I've always been a night owl. I don't really pay attention to what time it is, I just let my body rest whenever it deems fit. Generally, if I lay down and try to go to sleep my mind is on total overdrive and it takes a good hour to stop tossing and turning. Then again, there are nights when that screwdriver kicks in extra hard and I end up in the sack at 9 only to wake up, wide awake at 3:30. I'm not generally a fan of turning in at 9, but being able to get up that early and get two loads of laundry done, a weekend of dishes, all Monday paperwork for work, as well as clean most of the house even before I have to go to work is awesome.
The question is, how do you early risers go about getting up at the crack of dawn AND (now, this is key) making good use of that time? I can't work out in the mornings (toooo stiff, but that's a different issue) and most of the time I'm too tired/lazy to make a cup of coffee, not to mention it takes a while to kick in so I just go back to bed anyway. How do you do it? I'd really like to become a morning person, I just like sleep so much :)
Jarvicious, I completely feel you on this one. I am a complete night owl, too, and love to sleep in. Many years ago, I worked the 2nd shift in a loan processing center (2:30PM to 11PM). I totally loved the schedule - stayed up as late as I wanted and slept in (at least till 1:30 pm).
Fast forward to present. I recently took on a new job, supporting the East coast operations while staying on the West coast. That means starting work at 6am and 5am on Mondays (today) for an early meeting. I struggled mightly adjusting to the new schedule. Couldn't go to bed early enough and getting up was painful.
Anyway, I treated this like jetlagging. To "switch over", I just continue to get up at the time I need to get up in the morning. After a week or so, you will natrually feel tired at a certain time at night becuase your brain simply needs to catch up on sleep. It will be exhausting for a little bit but you will just get used to it.
Now I wake up at 7am on the weekend when I used to sleep in till 10 or 11. I hate it. I like sleeping too much to get up at the crack of dawn on my day of rest.
I have two dogs that know its time to go for the walk when the sky starts to get light. They come over to the bed and I can feel them looking at me. During the winter it means I sleep in until just past 7 sometimes. But around July it's more like 5:30 or 6:00.
So get two dogs.
Get a bulldogge. my male gets me up like clockwork at 6:05.
as for being productive. I've always got something to putter at if I don't have to work
Have a kid. They'll quickly break you of your sleep-in habits! [laugh]
No other avice though. Getting up earlier than when you naturally wake up sucks. I'm used to it, but it still sucks. I've heard the alarm clocks that slowly turn on a light with the alarm help...but no FHE.
Alarm clock positioned across the room, so you have to get out of bed to turn it off.
Set schedule.
Parents who were coffee nuts to the point that you're sure your blood contains a percentage of natural caffeine.
My day starts like this:
5:30am - Alarm goes off. Hit snooze.
5:40am - Hit snooze.
5:50am - Hit snooze.
6:00am - Curse the cold and darkness and pry my ass out of bed. Piss. Start coffee.
6:10am - Get dressed. Putter about.
6:30am - Brush my teeth while standing at my front door watching the sunrise over the Pacific. Marvel at the wonders of nature.
6:33am - Curse the sunrise and long for the day I never have to see one again.
6:35am - Pack up the laptop and put on shoes.
6:45am - Let the chickens out and get on the road.
I hate getting up this early and have absolutely no advice to give on how to make it productive. My advice would be to avoid it all costs. It leads to getting up at the crack of dawn even on your off days. And that sucks.
sac
/oddly my dogs don't usually start begging to go out when I get up. They are more than happy to take my nice warm spot on the bed and snuggle up to the wife for another hour or two.
I've always been a morning person. It is not that it is easy for me to get up in the morning, I've always thought that the fun things were daytime activities. I like riding in the cool of the morning. Fishing is usually best in the morning or evening. If your going to climb, hike, kayak, ski, hang-glide, etc. your going to have to get up early on your days off. If your going to do something fun, it makes it easier to get up early.
