Now that the clocks have changed and the evenings are darker, you may be struggling to feel refreshed in the mornings.
According to a sleep specialist, there’s a common habit that could be worsening the issue – despite being extremely tempting when you’re feeling extra tired and the alarm blares.
Many of us hit the snooze button and grab a few extra minutes of sleep in the morning. However, sleep expert Adeel Ul-Haq from Bunk Beds warns that this can have a detrimental impact on your health, reports Surrey Live.
He explained: “An extra five minutes in bed when you first wake up is very tempting, but when we drift off for a few minutes extra it isn’t long enough to enter what we call restorative sleep or REM sleep. This confuses your brain as it thinks it’s going into another sleep cycle, this disruption can cause an increase in heart rate and blood pressure.”
“While you may think that you need an extra five minutes of sleep, instead you are causing fragmented sleep which results in you feeling groggy, irritable and tired for up to four hours after waking up. Instead of hitting the snooze button, get up as soon as your alarm goes off and you will feel much better.”
How to wake up earlier
Although getting out of bed immediately sounds good in theory, putting it into practice is much harder. However, the sleep expert suggests two simple hacks to help you achieve this.
Adeel said: “It’s all about putting your feet on the ground as soon as your alarm goes off. You can either choose to do it voluntarily, as soon as that alarm goes off, sit up turn your body put your feet down on the side of the bed and just sit there for a minute while you come around, or the second way which forces you to get up.”
He continued: “You can set your alarm away from your bed, somewhere so you need to get up and walk over to it to knock it off. When that alarm goes off, take your time, but walk over to it and turn it off, if you need to, stand there for 30 seconds until you come around. By the time you realise what is going on, you won’t feel the need to snooze anymore.”
Emphasising the importance of a “wake-up refresh” routine, Adeel detailed: “Right after you turn off your alarm, drink a glass of cold water. It’s a quick way to wake up your senses and can help you feel more alert almost immediately. Doing this instead of heading back to bed will give your body a gentle boost and make it easier to start your day.”
The sleep guru further advised on the significance of alarm sounds, noting: “Try setting a calm, gradually increasing alarm sound or a soothing piece of music instead of a harsh tone. The gentle wake-up can make a big difference to how you feel when you open your eyes, and you’re less likely to want to hit snooze.”