Tips for Waking Up Consistently??

[JD99]

Is there anyone else out there who just about screams everytime their eyes pop open and the clock glares back at them....telling them it's waaaaaay past when they meant to wake up??
This happens to me waaayyy to much, and the closer to the HSC (and trials) it gets, the more it makes me stress out!
Does anyone have some fool proof techniques for waking up (and actually getting up) when your alarm clock first goes off??

Thanks in advance!!

[sudodds]

Is there anyone else out there who just about screams everytime their eyes pop open and the clock glares back at them....telling them it's waaaaaay past when they meant to wake up??
This happens to me waaayyy to much, and the closer to the HSC (and trials) it gets, the more it makes me stress out!
Does anyone have some fool proof techniques for waking up (and actually getting up) when your alarm clock first goes off??

Thanks in advance!!

I could give you the obvious "go to bed earlier" talk but tbh I didn't even follow my own advice last year hahaha (though if you can do that - DO IT). During the HSC I put my alarm clock on the other side of the room so I'd have to physically get up to turn it off - couldn't just hit the snooze button. This worked for me cos I feel like once you're up, it's easier to "stay up" if that makes sense haha.

[HasibA]

Is there anyone else out there who just about screams everytime their eyes pop open and the clock glares back at them....telling them it's waaaaaay past when they meant to wake up??
This happens to me waaayyy to much, and the closer to the HSC (and trials) it gets, the more it makes me stress out!
Does anyone have some fool proof techniques for waking up (and actually getting up) when your alarm clock first goes off??

Thanks in advance!!

not in the HSC or highschool anymore, but recently ive managed to sleep from 12am+ times to a consistent 10 to 11 by doing some light excercise,walking for around 15 mins, or just having some sort of event that requires me to walk for 10+ minutes. following this, i get home usually between 8 to 10, and the moment im home, i either do some study if i can, if not i get into a relaxed mood and slowly shower, eat something, brush teeth etc. and attempt to go on my phone just as i sleep (i usually use a blue light filter too), and somehow the past month i just fall asleep so quickly my phone drops out of my hand, and i sleep a good uninterrupted 9 or so hours.
this could work for u, or not, just try a bit of everything :p 
edit: realised this wasnt for sleeping earlier. but i guess this in a way allows you to sleep earlier, and wake up easier : p
also, aim to sleep 9,7.5,6 etc hours b/c there's some natural sleep cycle thingo that your body has every 90 or so minutes, and its supposedly easier to wake from the end of the cycle rather than in the middle

[JD99]

Thanks Sudodds and HasibA!!
I'll definitely try some of those techniques! That is very interesting about the sleep cycle thingo...i'll definitely keep that in mind!
@HasibA - the first bit of your post is bit confusing...would you be able to clarify what you mean by "but recently ive managed to sleep from 12am+ times to a consistent 10 to 11 by doing some light excercise,walking for around 15 mins, or just having some sort of event that requires me to walk for 10+ minutes. following this, i get home usually between 8 to 10, and the moment im home,"

thanks again!

[_____]

If you're having trouble actually falling asleep there are studies (I think) that link the white light of computer/phone/tablet screens to sleep deprivation because your body thinks it's daytime when it actually isn't. So you could try getting offline a bit earlier (if you're using technology right before bed) to try and get a bit more sleep. Otherwise there are special phone apps and stuff that force you to wake up by making you take a picture of an object in your house or something like that. Personally that would be too extreme for me lol

[elysepopplewell]

This year I've had the most unreliable sleep schedule of all of my years to date, but I have recently noticed on my iPhone there is the "Bedtime" option in the clock. You answer a few questions, and it gives you a reminder when it's time to go to bed and sets a recurring wake up alarm. I really do think consistency of sleep patterns is key, in my HSC I was meticulous with my sleeping pattern and I think it really paid off - it meant that I knew when my body was exhausted from studying, or when it was exhausted from lack of sleep. I could always tell!

[JD99]

Thanks everyone!!
I tried putting my alarm clock on the other side of the bedroom and it really worked!!! thanks Suddods!! Also, I put a cup of cold water and ice next to it, so when I woke up i had a mouthful and it sure helped!!

[brenden]

Thanks everyone!!
I tried putting my alarm clock on the other side of the bedroom and it really worked!!! thanks Suddods!! Also, I put a cup of cold water and ice next to it, so when I woke up i had a mouthful and it sure helped!!

Haven't actually read the thread but hte cup of cold water is genius. Never tried it but I can imagine how brutal it would be hahaha. Next level tip: keep a bottle in a mini-esky so it's damn near freezing when you drink it

My tip is to have an aim to be in the shower within 30 seconds of your alarm going off. A lot of mornings I'm so fucking tired that I just drape my towel over the shower wall, rest my head on it, and just about get another nap in, but that sense of "pressure" to "go" can help me get out of bed.

No matter what - alarm on the other side of the room, bla bla bla - I'm stupid enough to be able to go back to bed but, pretty hard to do when you're standing in the ol' vertical bathtub!

[Joseph41]

I think routine is big for me.

I'm not sleeping very well at the moment, and it's definitely taking its toll - but part of that is just me being an idiot and not going to bed when really I should.

In Year 12 I was like, mega dedicated to sleeping well, and was really stringent with myself. In the end, I'd be bloody exhausted by like 8.30pm anyway, so it was just the natural thing to do to go to (that was five two-letter words in a row - hectic) bed. And that meant that in the morning, I felt pretty fresh, and had limited issues waking up.

How do you get to that point? Probably small steps. If you go to bed at like 11.30pm now, try to go to bed at 11.20pm the next two nights. Then gradually draw it back, bit by bit. Pretty basic advice (and exactly what sudodds said she wouldn't give you haha :p), but it worked for me! And I also know that's why I'm not sleeping well right now.

Let us know how you go!

[Wales]

I usually do the idea of a VERY loud alarm on the other side of my room or somewhere inaccessible from my bed. That way I have to get up and turn it off.

I have to do my contacts which is at my bedside table Sometimes I end up snuggling back in for a few minutes...

[Joseph41]

I have an alarm on the five minutes, every five minutes - starting two hours before I actually have to get up.

Because I'm an idiot.

[strawberries]

I have an alarm on the five minutes, every five minutes - starting two hours before I actually have to get up.

Because I'm an idiot.

omg haha I do this too!!

[Joseph41]

omg haha I do this too!!

Regrets were had each and every morning.

[heids]

Joseph, I find that so much more stressful... instead I've always just jumped straight out of bed as soon as my alarm goes off. Boom. Done.

That being said, it's about a year since I've got out of bed consistently before 11am (always used to be a 5:30'er), so

[TooLazy]

You don't need to wake up if you don't go to sleep in the first place