you to feel more refreshed in the morning.

“Studies show that the length of sleep is not what causes us to be refreshed upon waking. The key factor is the number of complete sleep cycles we enjoy. Each sleep cycle contains five distinct phases, which exhibit different brain- wave patterns. For our purposes, it suffices to say that one sleep cycle lasts an average of 90 minutes: 65 minutes of normal, or non-REM (rapid eye movement), sleep; 20 minutes of REM sleep (in which we dream); and a final 5 minutes of non-REM sleep. The REM sleep phases are shorter during earlier cycles (less than 20 minutes) and longer during later ones (more than 20 minutes). If we were to sleep completely naturally, with no alarm clocks or other sleep disturbances, we would wake up, on the average, after a multiple of 90 minutes–for example, after 4 1/2 hours, 6 hours, 7 1/2 hours, or 9 hours, but not after 7 or 8 hours, which are not multiples of 90 minutes. In the period between cycles we are not actually sleeping: it is a sort of twilight zone from which, if we are not disturbed (by light, cold, a full bladder, noise), we move into another 90-minute cycle. A person who sleeps only four cycles (6 hours) will feel more rested than someone who has slept for 8 to 10 hours but who has not been allowed to complete any one cycle because of being awakened before it was completed…. ”

 

[fizzgig]

http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/04/how-to-get-up-right-away-when-your-alarm-goes-off/

I remember reading this post a while back because getting up is SO HARD when I don't have a place to be (btw I second the person who makes running dates early in the a.m... I'm not one to ditch someone who's waiting on me!). Anyway I remember thinking 'that's the dumbest thing ever, practicing getting up, come onnnnn...' But then I thought you know, maybe there's something to that, just avoiding the conversations I have with 6amself (who is a raging rationalizing idiot) altogether. I'll be sure to report back if I manage to train myself

 

[Cerena]

I HATE mornings.
But, I have to wake up early every day...
Only thing that works for me is to wake up early, and right away! No snooze button.

 

[Eva86]

Some people are just not morning person! Why do you want to be a morning person? I mean is there something that you really have to go to or do in the morning but you always miss b/c you can't get up?
Maybe try to ask someone to wake you up. When I absolutly have to wake up, i tell someone who lives with me not to leave my room until am out of bed. First week will be hard, but then you will get used to it!
Or maybe try to go to bed super early, like maybe taking sleeping med or something, and then put on the alarm early, you might wake up easily after long time night sleep!

 

[SirGecko]

Unfortunately if you are going to be in medicine you *have* to figure out how to get yourself out of bed an unreasonably early hours of the day with little sleep. Just the nature of the job. (personally I think that 4 o'clock should happen once a day but then I joined the military and am in medical school so more fool I eh?)

The only way to become a "morning person" (to any extent that you will ever become one) is to just consistently get up early in the morning. It is just like any routine: push past the part where you find it hard and suddenly it becomes second nature. (I find an apt analogy is going from not being a runner to running multiple times a week. At first it sucks but after a while a switch occurs and it just becomes part of your routine) Personally thought I've always found I have to have a concrete reason to get me out of bed. (so "I want to start studying at 6" was never a good enough reason to get me out of bed but "I have to be at the hospital by 0450 to write my AM notes" is)

That said as a premed you probably don't need to switch your schedule. Really clinical clerkships in medical school are the first place being able to get up early in the morning really becomes essential.

 

[Pisiform]

Just go to bed early ... Simple as that


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[bad virus]

3rd year turned me into a morning person. That is not to say that I like waking up in the morning, just that I almost automatically wake up with a sense of dread and anxiety of missing something every day at 4 am no matter how late I sleep.

Basically, a whole 10 months waking up at ungodly hours to ask people about bowel movements and then be grilled about it by people who can grade you will do that to you.

The way I transitioned into being able to wake up is I took apart my sony dream machine alarm clock and rewired the radio to a dolby 5.1 surround system I got off craigslist. Now not only do I wake up to the black eyed peas good night, but so does the whole neighborhood. I get up panicked with a blood pressure of 180/holy-F#*$ whenever I forget it on the death rock channels. Eventually, you will turn into an old lady and your body will force you to pass out at 10 am.

BTW, this does not mean you have become a morning person, you will never be that, it just means you have learned to adapt. I am sure a one week break will send me right back to falling asleep at 6am and waking up at noon. Good luck.

 

[Chir0nex]

One trick is to open a curtain as fast as possible and face the sun. I have a lot of trouble waking up if my room is still dark, but even a little bit of natural light is enough to jump-start my brain and get me sit up (step 1 of getting out of bed). If you live in a dark (i.e Northern) area then consider one of the natural light alarm clocks.

 

[pre med 2014]

Im going to try this 90 minute sleep cycle thing to help get my butt up for morning exercise. Try running or swimming for 30 minutes instead of having a cup of coffee.

 

[Law2Doc]

One trick is to open a curtain as fast as possible and face the sun..

not going to help you much for med school clinical years -- you will already have pre rounded on patients while on several rotations before sun up.

