5 tips to prevent sleeping through your alarm
Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, recently slept through a very important business dinner. According to The Wall Street Journal:
Interpublic Group arranged a private dinner at the swanky L’Oasis for Ms. Mayer to meet executives from marketers such as Mondelez International, brewer MillerCoors and Greek yogurt maker Chobani…But Ms. Mayer was nearly two hours late, and several dinner attendees including IPG Chief Executive Michael Roth ended up leaving before she arrived, people familiar with the matter said.
Ms. Mayer told some attendees that she had fallen asleep, some of the people said.
And this isn’t the first time Mayer has been late for something important. She is notoriously known for being tardy for business meetings. Mayer is clearly a brilliant woman but this problem she has is definitely not helping her. Oversleeping can happen to the best of us so here are a few tips to help prevent you from developing a problem.
Make your morning routine a happy time.
Mornings can be very hard for many people. If you make it more enjoyable though, you will look forward to waking up more. Plan a workout with a buddy or a really fun outfit. Maybe put on some sweet tunes when you wake up?
If you take a nap, don’t let it be a long one.
Mayer was probably trying to catch up on sleep as it was late in the day. She was attempting a power nap possibly, but the whole point of a power nap is that it is short. You should aim for 10-30 minutes tops. If it is longer than that you can fall into deep REM sleep which will make it harder to wake up and make you groggy.
Do not hit snooze!
You may think that a little extra sleep will help you feel better when you finally get up but actually it will make you feel worse. According to ASAP Science, when you hit snooze (whether when you are waking up for the day or after a nap), your brain goes back into the sleep cycle. If you then hit snooze again, your brain goes even deeper into the cycle. When you finally awake you will feel super groggy as opposed to energized and ready to take on the day.
Be consistent with your wake-up times.
This may be tough for some people but try to be consistent as possible when it comes to your wake up time. According to WomentoWomen.com, the hypothalamus controls your inner circadian clock, which in turn regulates adrenal hormone levels including cortisol. Basically, your body has a system that monitors time, including seasonal changes and changes in light during the day and night. That system works with your adrenal glands to determine when it is time for you to sleep, and when it is time for you to be awake.
The ACTH hormone and cortisol naturally want to spike when your body thinks it should wake up. If you have a consistent wake up time, then these hormones will start to give you a natural rush of energy, therefore acting as your inner alarm clock.
Accept that you just have to wake up.
Your bed is better than anything in the world but we have to go out and face the world. Nothing is going to close your office (except for a weather disaster) so just accept that you are going to work one way or another. And eventually you would get bored in your bed. Well, maybe not right away but eventually.
A study also found that if you anticipate when you have to wake up, it will be easier. Researchers took two groups of volunteers and told one group they would be waking up at 6 a.m., then told the other they would be waking up at 9 a.m. The group that knew they were waking up at 6 a.m. started to show activity in their ACTH levels starting at 5 a.m. The 9 a.m. group was woken up at 6 a.m. as well, but their ACTH levels stayed low even after they got up.
