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SearchAre you constantly hitting the snooze button in the morning? A sleep expert goes over why sticking to one alarm is ideal.
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CLEVELAND - How many alarms do you set to wake up in the morning?
If the answer is more than one, that’s not ideal for your overall sleep quality.
“My general advice is that you set one alarm. The more alarms you have, the harder it's going to be for you to wake up in the morning,” explained Alicia Roth, PhD, sleep psychologist for Cleveland Clinic.
The more times you hit the snooze button, the more you’re interrupting your sleep cycle.
Dr. Roth stressed it’s best to set your alarm for the time you actually have to wake up.
If you’re used to multiple alarms, Dr. Roth said it’s OK to slowly work your way down to one over time.
You can also try setting up your alarm clock so that you have to get out of bed to shut it off.
Keeping your sleep schedule on the weekends the same as during the week can be helpful as well.
“A lot of us have a tendency to go to bed and wake up later on the weekends than on weekdays,” Dr. Roth said. “This makes it really difficult to wake up on Monday morning and prompts us to have multiple alarms or snoozes.”
Dr. Roth added an underlying sleep disorder could be the reason you find it difficult to pull yourself away from the sheets in the morning.
If this is a recurring issue and starting to impact your everyday life, Dr. Roth said it may be time to see a sleep specialist.
