What is a good alarm clock?
Posted by TheLittleSquire@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 44 comments
Unfortunately I sleep terribly, have done since I was a teenager, falling asleep can sometimes take me hours. I've just bought a new house and I'm no longer local to my office and aside from getting to sleep getting up is the hardest part of the day. I often sleep through alarms or mindlessly dismiss them on my phone. Are proper alarm clocks still a thing? Are sunrise alarm clocks actually genuinely really good or are they just a marketing gimmick.
I appreciate this is also about discipline in getting up once turning an alarm clock off and I'm trying I swear, it's just been a long and very tiresome road to this point lol.
Derfel60@reddit
Get a watch that measures your sleep and wakes you when youre in a very light sleep. Or just put your phone far away so you have to get up to turn it off.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I had a Samsung smart watch and it gave me a rash on my wrist. I take meds for hyperhidrosis (AKA I'm a sweaty bastard) and I think wearing a watch overnight is too much heat as you've got to wear them fairly tight for sleep monitoring
Derfel60@reddit
Oh i have that too but my watch has never been a problem, were you using those silicon straps they come with?
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
Eyyy, nice to not be alone 😂. It wasn't the straps causing an issue it was under where the watch head itself was sitting.
I'm planning on getting abit more of an up-market one since Ive moved into my new place and will be going on bike trails around here so would like to track my biking progress. Could possibly of been the type of metal, but I just put it down to moisture build up as I assumed a Samsung smart watch wouldn't be using a weird type of metal.
Derfel60@reddit
Yeah i wouldnt expect Samsung to be using bad materials, i dont know what else it could be then haha
runew0lf@reddit
+1 here for allergy to to the silicone strap, i had to get an elasticated material one. Not had a problem since! Also OP, clean the underside of the watch, it get sweat / skin on it and can cause a flareup. I end up with big red painful welts from silicone straps!
rebelallianxe@reddit
I have a Samsung watch that gave me a rash until I switched the strap. Even though the rash was under the watch, switching to a material strap sorted it.
mdmnl@reddit
Do they still make those ones that launch a flying drone with alarm noise? Make you have to hunt it down to silence it.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
Amazing, but I don't think my partner would appreciate that 2 hours before she gets up 😂.
Side note, this brought me back, we used to sell them at Maplin, the display models were great fun haha
mdmnl@reddit
Nah, by the end of the first month you'd be leaping out of bed and catching it mid-flight like a golden retriever with a frisbee. She'd be none the wiser.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I'm sold
BlueLinnet@reddit
No, they make new ones armed with a paintball gun so it both wakes you up and makes you take a shower.
blenderider@reddit
I used a Phillips Smart Bulb as my sunrise alarm and it definitely worked. My wake ups are so much less groggy as well
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
Tbh, would probably work really well, sadly for my office days I'll be getting up 2 hours before my partner so it probably won't work, but I'll run it past her, see if she wants to start her days early on those days or not. Do you find waking up the light is quite easy?
blenderider@reddit
Yeah it’s easy. You’re essentially priming your body to get up at the same time every day. As long as sleep within the same time window and don’t shortchange your sleep, you shouldn’t have an issue.
You could also consider an eye mask for your missus!
keithmk@reddit
It is not a regular thing for me, needing to get up to the alarm, so it is a bit more difficult I think. So here is how I deal with it
Getting To Sleep. I play sleep sounds on my Alexa. This has a bank of many different white noisish sounds which will continue playing through the night until turned off. My favourite is rain with distant thunder. Sends me to sleep in a very short time and back again if I wake.
Waking Up. Alexa, check the various different alarms on offer and choose the most obnoxious. Then set more than one alarm time to go off at 5 to 10 minute intervals. I have on rare occasions managed to get through 2 alarms, but then the third always gets me
Neddlings55@reddit
I have a sunrise alarm clock. It doesnt gentle wake me - its like someone shining a torch directly into my eyes. So pretty effective at waking me up.
