Waking Up is Hard to Do

Have you seen the recent commercial that shows the man fighting to wake up? We hear his inner voice complaining about being tired. He stumbles to the kitchen and drinks a small bottle of 5-Hour Energy and is ready to take on the day.

That may be one way of starting your morning. But, when waking up is hard to do it is likely you’re not getting a good night’s sleep. We’ve all experienced this at one time or another—some experience it every morning. It’s called sleep inertia and it’s the irresistible desire to go back to sleep upon waking. Even after you wake up you can feel groggy and be unable to function well.

Average adults need eight hours of sleep. To overcome sleep inertia it can be a good idea to put some helpful habits in place. Dr. Brandon Peters, a contributor on About.com, offers these guidelines:

• Get up and go to bed at the same time every day, even on weekends.
• Sleep in a quiet, dark, cool and comfortable bedroom.
• Make your bedroom for sleeping and sex—nothing else.
• Avoid caffeine, alcohol and nicotine four to six hours before bedtime.
• Skip the nap.
• Exercise every day, but avoid exercising four hours before bedtime.
• Develop sleep rituals 15 minutes before bedtime…reading is a good one.
• Don’t eat or drink during the few hours before bedtime.
• Make sleep a priority.
  

Drinking your caffeine in the morning may wake you up, but the best solution for waking up in the morning is getting a good night’s sleep.