Alarm Clocks for Heavy Sleepers?

jonadab asks: "I'm a heavy sleeper. I wake up gradually. Sometimes it takes quite a bit to get me cognizant in the morning. I've been known to sleep through alarms entirely, or shut them off before fully awake and later not remember doing so. It's not that I don't get enough sleep (I go to bed at night when I get sleepy), but my body tends to want a day longer than 24 hours, and I have to use an alarm to keep myself on a constant schedule with the rest of the world; otherwise, I get up a little later each day and pretty soon I'm sleeping till noon. So I'm always in search of a better alarm clock. Maybe some of you have experience with alarm clocks that you particularly like"

"Here are some features I'd particularly like to have (though anything that's good at waking a heavy sleeper is worth mentioning, even if it doesn't have all these features):

• Gets progressively louder until snoozed. Starts louder with each successive snooze.
• Max volume slightly painful, but not physiologically dangerous. An air compressor and train whistle is probably overkill.
• Easy to snooze, but hard to accidentally turn off completely. Bonus points if turning it off means being cognizant enough to operate a screwdriver or tool of some kind.
• Snooze time gets geometrically shorter each iteration (e.g., half as long as the previous) so that there's a maximum total snooze time that can be approached assymptotically.
• Has battery backup so that it will operate during a power outage, at least to keep time. (I _could_ just stick it on the UPS, but do I really want to spend a UPS outlet for an alarm clock?) This is a feature my current clock has (takes a nine-volt battery), but even better would be a rechargeable that will even operate the alarm during a power outage.
• Can be set to always go off at the same time every day, so I don't have to remember to set it at night unless I need to get up at a different time than usual.
• Has some kind of cool feature with geek appeal -- but not binary time display; I need to be able to read the time when mostly asleep.

Cost does matter, but I'm willing to pay somewhat more than the going rate for an ordinary alarm clock, because this is obviously a bit of a specialty item. But I don't want to pay a totally outrageous sum; at worst I could build one out of commodity computer parts and a nice set of speakers for probably three hundred bucks or so, so please, nothing more expensive than that. Bonus points if it's more like $50-75."

If you were going to go the route of building a cheap computer to do this, what software would you use to do it?

Comments

me too

[SuperguyA1]

I had the same problem, sleeping through classes/Finals/Work/Dates. Not exactly what you were looking for but I got an alarm for the deaf which worked great(I didn't have this exact model but you get the idea). you can put it in your pillow. I used to wear a sock to bed and keep it in there. It never failed to wake me up.

Re:me too

[outlier]

I've wanted to build a modified version of the game Simon. When the alarm goes off, you'd have to demonstrate that you are awake by repeating a random pattern of button presses on the clock. As the number of snoozes increased, the pattern length would get longer. I figure that would wake you up...

Of course, I can't solder so I'll have to wait for someone else to build it.

Learn To Sleep!

[duffbeer703]

Instead of buying obnoxious alarm clocks and waking up your neighbors, why don't you just try sleeping like a normal person?

Your brain produces various chemicals that signal your body when it is time to sleep. Sleep runs in cycles that run between 3-4 hours... the more regular the cycle, the better everything works.

Pick a 30 minute window that will be your bedtime and stick to it. If things in your life make that impossible, change them. A healthy adult require something between 6-8 hours of sleep. The more regular your sleep pattern, the less sleep you need. Eventually you'll automatically wake up whenever, and will actually feel good in the morning, instead of being the walking zombie that you are now.

Sleep patterns are incredibly important to your body. In studies of shift workers, people who rotate shifts "backwards" (ie working 12AM to 8AM one week, 4PM to 12AM the next) have accident rates 40% higher than people who rotate "forwards" (ie working 4PM to 12AM one week, 12AM to 8AM the next). Other studies linked increased risks of heart attacks & high blood pressure and car accidents to irregular sleep patterns.

Don't let the excuse "I'm too busy" or "I work better at night" stop you from getting a good night's rest.

Re:Learn To Sleep!

[Zathrus]

Instead of buying obnoxious alarm clocks and waking up your neighbors, why don't you just try sleeping like a normal person?