Physical-Incident553@reddit
When I was at university in the late 89s, I had THREE alarm clocks scattered about my room, with staggered alarms. I would get out of bed and turn one off, going back to bed without really waking up. Now I use my phone with staggered alarms and an Alexa Echo Spot, which is across the room.
rtuck99@reddit
Get a cat, "train" it a few times by feeding it when your alarm goes off.
rebelallianxe@reddit
I struggle to get up too. Phone alarms I turn off without waking properly, so I have a plug in alarm clock on the other side of the room. I don't like beeping alarms so found one that plays a tune and bird song. I also have a gentle alarm linked to a favourite song on Spotify that goes off half an hour before the alarm clock, to give me a 30 minute warning and snooze time. I have a rule that I go straight to bathroom for a wee once I've turned off the clock, to wake me up enough to avoid the urge to get back in bed.
Oster-P@reddit
Sunrise alarm clock made it much easier for me to wake up. The light really helps bring you out of deep sleep before the actual alarm goes off. Sometimes I even wake up from the light alone a little before my actual alarm.
khan800@reddit
Vivilumens
My son uses one of these and loves it.
PracticeNo8733@reddit
Sunrise alarm clocks can indeed make a difference but they're a more gentle way of waking not so much an aid in getting to sleep.
I recommend putting your alarm clock (phone, etc) out of reach of the bed so you have to get out of bed to switch if off - and then DON'T GET BACK IN BED.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
Half the issue is I need noise when falling asleep or I just drown in the i really need to get to sleep thoughts and stress out and stay awake longer 🙃.
I might well try an alarm clock across the room, I'm trying to be as least disruptive to my partner as possible. But this is probably the way!
PracticeNo8733@reddit
Maybe try Sleepphones and cheaper versions of the same product. I find certain types of audio content (interesting enough to be engaging, but not exciting) useful for getting to sleep.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
Wtf, I've never seen these, I search for something like these maybe 7 years ago and never looked again! Any recommendations you have for brands etc?
PracticeNo8733@reddit
I have the wired and wireless Sleepphones (from a few years ago). (Got the wired ones first but wireless is better for moving in bed.) They can be a little fiddly and annoying but they do work in my experience. I also have some much cheaper wired ones which are mostly fine too but the cable is a little short.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I'll check then out! Thanks
oldandinvisible@reddit
Alarm Clock Xtreme works for me it starts with birdsong (other choices of noise available) and gradually wakes you. you can set music or alarm.or.radio station and also puzzles or maths or an action to do to turn the alarm off
It also has sleep function
wybird@reddit
Any child under 4
bluejackmovedagain@reddit
Or a cat who wants breakfast.Â
Spicymargx@reddit
Not an alarm clock recommendation but another tip - use smart bulbs and set them for 5 mins before your alarm. Really helps to wake up in a room that isn’t dark
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I'll see if my partner would be okay with this, I'll be getting up 2 hours before her on my office days, so it'll totally depend on her wanting to start her day early or not. Good suggestion either way though :)
Rude-Possibility4682@reddit
Get a cat, it will jump on your face, stick it's nose in your ear and poke it's paw in your mouth until you get up.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I've gained 2 when meeting my partner, both don't do this I'm afraid. My partner raised them with automatic feeders at scheduled times, so they don't bother us for breakfast, which is both really nice but unhelpful in this situation 😂
BlackberryNice1270@reddit
Alexa for white noise to get to sleep, I play ocean sounds, but you can ask for various types of noise. Alarm clock that has to be physically stopped, like on your phone, but across the room, so you can't reach it without getting out of bed. Some apps will start the alarm quietly and gradually increase the noise, so it wakes you slowly, and that combined with having to get out of bed should help.
Lessarocks@reddit
I haven’t had one for decades. I use Alexa. If I need backup I’ll set my phone too. Just put your phone in the hallway or something so that you have to get up to turn it off.
Additional-Nobody352@reddit
Amazon echo show.
ScientistJo@reddit
Put your alarm clock where you can't turn it off without getting out of bed.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
I don't have one at the moment I use my phone, but a bogstandard one across the room might be the way
boba_toes@reddit
sunrise alarms are really helpful, I have one and I basically can’t survive the autumn and winter without it. physical alarms are also great, you can get wristbands that vibrate and have puzzles/tasks that you have to do before it will stop, so you’re really awake and you can’t just mindlessly silence it.
TheLittleSquire@reddit (OP)
What are the wrist bands called? Sounds quite helpful!
WishProfessional7949@reddit
Loud moaning noises
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