How I Stopped Hitting Snooze All the Time
Maybe you can too…
For decades now, snooze buttons have been an essential feature of an alarm clock. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a physical alarm clock or an app that doesn’t come with a snooze feature. I know plenty of people that hit snooze 2, 3, or even 5 or more times before waking up most mornings.
I used to be one of those people, but for years now I’ve rarely hit the snooze button and almost never more than once. So, what changed things for me and allowed me to break the cycle of snoozing?
I came across the information that the sleep you get after snoozing may not be as restful as normal sleep. That info came across in a YouTube video I found, but here’s an article from the Cleveland Clinic discussing it.
And then I thought to myself if I’m going to hit snooze and sleep 10 or 15 minutes after whenever I set my alarm to, why don’t I just set my alarm that much later in the first place? I could cut out the snoozing sleep which I know isn’t as effective. All it would take is some willpower on my part.
The Hard Part
That’s the hard part… For many of us trying to stop hitting snooze is attempting to break a very ingrained habit.
And while it’s not easy for anyone, skipping the snooze button will be harder for some of us. I found the determination and will to do this for myself, but I also don’t have any sleeping conditions or issues I’m aware of and most nights I’m able to get roughly a full night’s sleep. Much like exercising, it’s no small feat and many of us struggle to get into a new habit.
The point in writing this is for me to share some information and what I found worked for me in hopes that it may help others or at least it might inspire others enough for them to find the best way to make this a reality.
I knew snoozing sleep was less restful and I could realize all the benefits that come from getting more complete sleep. So, I was determined to find it in myself to break the cycle of hitting snooze.
I wanted to make it a point to succeed in this regard, I badly wanted to be the kind of person who was determined enough to achieve this. I hope everyone can find that motivation for themselves.
What Can You Do?
Here are some tips and some of the things I found that helped me, hopefully they can help you too…
Start with Days When You Can Rest the Most
Like we’ve said, it’s not always easy to just set your alarm forward the equivalent of a few snoozes and wake up then instead, especially when you’re most tired. If you set your alarm forward say 15 minutes to the latest you can wake up (aka the latest you can snooze until), then what if you hit snooze once or twice cause it’s a habit and now you’re late for something important?
Days where you can get at least 8 hours, or whatever the minimum you need, or days where you don’t have something hard and fast that you must be awake for, like work, are a great place to start. And if you really are struggling to go without hitting snooze a lot, aiming for a small, easier-achieved victory will hopefully keep your motivation up.
Enlist the Help of Others
I really try to be there to help my family and friends and I definitely ask for help from them. If you’re trying to eliminate snoozes but need to make sure you get up and can’t sleep in, ask a close friend or family member to give you a call sometimes whenever you’re supposed to be up.
For me, I lived with my girlfriend and could ask her to actually wake me in person. Obviously, if you live with someone that you can enlist the help of that’s even better, but don’t be afraid to get help, it’s a temporary crutch. Friends and family can also help keep you accountable.
Don’t Get Discouraged
All is not lost if you manage to skip the snooze button once or twice and then go back to your old ways for a week or a month. You skipped the snooze button once and proved to yourself and others that you can do it. Draw on that knowledge and continue trying again, get back in the habit of trying to skip the snooze button.
For myself, and others I’ve spoken to, the discouragement that comes from “slipping” can really deter you whether it’s a diet or breaking a habit. It’s hard to feel like you took a step back and undid what you worked hard for, but as many people say, success isn’t always linear.
There can be stumbles in the path, there almost always are for anything difficult that you try to achieve. If you have the determination to do this, you can try to draw on that resolve.
We’re going to spend roughly a third of our lives sleeping. The idea of getting better sleep and cutting out less restful sleep was enough for me to find the determination to minimize my snoozing.
It’s not easy to break that habit for many of us, but I hope reading this can provide you with some motivation, and maybe some ideas, if you choose to start trying to cut out the snooze button for yourself.