I live on the west coast, and work east coast hours, not a morning person by choice, but I have a pretty good "body clock" so this may or may not help you - when I have to get up earlier than normal (alarm is normally set for 4:20 am), or am going to bed "late", i look at my clock after laying down and then "think/visualize" what time I need to get up/alarm go off in the a.m.
Doesnt help if you sleep in on weekends.
try to keep the same schedule.
drink a big glass of water before bed and when you get up to pee...just get up.
8)
I have no clock anymore...my job has "globalized" me
work, play and sleep are pretty much interwoven in a mix of 4 to 8 hour increments....
you do what you can in the hours they make the best sense
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 24, 2011, 09:55:57 AM
Doesnt help if you sleep in on weekends.
try to keep the same schedule.
drink a big glass of water before bed and when you get up to pee...just get up.
8)
+1 except for the glass of water. If I do that I'll be up at 1:30!
Quote from: Sắc Dục on January 24, 2011, 09:38:49 AM
5/oddly my dogs don't usually start begging to go out when I get up. They are more than happy to take my nice warm spot on the bed and snuggle up to the wife for another hour or two.
If they knew there might be a Rabbit, or a Deer, or Marmut, or a Skunk or something, they would want to go out.
I have ADHD, i sleep maybe 4-5 hours a night even if dead tired. When i hit the sack it takes me about 2-3 hours to go to sleep cause my mind is on crack.i can wake up at a snap casue i hate sleeping.
i tried drugs but nothing is better than sleeping on ritalin or alcohol. Alcohol is cheaper.
this post isnt helpful. lol
motivation is key though. if you have nop reason to wake up and ur tired. there is no reason for you to wake up and u stay in bed.
I'm always tired but can neber get more then 6hrs of sleep.. anymore and I'm even more tired.. I wake up pretty easy most times, it helps me when the baby wakes up at 330 n 530-630 everyday.. I love to sleep thgh but can't and hate to on weekends.. id rather get up early, which I always am the first one up in the house no matter wat time I fall to sleep.. some times you just gotta suck it up to get things done..
Can't help you. I have the same problem. That's why I pick the night shift and sleep from 800 to 330 on my work days. I sleep until 10 or 11AM on my days off. I worked the day shift for two years and could never get used to getting up at 0430. I just can't go to sleep at 8PM.
Between 3:20 and 3:30 AM every morning, without fail, my big orange tomcat decides that it's time to saunter up and lick my forehead. Repeatedly.
Which is great, since I don't officially get up for work until 5:30.
And cat tongues are so soft and gentle on your face.
I think I'm going to try the schedule thing, though seeing as how it's 5pm and I just finished a cup of coffee, this may be a problem :) Like I said, I really enjoy getting up early and I really enjoy the cool (read COLD AS HELL) morning air and all that, but I'm usually so groggy and out of it that it's not really enjoyable with the exception of this morning where I woke up at 3:30 wide awake. Unfortunately, my dog is of no use. Hell, I can get up, start the coffee, shower and screw around online and then go poke him a couple of times before he wakes up. Spoiled 13 pound rat.
I tried the water thing, but cold water isn't really the best thing for puting the body to sleep. Maybe I can get as addicted to a warm tea regimen as I am to my morning coffee regimen. I'm a man of many vices :) The booze works sometimes, but most of the time I just get distracted online or playing guitar or something and before I realize it, it's past midnight. I miss having a GF that wakes up at 6 too. That made mornings a whole lot easier.
I get up every weekday at 3:30am, I am not a morning person but force myself up. My mind wakes up maybe an hour into my commute and that's when I figure out what I forgot that morning.... lunch maybe, pants hopefully not.
Do like I do. I'm just a freaking insomniac. Yup. Get to bed a 1AM after having drinks? Body wants out of the bed at 7, no negotiations. When the stove fan went out at 2AM? I was wide awake, had it rebuilt and back in the stove by 3AM. Tried to sleep the rest of the night, and dozed off sometime after 4AM for my 6AM alarm.