 

[deleted261193]

i agree it's something that you pick up. i used to think 9ams were scarily early but now that i work 9-5, i find myself easily getting up in time. it certainly took a few weeks to adjust, though.

since i don't think you can force yourself to schedule something early, i'll pull stuff from my circadian rhythms research (hehe): (1) check out your light patterns. one thing that's helped me is positioning my bed so that when the sun rises, i get a rude awakening by the sunlight shining in my face. i usually cannot sleep through that longer than a few minutes because it's just annoying haha. if this isn't feasible, you should look into alarm clocks or those special light machines for SAD people that incorporate light therapy to shine around the morning time. there's research that shows that getting a huge burst of light esp around 8-9am can really help you adjust your sleep cycle. blue light (as opposed to yellow light) in particular is good for this. or you can just sit outside in the sun. (2) are you sleeping WELL? like good quality sleep? or are you spending a lot of time tossing/turning and waking up throughout the night? you should look into that too. (3) it's possible that you have some kind of sleep debt? maybe you should try "catching" up sleep with naps throughout the day. (4) exercise really helps sync and coordinate your sleep (helping you sleep better, getting a good sleep cycle, etc.). try doing some of that too!

also something i learned at a recent conference -- how old are you? when you are a teen up, your chronotype shifts later and later (staying up late, waking up late) until it peaks around age 20-22 and then starts moving forward again. so it's psosible that you're just fighting biology right now but in a few years it'll get better.

g'luck!!!

 

[One Hip Guy]

I remember reading this post a while back because getting up is SO HARD when I don't have a place to be (btw I second the person who makes running dates early in the a.m... I'm not one to ditch someone who's waiting on me!). Anyway I remember thinking 'that's the dumbest thing ever, practicing getting up, come onnnnn...' But then I thought you know, maybe there's something to that, just avoiding the conversations I have with 6amself (who is a raging rationalizing idiot) altogether. I'll be sure to report back if I manage to train myself

Glad it helped!

I did a couple of "reps" as the blog describes one night and it did work for me, but that was the only time I've ever tried it. I find it very cumbersome to have to practice every day.

 

[45408]

i agree it's something that you pick up. i used to think 9ams were scarily early but now that i work 9-5, i find myself easily getting up in time. it certainly took a few weeks to adjust, though.

I haven't started at 9am yet in residency (20 months into it). The latest I ever started was around 8:15. Earliest was right at 5am, and it's usually 5:45 or so....

 

[circulus vitios]

Some people can't get used to mornings. I had to wake up at 6 am from 1st through 12th grade and 5:30 am for work over the summer. I never got used to it and I always hated it.

 

[MossyFiber]

I have a super busy schedule but I still try to exercise, so most nights I'll sleep in the clothes I go jogging in (clean of course) and get up at like 5 AM to go running. So for me, it's 5 AM, wake up, quickly put sneakers on and sprint like hell. After a couple weeks doing this I usually jump out of bed ready to run - it's helped me turn into someone who wakes up a lot faster in the morning. No snoozing and no lingering in bed. I used to do EMS work and got used to waking up with a sudden alarm and having to go run somewhere, so that's helped with the jumping out of bed thing too.

Doing this all the time can get stressful though.

 

[TheMightySmiter]

I didn't see anyone mention this, but have you been evaluated for a sleep disorder?

 

[notbobtrustme]

Best way to be a morning person is to have commitments in the morning. If your job demands you be in by 7:30am, you'll be a morning person real quick (or unemployed).

 

[mika2234]

OP-what is your diet like? For me, eating junk food the day makes me really groggy the next morning, especially eating too many refined carbs (carb coma). A healthy diet (no processed foods, lots of lean protein fruit and veggies) does wonders for my energy levels at all times of the day.

Also, moderate exercise helps with alertness. Try exercising more maybe? Exercising too much can make you chronically tired though so u can't go crazy with it.

It sounds to something in your lifestyle making u not a morning person and finding the right alarm clock/adjusting your sleep cycle won't solve the problem entirely.

 

[ljpm8224]

Natural light in the bedroom is what helped me the most with this.

OP- do you have dark curtains? Replace em for sheer ones, or look into something like window film shields that let light in but allow for some privacy as well:

 

[mvenus929]

When I graduated college, my job pretty much forced me to be up by 6. Regardless of my habits in college, having to wake up at 6 on weekdays for two years has converted me to a bona fire morning person.

Eh. I had to be at work at 5 am most days (we alternated with days off, so I had to work every other weekend). I kept that schedule for almost a year and a half. I switched to nights in my last month on the job, and it took me all of 2 days to completely make the switch and I felt so much better during that month than I ever did during the year and a half I was getting up early.

One thing I read that I really want to try is to condition myself to get up when the alarm goes off. You start by doing it when you're fully awake. Lie down in bed, set the alarm, and get up and go through a short routine several times while you're still awake. Then, start to do it in the morning. Eventually, it's supposed to become second nature, so you may not even be fully awake as you're going through the motions. But at least you're up.