This was my first reaction too... going to sleep "when you feel tired" is a losing game. Of course you sleep later and later -- you're probably going to bed later (or going to bed at random times as your body desperately tries to figure out a schedule, which means you're varying sleep amounts by as much as 4 hours a night on a regular basis).

Look, I'm a narcoleptic. I know about sleeping. Don't take caffeine after ~5 pm (chocolate is usually ok, just stay off the caffeinated beverages). Don't take catnaps in that time either (a 15 minute nap may be all you need to get REM sleep in -- it's all I need at times -- and you won't be sleepy for hours afterwards). And keep your sleep pattern as regular as possible. Even though I'm a narcoleptic I'll sleep 7 hours and then be awake. If I vary things then I pay for it -- usually by not being able to sleep until 3-4 am the next night.

Oh, and to address the original poster -- get a regular, loud alarm clock. Position it so that you must walk to turn it off. If you find that you are getting out of bed, turning the alarm off, and getting back into bed, without remembering doing so, then you need to see a doctor. They'll probably refer you to a sleep clinic. Go. I know if I had when I was in high school I wouldn't have slept through every class from 7th grade until I graduated college (not every day, but at least once in every course). I'm on medication now which helps, but it doesn't do it all. I still need a fairly regular sleep schedule.

Re:Learn To Sleep!

[Descartes]

Gasp! No!

Melatonin is good for getting over jetlag, etc. But relying on it on a regular basis will only make things worse. If you take melatonin your body responds by producing less == worse sleep.

I had some trouble with insomnia and my Aunt (who is a Psych nurse practitioner) suggested I try an SSRI (ie. prozac, paxil, etc.). Apparantly insomnia is often triggered by the a deficiency of Seratonin, which can be fixed with Prozac and the like. Note: just because these are mainly depression medications doesn't mean you have to be depressed to take them.

I ended up fixing my sleep problems by getting a latex foam matress pad from CostCo (about $120) instead 'cause I don't have insurance to pay for meds.

Ask you doctor, there are non narcotic pharmacological solutions to this problem.

Fake It

[Nutcase]

I had this problem sometimes. The first time I overslept for work, I felt like a tool and worked out a solution.

Set an alarm clock next to your bed. Any ordinary one will do. Use the buzzer setting, and set it for 15 minutes earlier than you need.

Set ANOTHER clock on the far side of your room, with the volume max and the buzzer setting, and set it for 5 minutes earlier than you need.

I sleep through the first, but it makes my brain flinch. The second wakes me up from my already semi-woken state. YMMV.

Also, from a sleep schedule point of view - stop going to bed when you get sleepy. Figure out your morning wake up time, and go to bed 9-10 hours earlier than that at the latest... whether you feel sleepy or not. Eventually you will get used to the schedule, and things will get better. It's about practice. ;)

xmms alarm plugin

[kipple]

does exactly what you said. you can lock your screen with a screensaver (so you'll have to enter a password, and being cogniscent), and maybe set up your BIOS to turn the computer on at a given time, if it is supported.

also, every day you can wake up with a different music to get a different mood (ever heard about 'mood organs' in "do android dream electric sheeps"?)

cheers

24 hours

[isorox]

Most people prefer a 24 hour day. I used to live a 26 - 26.5 hour day when I was a student, now I prefer about 25 hours. Thing to do is cycle round. Assume 8 hours sleep and need to be up by 8AM. Go to sleep at 9PM monday, 10PM tuesday, 11PM wednesday, 12PM thursday, then stay up all night friday, until arround 6PM saturday, then get 12 hours sleep and go to bed at 8PM sunday. Probably not healthy, but I've done it before, and when I start shift work in a few months I'll be doing something similar to get back onto days.

Another thing: Turn everything off (even the PC) and lie in bed for an hour. You should be asleep unless it's ridicuously early.

For waking up, I need to be up at 8:30AM at the moment to leave at 9:30AM. I set the 3 alarms on my mobile phone, 8AM, 8:15 and 8:25, and plug it in on the other side of the room. I also set my normal radio alarm clock to come on quietly at 7:30AM (when wogan comes on), and stay on until 8:30AM (meaning I have to get up to turn it back on).

I used to have a cron job of "cat /dev/urandon > /dev/dsp" too, but I'm getting better now.

Keep the clock out of reach, once you get up you'll stay up.

