How to Stop Hitting the Snooze Button

Alarms are supposed to wake us right in time, but the snooze button paved the way to cheat on it.

Photos from Photl.com

The morning world is a problem for the night owls. They aren’t programmed to be awake early in the day so they rely on the blast of alarm clocks. But people hit snooze almost automatically as if the alarm has no use at all. They don’t wake up at the time they’re supposed to.

The snooze button may be the reason for our tardiness masked with drought excuses. There’s a way to fight against the malevolent yet mitigating button.

Set your alarm time further back. When you’re supposed to get up at 6:30, start the alarm at 6:10. With five minutes lapse time, you can hit snooze four times and still be on time.

But sometimes our brain gets wiser than we wanted it. In time, it would learn to disregard the alarm because it’s firing way too early. Snooze after snooze after snooze and then you’re late.

If you think this is you, invest in a flying alarm clock. After you hit the snooze once, the alarm will travel across the room so you won’t know where it is. In the next alarm cycle, you’ll have to stand up and find the alarm to disalarm it. Then you’re awake.

A cheaper alternative is lock the alarm in a box and throw the key across the room. You’d then have to search the key to stop the violating noise.

There are people who could stand up, slip their hands on every space to get the key, open the box but snooze it and still able to drool into sleep. Well, it’s good that they have patience and controlled temper but they’re still late. Supergluing the snooze button may work for them.

What about those that are not bothered by the noise? The sleepyheads who could still dream in the middle of a war?

If this is you, you need help. You could ask a friend to call you so you’ll have to open your phone and let the friend do the screaming (or cussing). Or have your brother wake you up in the morning by plunging boiling water on your face (us brothers will be happy to volunteer).

What helps you overcome the snooze button?

Wildest Daydreams

Daydreaming is one of the best activities.

Photo from Daniel Foster’s flickr

I’ve been a rockstar, an adventurer and my favorite, an FBI agent. Without it, we won’t have something to endure high school mathematics. Or boring seminars.

It’s a source of innovation. I’m an ambitious man and I think of speeding my dream car and holding that check with a long tail of zeros (ahh, that feels so good). It keeps me updated with what I want to have and to be.

There’s almost no room in daydreaming. It is seen as a lazy act because instead of doing something, you just stare blankly while mind is in fantasy. Daydreaming can misidentify fantasy from reality, and that kind is correlated with almost all psychopathological disorders, says the study of Eric Klinger and colleagues.

Don’t be worried, daydreamer. We are all crazy in our own ways; and there is a second component of the same daydreaming study. Enjoyment of imagination, daydreaming and positive-constructive daydreaming isn’t related to any psychopathy. They make “life meaningful”.

Dream big but stay on reality’s ground. Forgive me for divulging Professor Dumbledore in this topic, but what he said secured the essence of what I’m trying to point out. He says, “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live”.

Dreaming is of paramount value in our lives because we’re looking forward and it’s just good by nature. But we have to act on it and continue living. Don’t expect someone to hand your dreams to you.

I have daydreams that are very attainable baby steps that lead to a bigger life goal, and I have daydreams that are just wild – I’ve been the most moody yet badass FBI agent. What’s your wildest daydream?

Source:
Is Daydreaming Pathological?; Psychology Today

 

What if.. You Sleep 2 Hours a Day

Because you can survive with 2 hours of sleep, screw that 8 hours minimum!

Sleeping in Work. Photo from foxnews.com

Sleep is a shitty waste of time. 8 hours of sleep entraps a third of your day and all you do is nothing. That time can be used to consume miles of productivity and/or leisure, but we just lie down and succumb to weakness.

Sleep is important, I know that. It is our natural defense against stress. It regenerates our body cells for optimal function and it feels damn good to be well rested. We cannot take it out entirely, but we can reduce it to save more time.

8 hours of sleep is called the monophasic sleep cycle, and it is very inefficient. In that cycle, we sleep once a day but it doesn’t mean that all the 8 hours are used effectively. Real sleep, the deep trance where we dream and truly begin resting, is happening during REM stage. To get to the REM stage in the 8 hours sleep cycle, we have to remain put and count sheep before we got there.  And once you get to REM stage, it doesn’t last until you wake up. It only amounts to 20% of your 8 hours sleep.