I too suffer from the "overdrive" mind. I've not found a reliable fix. Sleeping pills? F'ing torture. Body is asleep, but my brain is awake and I can barely move. Do you know what that feels like to someone that has issues being restrained?
Rum? Sometimes work, other times the sugar fuels my ADHD so I can't even find the bed.
Vodka? Overheats me. I wake up a couple hours later COOKING in the bed.
Bourbon? Crazy-ass dreams. Worse than normal (normal for me involves split realities, realism, and violence.
Whisky? Calmest with best results, but often results in the overheat like Vodka.
Whiskey? Same thing as whisky.
Best results? Drink some tea or something, take at least 30 minutes to relax prior to going to bed.
JM
1) get up really early in the morning (say 4:30 or so)
2) work a REALLY HARD LONG day (at least 16 hours)
3) pass out from exhaustion by 10pm
takes a little getting used to, but it works.
Tea is the name of the game. I'm going to try and go back to the gym a little more often too. I always sleep better the day after some good exercise. Easier said than done, I have a feeling. I try and play hockey Tuesdays, but it doesn't even start until 9. hmmmm
Shameless alum plug, btw :) The tea was just hanging out in the cupboard, but I'm sure it's sleepy something or other. You know. The minty stuff.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y239/Jervisaurus/DSC01708.jpg)
Some warm chocolate milk..
My ex had some TIG OL BITTIES. I slept pretty good for that year.
I'm not a morning person at all, so the only thing that works for me is a set schedule. My last job had me up at 4:15 to be at work at 5:15. Myself, the other foremen and the management would get there 45 mins early to make the beast with two backs around/bullshit over cigarettes and coffee. After my morning ritual of 5-6 smokes and a grape NOS, I was usually awake and felt pretty good. It was rough at first, but after 2-3 weeks, it was no big deal. Was usually in bed by 10pm, only because I would fall asleep at the computer by 9-ish. But it finally got programmed in my head, so that I would always wake up 5 mins before my alarm went off.
Now that I've been jobless for 2 months, I go to bed between 2-4am and get up around 9-10.
Something else you may want to try... I've kicked caffeine a few times, for up to 18 months at a time and I can say that made the biggest difference in my sleep habits. I normally wake up 5-10 times a night, mostly tossing and turning. Without the caffeine, I generally sleep straight thru the night. And that makes a huge difference in how you feel in the AM.
7:15 and was awake [thumbsup]. It probably helped that I had a crit call that the help desk kept badgering me about (four make the beast with two backsin phone calls. You'd think that after you didn't pick up the first few they would just quit).
As far as caffiene goes, I get one cup a day and it's an Americano so there's not even as much caffiene as a cup of drip coffee. Speaking of which.....
Oh, and lol
Quote from: He Man on January 24, 2011, 10:57:20 PM
My ex had some TIG OL BITTIES. I slept pretty good for that year.
good to know I have company. 8) I try not to drink coffee after 3 in the afternoon although I don't think that shit helps me any since I can go on 8 cups a day with no ill effect - at least I think.
I tried everything including ambien and lunesta, both of which I have to double the dose to put me down. Unfortunately I have a very high tolerance for medicine so the Doc gave me some Trazodone and vuala.....out like a light. It's cheap too.
My wife is an insomniac so I subscribe to a Webmd newsletter on sleep disorders. (Don't ask why it is me that subscribes, not my wife :-X). I've learned a great deal from it. A few tips are that caffeine stays in your system a long time so stop drinking it early in the morning. Those who think they are sleeping on caffeine are not getting as restful nights sleep as they could. Even if you can sleep on it, it reduces your REM (not the band, rapid eye movement) sleep. REM sleep is what you really need to feel rested. Other things you can do is not sleep with pets, Make your bedroom conducive to a good nights sleep. Make it dark and only sleep and sex in the bedroom. Rebuild your DUC in the kitchen not the bedroom. If your mattress is over 10 years old, consider getting a new one. Eat early in the evening. Alcohol will help you pass out but not get you a good nights sleep. Alcohol is not conducive to REM sleep. Don't nap but if you do make them short. Hope this helps and do a search on Webmd for sleep disorders or insomnia.
