# I guess I know why I haven't been getting up. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 15, 2009, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950 "2009-10-15T20:20:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/41 "2009-10-17T22:07:53Z")
> [@pbbth](#): > > [It already exsists!](http://www.seriouseats.com/2008/07/wake-n-bacon-alarm-clock-the-best-sleepending.html) Aww, MAN! Sorry, **Anaamika**. I was hoping you could make some money from that idea. Now, to go figure out how to get one… ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/42 "2009-10-17T23:50:51Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > If you are over sleeping by 5 hours, I suggest you go to bed earlier. I have been waking up at 5:30 for twenty years. I don’t even really need the alarm clock anymore, I just open my eyes every morning to see “5:29” in glowing red. I also get up at 5:30am for work, but I’m only really half-awake and need the alarm to realize it’s time to get up not the middle of the night (morning darkness doesn’t exactly help). I’ll still wake up about 5:30 on my days off, but only to pee. Then I’ll go back to sleep for another 3 hours. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/43 "2009-10-19T22:52:57Z")
Between insomnia, a roommate who’s snoring can be heard across the hall, and trouble sleeping at night, I can’t rely on a normal alarm. I use my cell phone. It has 5 available alarms. The first 4, I set for different tones and different start times. I change the times every day, since I never need to be up at the same time. I also alternate their order and the duration between them so I can’t get adjusted to any system. The 5th though, that’s the kicker. It’s the “walk the dog” alarm. Seriously. I beeps and barks at the same time. It’s so damn obnoxious. I’ve managed to sleep through it twice, but both times I hadn’t actually fallen asleep until just before it was set to go off. Both times, my roommate heard it across the condo - over his snoring and his own alarm and came to turn it off - neglecting to wake me up in the process. I don’t know if this alarm is just for sprint phones, or just on the Lotus but if you have it and need the help, definitely use it. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/44 "2009-10-19T23:08:19Z")
> [@The\_Bith\_Shuffle](#): > > I’ve missed a few hours of work and several classes in the past week because I haven’t been getting up on time. At first, I assumed that my alarm had been malfunctioning. Then I thought that maybe I wasn’t pressing the “alarm” pin down when I went to sleep. > > But last night, as I was in bed, I glanced at my alarm and saw - for sure - that it was set for 8:30 AM. Yet I woke up at 1:00 PM today. And when I looked at the alarm clock, the pin was in the “off” position. > > The only reasonable conclusion I can think of is that I have become so adept at turning off my alarm clock that I simply do not remember turning it off. I do not remember turning my alarm clock off last night - not even a ghost of a ghost of a memory. Nothing. But the evidence is right there: last night it was down, now it is up, and I have no memory of touching my alarm. > > Oh Lord… You’re supposed to say there was a separate knob for the radio alarm. Then pick up your alarm and say “Why separate knob, why?” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/45 "2009-10-20T16:28:55Z")
boy if I had garage I’d make an alarm clock that make a cup of coffee AND BACON!!! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/46 "2009-10-20T17:40:40Z")
I never use an alarm unless I have to get up super early to catch a flight or something. I read somewhere that IF you need an alarm at all, you’re not getting enough sleep. When you have rested, you just wake up. Normally, I just wake up. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/47 "2009-10-20T20:12:20Z")
**Lanzy** , exactly. The problem isn’t finding a louder alarm clock. These guys still just aren’t getting enough sleep. Hope nobody here is, like, an air traffic controller or something… ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/48 "2009-10-20T21:59:46Z")
> [@The\_Bith\_Shuffle](#): > > The only reasonable conclusion I can think of is that I have become so adept at turning off my alarm clock that I simply do not remember turning it off. I do not remember turning my alarm clock off last night - not even a ghost of a ghost of a memory. Nothing. But the evidence is right there: last night it was down, now it is up, and I have no memory of touching my alarm. I do this as well. My solution is to set TWO alarm clocks - I have a clock radio and I set the alarm in my cell phone as well - and put them both out of arm’s reach from my bed. It’s a system that usually works pretty well for me. It doesn’t actually get me going any faster in the mornings, sadly - I still spend an hour plodding around before I’m fully awake. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/49 "2009-10-20T22:51:10Z")