Polyphasic sleep cycles only need 2 hours of sleep, most if not all is in REM stage. It means that there’s no waiting for the dream to visit us because it’ll arrive right away. The dreams you’ll have, reportedly, will be more vivid and you’ll feel relaxed and your mind is more clear every after waking up.

There are four Polyphasic sleep cycles to choose from, which was succinctly explained in HighExistence. Just to give you an idea, there is the Uberman sleep cycle where you sleep 20 – 30 minutes every 4 hours throughout the day. See, you’ll feel refreshed six times a day and you have the whole day freed!

The one caveat is the terrible transition from monophasic to polyphasic. If you shifted to polyphasic, you won’t have REM in your firsts 20 – 30 minutes naps. Your body is not adjusted to the new cycle yet, but in time, your body will learn to have REM on every nap you’ll have. Your body will adapt to the new cycle just like moving to a place in different time zone – it takes a while but it’ll happen. Until your body mastered having REM on every 20 – 30 minute naps, you’ll feel tired because technically, you may not be dreaming.

Not many people have tried this. We don’t know the long term effects of this. There are accounts, people like Steve Pavlina who tried it and reported being totally fine or more than fine after gaining more hours of their lives. Some people visit doctors and remained in full health. The only thing they would caution is during the transition because it’ll be tough.

Honestly, this is enticing. Infants live in a polyphasic sleep cycle but lost it when they grew up as they learned monophasic. But the world adults live in is not ready for it. If you are maintaining a career, you cannot really sleep every 4 hours of work or else get thrown out of your building. I also take calculated risks, and I haven’t learned enough about this 2 hours sleep so I won’t jump to it just yet.

Just imagine the wonders you could do with additional 6 hours everyday! Do you think polyphasic will work for you?

More Moments for you:
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Sources:

Alternative Sleep Cycles: You Don’t Really Need 6-8 Hours! HighExistence

Polyphasic Sleep Log – Day 1; StevePavlina.com

Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep; National Institutes of Health

 

What Your Sleeping Position Says About You

People with the same sleeping position have similar personality characteristics.

Photo from photoXpress

Not everything is needed a thought. You probably don’t notice your sleeping positions.  Like breathing, sleeping is a mandatory physiological habit that you just do.

But we observe other people sleep, right? That is for the sole reason of it being fun. You poke someone with something, then he grunts but you continue the poking and chuckle. Other times you take a picture of a person sleeping, idiotic looking, and showed it to everybody.

You should think about your own sleeping position. The study of Chris Idzikowski, director of the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service in UK, found that these positions can give a hint of a person’s personality, alongside the health concern.

Here’s the meaning of the most popular sleeping positions, directly taken from BBC Health and Men’s Health:

Popular Sleeping Positions. Photo from sweetadditions.net

The Foetus: Those who curl up in the foetus position are described as tough on the outside but sensitive at heart. They may be shy when they first meet somebody, but soon relax. Sleeping on your left side can cause stress on your vital organs (liver, stomach, lungs).

Log: These sleepers are easy going, social people who like being part of the in-crowd, and who are trusting of strangers. However, they may be gullible.

The yearner: People who sleep on their side with both arms out in front are said to have an open nature, but can be suspicious, cynical. They are slow to make up their minds, but once they have taken a decision, they are unlikely ever to change it.

Soldier: People who sleep in this position are generally quiet and reserved. They don’t like a fuss, but set themselves and others high standards. Research shows that sleeping on your back may lead to snoring, trouble breathing, and an overall bad night’s sleep.

Freefall: Often gregarious and brash people, but can be nervy and thin-skinned underneath, and don’t like criticism, or extreme situations. Lying face down is good for digestion.

Starfish: These sleepers make good friends because they are always ready to listen to others, and offer help when needed. They generally don’t like to be the centre of attention. Like the soldier, starfish sleepers are more likely to snore and have breathing problems while they sleep, resulting in a less refreshing night’s sleep.

Do you agree with what your sleeping position says about you?

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Sources:
Sleep position gives personality clue; BBC News
Sleep Health: Men’s Health Spotlight; Men’s Health