which alarm clock do you use?

[Bob2009]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hi, I just started my clinical rotations this week and figure it's time to invest in a new alarm clock. My last, a GE, has lasted 9 years, and with reluctance it's time. Pun intended. The snooze bar has broken off and the minute button on the alarm set is malfunctioning. All the important times it's gotten me up for... job/school interviews, tests, travel... it's sad. Enough with the nostalgia. Any suggestions? (a flux capacitor fxn for time travel would be primo)

 

[deleted87716]

When I was a resident, I used this one (some little Timex thing that I bought at Target or someplace):

I didn't have to worry about power failures screwing things up, since it ran on batteries, and I could throw it in my call bag and use it at the hospital, too. Its extremely shrill, annoying beep was a bonus. 😉

 

[SkylineMD]

i have a dual alarm clock which is a great alarm however for some reason, i just find it too easy to hit the snooze.

For the past few months I have been using my cell phone as an alarm instead. Don't ask why i don't "snooze" it as often as I do my alarm clock because i really don't know why. For some reason it works for me so maybe you can try it out also

 

[arthrodisiac]

i use my cell phone too. the problem with alarm clocks for me now is that if I am tired enough, I will sleep walk to the phone and turn it off. Even if I put the alarm on maximum volume, and I place it in a place that should require me to wake up, like on top of the book case...I will still wake up 4 hours later than I wanted to with the alarm off. So now I put two alarms on in two different places, and so far this has worked for me.

 

[Nikki2002]

when it is important for me to get up, i set 2 alarms. it freaks me out to hear 2 alarms going off at the same time....scares me right out of bed.

 

[Bob2009]

using an alarm clock with a battery is a definite bonus. as for using your cell phone... doesn't the ringtone sound when people call you afterhours?

 

[SLUser11]

I personally require an alarm clock where the "reset" or "off" button is very far away from the snooze button, as I am quite disoriented when I wake up, and I don't want to accidentally turn the stupid thing off.

The harder it is to turn off, the better it is.......

 

[dermpathdoc]

when it is important for me to get up, i set 2 alarms. it freaks me out to hear 2 alarms going off at the same time....scares me right out of bed.

I use an alarm clock called a SONICBOOM it is a mixture of regular alarm clock a very loud booming noise and a vibrator that you put under your bed mattress. While designed for the hearing impaired, it works really well for teenagers who do not wake up for school( I am deaf and it works great for me). There are several versions available and I have both a bedside version and a travel version that operates via battery. Sharper Image sells these.

 

[doctorp82]

I use an alarm clock called a SONICBOOM it is a mixture of regular alarm clock a very loud booming noise and a vibrator that you put under your bed mattress. While designed for the hearing impaired, it works really well for teenagers who do not wake up for school( I am deaf and it works great for me). There are several versions available and I have both a bedside version and a travel version that operates via battery. Sharper Image sells these.

After googling the SonicBoom alarm clock I am thinking this would be the scariest way to wake up ever. That, or I am thinking it is much more startling that it really is.

 

[ChildNeuro]

i use my cell phone too. the problem with alarm clocks for me now is that if I am tired enough, I will sleep walk to the phone and turn it off. Even if I put the alarm on maximum volume, and I place it in a place that should require me to wake up, like on top of the book case...I will still wake up 4 hours later than I wanted to with the alarm off. So now I put two alarms on in two different places, and so far this has worked for me.

I have a TRIPLE fail safe system:

1 digital alarm-clock, battery back-up set at say 5:05 am, away from bed.
Second digital alarm-clock, battery back-up, different model, set at say 5:10 am, away from bed.
I set my cell phone to go off at 5:00 am, and I double-check the settings.

Usually I wake up before any alarm(s) goes off, and sometimes wake up to the cell phone, and it takes me just about 30 seconds to turn them all off.

 

[domer621]

2 alarm clocks across the room from my bed, one with battery backup. 😉

 

[raidermedic]

I read somewhere that it's better to have a soothing sound as your alarm than a monster boom. Had something to do with slowly escaping REM sleep as opposed to being ripped out of it. Unfortunately I use my cell phone which is not pleasant and I have come to hate more than any sound aside from my pager.

 

[Bob2009]

I use an alarm clock called a SONICBOOM it is a mixture of regular alarm clock a very loud booming noise and a vibrator that you put under your bed mattress. While designed for the hearing impaired, it works really well for teenagers who do not wake up for school( I am deaf and it works great for me). There are several versions available and I have both a bedside version and a travel version that operates via battery. Sharper Image sells these.

absolutely incredible idea. I have yet to move into my new apartment and am afraid my upstairs neighbors are of the partying variety... so I would have to wear ear plugs to bed. Alternatively, I thought I could get a digital outlet timer (like what people use for their lights when they travel to make it appear like they're home)... and plug some sort of hyper-sensory contraption into it (vibrating massager, flood lamps).

