30 Days to Better Sleep: Get Rid of the Alarm Clock

For as long as you can remember, it has been the first thing you look at in the morning: the alarm clock. It is a symbol of obligation, intrusion of responsibility, and a marker of the modern working life. One of the highlights of retirement may be finally getting rid of it. What if you could hit the snooze for good? How is an alarm clock affecting your ability to sleep and wake feeling rested? Consider whether it may be time to get rid of the alarm clock. What does it mean to use an alarm clock? At its foundation, the implication is that you need to wake up at a certain time, probably before you would naturally wake on your own, and that you wouldn't without a prompting. If you trusted that you would wake up with time to spare, you wouldn't set an alarm. Instead, if left to its own devices your body is likely to keep sleeping, making you late for work or other obligations. Therefore, by waking with an alarm, you are shortening your total sleep time. The consequence of waking with an alarm is sleep deprivation. If you had your fill of sleep, you would be waking before your alarm even goes off. Instead, you are trying to continue sleeping when the alarm prompts you to arise with a buzz, blare, or musical interlude. How much longer would you have slept? You might get a glimpse of the answer by how many times you hit the snooze button. Better still would be the days that you turn it off completely or don't turn it on to begin with, such as a weekend on which you can sleep in. ...
Source: About Sleep Disorders - Category: Sleep Medicine Source Type: news