Drink a pint of water before you go to bed. You won’t oversleep by 5 hours, almost guaranteed. I’m going to go against the flow and say maybe you _don’t_ need more sleep. Maybe you need a more rigid routine, and a bit more determination to peel yourself off the pillow. It seems unlikely (to me at least) that you need 5 more hours of sleep than you are already getting. I put my alarm clock across the room at the bottom of my laundry sack when I was at college - by the time I had stumbled across the room to it and found it and turned it off, there was no excuse to go back to bed. ---
**Author:** ![Henrichek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5daacb/32.png) [@Henrichek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Henrichek)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/50 "2009-10-20T23:26:19Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > I recommend putting the alarm clock on the other side of the room, which will force you to get out of bed and go turn it off. As **Mama Zappa** mentioned, this is not enough for some of us. I can easily walk across the room and turn off my alarm unconsciously, at least without any memory of it whatsoever. It is actually quite scary, as you might start doubting your sanity, or if the alarm even starts at all, but with the number of alarm clocks I’ve had through the years, I seriously doubt the problem lies with unreliable electronics. I seem to remember reading that it generally takes some time after waking for memories to start “recording”, and that this time is long enough to allow for an adventure across the room to turn off the alarm and crawl back to bed to resume sleep, and wake up later with _absolutely_ no memory of doing it. I should put up a camera that records my actions as the alarm goes off, that might be an interesting behavioral study. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/51 "2009-10-20T23:29:29Z")
So hang it from a string suspended from the ceiling, then move the only chair to the other side of the room, or something. There must be _some_ series of obstacles you can set yourself that can’t be completed with you still in a stupor. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/52 "2009-10-21T00:28:12Z")
I have to endorse the idea that you’re going to bed to late, or having some sleep issue. Oversleeping like that is hard to do. I have pointedly had a big drink of water when I knew I had to get up early, and it helps. My phone is set to trill every 10 seconds for 50 times until I get to it. That works for me. Or I set the stereo to play at a certain time, which of course keeps changing in content and volume. Most people can’t stay asleep if someone starts talking in normal tones right next to their head, as it were. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/53 "2009-10-21T05:51:33Z")
Yes, you are turning it off with no memory of it. I recommend putting it on the other side of the room, and then a second one for five minutes after the first one that is behind some furniture. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/54 "2009-10-21T07:37:51Z")
you can create some really interesting alarm sounds with a computer based alarm clock. there are lots of free ones out there. I had one that started out super quiet, just ocean waves that gradually got louder over about 15 minutes then it would switch to something a bit more energetic for around 10, then some song or other sound that would wake me up. as others have posted changing things up is a good plan as well. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/55 "2009-10-21T10:42:53Z")
The alarm clock model and ‘get more sleep advice’ are good, but I’m reiterating what a few others have said - sleeping until **5 pm** when you’re supposed to get up at 8:30 am is not normal under any conceivable definition. Either the OP is trying to get by on a couple hours of sleep or there is something going on that should be checked out by a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/56 "2009-10-21T13:32:25Z")
To make sure I woke up for important stuff, like the bar exam, I devised the harshest alarm clock ever. First: get an appliance timer, and set it to turn on at the designated wake up time. Second: plug the vacuum into the timer, and place it near the bed. That’ll get your butt up and moving, lemme tell ya. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2009, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950/57 "2009-10-21T15:01:35Z")
> [@Mahna\_Mahna](#): > > Two, I somehow acquired a pesky whiny cat who won’t stop at anything to wake me up when she wants breakfast. She’s even been known to french kiss me if I’m unwise enough to sleep with my mouth open. No, that was actually your cat attempting to suck the life out of you. At least, that’s what my grandmother believed. Thank goodness you’re still with us. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-i-know-why-i-havent-been-getting-up/513950.md?page=2)