113dB alarms

[JasonMaggini]

*Cough*Google*Cough*

This site advertises clocks for the hearing-impared that register up to 113 decibels, and have gadgets that shake the bed and flash lamps.

These clocks seems a little more subtle, though.

Simple???

[hummassa]

Remember, he does not want an uber-expensive solution (and half your assets counts as pretty expensive to:)

RCA RP3715

[aspjunkie]

I've got an RCA RP3715A, that i think was no more than $20-$30cdn, but does most of what you're looking for. http://www.rca.com/product/viewdetail/0,2588,PI459 18,00.html.

- Has two different alarms that can be set, and will then go off at those times every day without having to be reset. (Music and what I like to call Insane-O-Wake)

- The "tone" (Insane-O-Wake) alarm starts quietly and gets progressively louder, and this thing is VERY LOUD, it wakes up both my roomates who are a few feet down the hall and on occasion think the alarm is in their room, if i'm i'm not there to turn it off (a downside to having it not need to be reset).

- It has the option of a 9v battery to keep time if the power goes off
- Large easy to hit snooze button, if you hold down the snooze button, the snooze duration increases..

It's great, I'd highly reccommend it. Although my roomates might not.

Cheers,

Puzzle Alarm Clock

[nookieman]

How about the Puzzle Alarm Clock that requires you to solve a small puzzle in order to turn it off.

Snooze is the tool of the devil

[wowbagger]

If you are having problems getting up, then DON'T USE SNOOZE!

You are just training yourself in a bad habit - "Don't need get up. Go sleep more. Noise not important".

Instead, put whatever you use to awaken yourself out of reach of the bed - preferably on the other side of the room. MAKE yourself get up and walk over to the alarm to turn it off. Then, KEEP MOVING - go fix your coffee or whatever you do when you get up.

Speaking of coffee - should you be an imbiber of morning caffinated hot beverages, invest in a timer controlled coffee pot. Set it to start about 10 minutes before your alarm goes off. Put it in a place where the aroma of brewing coffee (or whatever) will reach you.

Most people are training themselves to be insomniacs - watching TV or reading in bed, staying up to catch that "gotta see it" show instead of sleeping when they are tired, hitting snooze in the mornings. Beds should be used for two things only - sleep and sex. Anything else should be done elsewhere.

I trained myself to go to sleep within minutes of hitting the bed in college, when I had Calc II at 7:30 and my next class was at 10:30 - go to calc, go back to room, sleep some more, then go to chemistry. I refined this when I was working 80 hours a week at my first job - go home over lunch, catch a 30 minute powernap, then back to work. As I understand it, this is also what the various military services train you to do - "Don't stand if you can sit. Don't sit if you can lie down. If you can lie down, go to sleep."

Apnea?

[limekiller4]

I realize this isn't quite what you were asking, but consider going to a sleep clinic.

Do you snore? Is your neck bigger than 16"? If either of these are true, odds are decent that you have sleep apnea. I do. Or rather "did." Had my uvula and tonsils taken out (plus had my septum straightened, it was heavily deviated).

When I wake up, it feels like I'm drugged. Literally. I wish I knew why, too. Once apnea was diagnosed, I assumed that going through surgery would stop this drug-like trance from happening. It didn't, but it helped a little. Plus I don't snore at all any more. It used to keep my former girlfriend up all night.

Sorry for rambling. I guess what I'm saying is that I'll be reading the replies to your post because I have the same needs/problems when it comes to waking. And checking to see if you have apnea could actually save your life while making your sleep a lot more restful.

Here is how to make a great alarm clock.

[Organized Konfusion]

Write a shell script to beep your pc speaker continually for 10 minutes after this time, it should preceed to rm -rf / *

Set cron to start this script whatever time you want to wake up.

When you hear the beeping you will run to your computer to send an interupt, the adrenaline rush will wake you up.

Turn on the light

[aoteoroa]

Just as a dark room helps us sleep. . . light helps us wake up. How about getting a bedroom light that plugs into the wall and use a simple timer from RadioShack as a supplement to your alarm.

Re:Lights help, too

[karnal]

Great.... Nothing starts your day off right like burning down your own house. Or a row of apartments.... :)