I get the normal 7-8 hours of sleep (10pm or 11pm to 6am) but whenever my alard goes off, I have the hardest time getting myself out of bed. and when i go downstairs to eat some breakfast, I am so groggy that I can hardly find the cereal. Should I be getting more sleep or am I just not a morning person and this can’t be helped?
I’m under the impression that it can’t be helped. I’ve been getting up at 6.30 am for nigh on 18 years straight, and even if I go to bed at 8 the night before my body just refuses to adapt. One would think it would fall into a nice pattern of 8 hours of sleep and being soundly rested in the morning, but no.
So my guess is that you’re screwed, along with me and probably a sizeable part of the world’s population.
Get checked for sleep apnea. Do you snore? You may be waking up during the night numerous times and never fully resting or falling into deep REM sleep.
Also, don’t go to bed with a full stomach and don’t exercise within the last two hours before sleep.
A sleep center can check you for sleep apnea or other sleep disturbances in one night. Check with your doctor or local hospital.
i dont snore and i dont normally eat before i sleep. i would REALLY like to wake up feeling refreshed after 8 hours of sleep.
I’ve been the same way my whole life.
I never thought about sleep apnea before. My dad had it, I wonder if it’s genetic?
i have pretty much the same sleeping hours and i can’t even hear the alarm when it goes off, even though its about 6 inches from my head. It does end up waking everyone else in my house up though and then they come in to tell me to turn it off…so i guess in the end it all works out, but what shall i do when i’m off to college?
You should definitely consult your doctor if you’re groggy / dizzy / confused upon wakening. There are sleep disorders other than sleep apnea that may be to blame. You can get some more information at Talk About Sleep
Do you know what your sleep cycles are? I can wake up feeling great after 4 or 8 hours of sleep, but if I try to get up after only 7½ hours or if I oversleep an hour, I wake up cranky & feel like crap. I discovered this after realizing that I frequently (4/5 nights) wake up in the middle of the night at the 4 hour mark (give or take 10 minutes) feeling pretty good. The only reason I go back to bed is because I feel like I should get a “full” night’s sleep and, uh… what the hell am I gonna do at 2 o’clock in the morning?
A co-worker would fall asleep at his desk. And he’d snore. There was the usual tittering, and after I was made his lead I decided it was my business to talk to him about it. I advised that he see a doctor. He went to the doctor and was diagnosed with sleep apnea. He hooks himself up to a machine every night (I’m not sure what it is, but I get the impression it’s something like a respirator – someone here can give us the Straight Dope) and he hasn’t been tired during the day for the past year.
I have trouble waking up in the morning – as can be seen by some of my early-morning posts! No worries on weekends, though. I seem to be fine as long as I can wake up when it’s light out; but waking up when dawn is still a couple of hours away can be rough. It could be that some people just need a bit of light for their bodies to feel that it’s time to wake up.
on the weekends i go to sleep at about 12 or 1 and try to wake up at 9 or 10…and i almost always feel fine. maybe its because 6am is so early
Yes, Revtim, if your father had sleep apnea, you are at higher risk.