 

[Creightonite]

I have been screwed around with electric alarms quite a bit. Sometimes, I do not hear them; sometimes they just do not ring (I had a couple cell phones that were set correctly and never rang for whatever reason, the same goes for radio alarms)... here is the only solution. Simple and reliable:

 

[Un Owen]

Once when I was volunteering at a Children's Hospital, I was watching a cartoon with a little girl. The cartoon was about a kid who was having trouble waking up in the morning. In his sleep, he would always turn off his alarm clock when ever it went off. Finally, he solved this issue by keeping his alarm clock a few feet away from his bed (like on a bookshelf). This way, to turn it off, he would have to get up and walk up to the alarm to turn it off. This extra effort helped him "wake up".

I used to have a habit of turning off my alarm clock and sleeping on...and on...😴😴😴

But I've tried keeping my clock away from me, yea it's annoying, but at least I wake up on time now 👍

 

[asdf123]

look up "clocky" on google.

It's an alarm that goes off and runs away from you and hides in a different place every morning. So you have to get your a** up and chase it around the room to shut it off. Works great for me. 😀

 

[cdql]

I have a nasty habit of sleeping through alarm clocks. Or worse, hitting the snooze button over and over again without realizing it.

So I have a regular ole alarm clock that plugs into the wall. And then a battery powered one in case the power goes out. And then a cell phone one. And then one on my Mac. And finally, one on my PDA. Haven't overslept since first year 😉

 

[71263]

I just use my old cell phone, which i keep far out of reach.

 

[HamOnWholeWheat]

Not to hijack or anything, but which finger and on which hand would you recommend turing the alarm clock off with in the morning. I've heard that if you use your dominant index finger, you run the risk of turning it off in your sleep, versus using your non-dominant pinky you're more likely to wake up, but might strain your hand which could hurt your performance if you're on surgery. If someone could let me know their strategy, and how its worked for them in the past, I'd appreciate it. 😍

 

[Agent Splat]

look up "clocky" on google.

It's an alarm that goes off and runs away from you and hides in a different place every morning. So you have to get your a** up and chase it around the room to shut it off. Works great for me. 😀

i want this clock. and I want it badly.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zYO7HNbPl4[/YOUTUBE]

 

[voirlesetoiles]

Are there any alarm clocks that can play music or a radio station? Blaring music would be so much nicer than an annoying tone. Something to reduce the grumpiness, if that's even possible.

 

[Feli]

I like my sunrise alarm clock that gets gradually bighter for a half hour before the buzzer goes off. If you sleep in a dark room, they work nice.

A watch alarm or cell phone alarm across the room is a nice backup on important days (key clerkship, interview, presentation, exam, etc).

 

[deleted109597]

Not to hijack or anything, but which finger and on which hand would you recommend turing the alarm clock off with in the morning. I've heard that if you use your dominant index finger, you run the risk of turning it off in your sleep, versus using your non-dominant pinky you're more likely to wake up, but might strain your hand which could hurt your performance if you're on surgery. If someone could let me know their strategy, and how its worked for them in the past, I'd appreciate it. 😍

How hard are you hitting it to turn it off if you run the risk of hurting your finger?
I usually use my pager and my cellphone, I also have my PDA as backup, it plays a nuclear silo noise. All of them are portable and battery powered, and I have to have them on call anyway.

I used to have a timex that played beach sounds, and I liked waking up to it. When I say beach sounds, the thing that woke me up was my hatred for the sound of the seagulls. Goddamn rats with wings.
It just stopped working one day because it sucked. I only had it a year.

 

[Brian Griffin]

Does anyone else have major anxiety about oversleeping? I just started 3rd year, and even though I've never had major issues falling asleep/waking up in the past, I am kind of a snooze-aholic, and I get majorly nervous every night now that some mishap will occur with my alarms (both of them) and I'll oversleep. Of all the things in 3rd year to be most nervous about, right? ha. But honestly, sometimes I get so obsessive-compulsive about it at night, that I find myself checking and re-checking my alarms over and over again, so much that it sometimes keeps me awake. Anyone have any tips or tricks or "mantras" to relieve the anxiety before falling asleep?

 

[DOctorJay]

http://treoalarm.com/