I'm pretty sure I'd be ok with it if it reduced my REM (the band, not the sleep cycle).
I didn't know cafeine stayed in the system that long, but it's good to know. Like I said, I've been doing the one cup a day thing for quite a few months, and I don't drink pop (or soda, if you will) so hopefully cafeine won't be an issue.
Quote from: Sắc Dục on January 24, 2011, 09:38:49 AM
6:30am - ...while standing at my front door watching the sunrise over the Pacific.
???
You live in California. Right?
Quote from: Rameses on January 25, 2011, 04:39:11 PM
???
You live in California. Right?
he's living his life in reverse
Quote from: akmnstr on January 25, 2011, 04:01:33 PM
My wife is an insomniac so I subscribe to a Webmd newsletter on sleep disorders. (Don't ask why it is me that subscribes, not my wife :-X). I've learned a great deal from it. A few tips are that caffeine stays in your system a long time so stop drinking it early in the morning. Those who think they are sleeping on caffeine are not getting as restful nights sleep as they could. Even if you can sleep on it, it reduces your REM (not the band, rapid eye movement) sleep. REM sleep is what you really need to feel rested. Other things you can do is not sleep with pets, Make your bedroom conducive to a good nights sleep. Make it dark and only sleep and sex in the bedroom. Rebuild your DUC in the kitchen not the bedroom. If your mattress is over 10 years old, consider getting a new one. Eat early in the evening. Alcohol will help you pass out but not get you a good nights sleep. Alcohol is not conducive to REM sleep. Don't nap but if you do make them short. Hope this helps and do a search on Webmd for sleep disorders or insomnia.
good post right here in regards to caffeine and alcohol. Lots of folks can fall asleep fine with caffeine in their system, but usually don't sleep well throughout the night. I've found by limiting my coffee to a couple cups in the morning and none after noon has made a huge difference.
When my girlfriend and I moved in together she could never get to sleep before 1pm and had to be up by 5 am. After a few days observation the problem was solved fairly quickly. Getting her to stop puttering after 8:00pm, turn off the computer and turn down or off most of the lights in the house turned her from a night owl to an early to bed person fairly quick. Many people simply keep themselves too stimulated with lights, electronics and things to do in the evening to give their brain a chance to shut down and prepare for bed.
It sounds simple, but it works really well.
Pitbull, good point about quieting down before going to bed. I find if I watch an exciting basketball game just before going to sleep it takes me a long time to settle down and fall asleep. And your observation agrees with what doctors recommend in the newsletter that I receive.
I've been trying to give myself an excuse to wake up early, seeing as how normally I can justify sleeping for almost any reason
This morning's pros:
-waking up early enough to pick up coffee before work (I'm out at home) at a leisurely pace.
-waking up early enough to throw my pants in the dryer before I head to work. Captain Toasty Pants!!!
Quote from: Jarvicious on January 26, 2011, 06:23:01 AM
I've been trying to give myself an excuse to wake up early, seeing as how normally I can justify sleeping for almost any reason
This morning's pros:
-waking up early enough to pick up coffee before work (I'm out at home) at a leisurely pace.
-waking up early enough to throw my pants in the dryer before I head to work. Captain Toasty Pants!!!
[thumbsup]
Toasty socks go quite well with the toasty pants.
Quote from: akmnstr on January 25, 2011, 07:39:05 PM
Pitbull, good point about quieting down before going to bed. I find if I watch an exciting basketball game just before going to sleep it takes me a long time to settle down and fall asleep. And your observation agrees with what doctors recommend in the newsletter that I receive.
yeah..............the worst for me is a actually being active too late. Because hockey is so popular up here in Canada, many men's leagues can only rent ice time later in the evening. I used to find even a 9-10pm game would keep me up well past midnight. I'm fortunate now that I play in a firefighter leauge that has it's games in the morning, which works out great.
