If you're one of those people who snoozes their alarm countless times before actually waking up in the morning, you're not alone.
Although it's tempting to fall back asleep for a few minutes after your alarm goes off, the sleep you get while snoozing may not be so restful after all — and could even be detrimental to your overall sleep quality.
TODAY.com previously spoke to Rebecca Robbins, Ph.D., sleep scientist Brigham and Women’s Hospital and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, about the effects of snoozing and the optimal time to set your alarm in the morning.
Expert Tip of the Day: Set Your Alarm for the Latest Time Possible
"A simple step to overcome (hitting the snooze button) is to set your alarm for the latest realistic time that you can wake up before you need to get where you need to go," says Robbins.
For example, if you have to be at work at 8:00 a.m. and you know it will take 30 minutes to get ready and 30 minutes to commute to the office, then set your alarm for 7:00 a.m. and no earlier, Robbins says.
Setting your alarm for the latest possible time and actually getting up when it goes off is the "best approach for optimizing your sleep and daytime performance,” says Robbins.
Why It Matters
When snoozing between alarms, your body falls back asleep, but it re-enters a lighter stage of sleep. "You're getting this kind of poor quality, fragmented sleep (and) don’t really get the benefits of extra rest," explains Robbins.
Snoozing multiple times cuts into the more restorative, higher quality sleep your body was in before the first alarm went off.
"Some of the most vital stages of sleep take place right before we wake up," says Robbins — namely, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, when most dreaming occurs.
Repeatedly hitting snooze interrupts this stage, whereas setting your alarm for the latest realistic time allows you to get more uninterrupted REM sleep.
Getting quality sleep and enough of it (seven to nine hours a night) is crucial for overall health and wellbeing.
How to Get Started
Set your alarm for latest possible time in the morning. If you're not sure when this is, time how long it takes you to get out of bed, dressed and ready to leave the house or otherwise start your day.
When your alarm goes off, commit to waking up and getting out of bed, says Robbins. Avoid going on your phone still in bed.
Robbins recommends starting the day with a stretch and sunlight, which "helps turn off the flow of melatonin (the sleep hormone) in the brain,” she says. If you can't go outside, stand by a window.
You may feel groggy and want to fall back asleep, but this feeling, also known as sleep inertia, is temporary, typically lasting about 15–60 minutes after waking up, Robbins notes. Snoozing can actually worsen sleep inertia, she adds.
If you’re used to snoozing every morning, it may take a little time to adjust to this new routine, says Robbins. As with most healthy lifestyle habits, don't expect changes to happen overnight.