Quote from: Rameses on January 25, 2011, 04:39:11 PM
???
You live in California. Right?
I as wondering if someone as going to catch that. But it is true. Due to some strange coast line geography I can stand at my front door and watch the sunrise over the water and then go to my favorite beach that evening and watch it go down over the water. Its kinda cool.
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=santa+barbara+ca&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=32.252269,62.490234&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Santa+Barbara,+California&ll=34.413708,-119.63356&spn=0.277569,0.617294&z=11 (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=santa+barbara+ca&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=32.252269,62.490234&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Santa+Barbara,+California&ll=34.413708,-119.63356&spn=0.277569,0.617294&z=11)
The coast line of CA is shaped like this:
|
\
I live on the loer half here the coast line faces sw not due west.
Zoom into the Santa Barbara area and you'll see the coast line turn another 45 degrees like this:
\_
\
So no you're facing due south. Zoom in a bit further on that flat east-est section and the coastline turns another 45 degrees.
_
_/
So now you are looking southeast. This creates a natural harbor (which is why Santa Barbara as settled in the first place, in addition to the Islands being a great place for smugglers to hang out. And this is how I get to watch the sunrise over the pacific from the est coast.
TADA!
sac
you might also learn some breathing relaxation meditation.
(bear with me)
by concentrating on your breathing, you can learn to turn off your inner monologue if its thinking about stuff that is keeping you awake
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 26, 2011, 10:00:44 AM
you might also learn some breathing relaxation meditation.
(bear with me)
by concentrating on your breathing, you can learn to turn off your inner monologue if its thinking about stuff that is keeping you awake
+ 100
I usually avoid talking about meditation as it often triggers people's hate for new agey ideas, but I couldn't agree with you more.
meditation and reading lots of buddhist philosophy (although I wouldn't label myself a buddhist) has gone further to relieving stress in my life than anything else. And with less stress comes less mental chatter for me, and a much easier time falling asleep.
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 26, 2011, 10:00:44 AM
you might also learn some breathing relaxation meditation.
(bear with me)
by concentrating on your breathing, you can learn to turn off your inner monologue if its thinking about stuff that is keeping you awake
I am not too big on sleep, but I would really like to be. I'd say I avg about 5 hrs and it is never relaxing or refreshing. For some reason I feel like I get my best work done between 9pm to midnight and it takes a while to wind down afterwards.
I have recently tried the breathing/ meditation thing and it has worked well when I remember to do it. Once in a while I will even go so far as to do a couple of aums while laying down.
I have also tried sleeping pills and booze, respectively and simultaneously and they are both horrible. There will be plenty of time to sleep when I'm dead I guess...
the less sleep u get while ur alive, the sooner ull be sleeping when dead.
a lil booze always helps me get going. I find that after i metabolize the alcohol, i ALWAYS feel sleepy after sobering up.
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 26, 2011, 10:00:44 AM
you might also learn some breathing relaxation meditation.
(bear with me)
by concentrating on your breathing, you can learn to turn off your inner monologue if its thinking about stuff that is keeping you awake
[/quote
That's definitely been part of the ritual, for the last couple of months actually. It doesn't matter, however, if you do it but don't really mean it :)
I've also been trying to use the method my mom taught me when I was little. You lay down, and concentrate on your toes. You relax your toes, then you work your way up your body relaxing each part as you go. It's basically the same principal as deep breathing. As long as you take your mind off the fact that you're trying to fall asleep, you'll fall asleep.
Too bad I make the beast with two backsed up this evening's chi with band practice. Nothing gets you ready for sleep like some good old fashion, ear numbing rock and roll :) We'll see how tomorow fairs. I've found that this whole "lifestyle change" is easy in the short run, but overall difficult to maintain.