Late advice on how to wake up early.

Nelson called me up the other day to ask me for advice on how to shift his sleep schedule. He said he currently wakes up at 10, and the group home where he lives wants him to be waking up at 8 o’clock, and he’s just not a morning person (he says). What can he do, he asks me? 

Oh, man, I love love love when my kids call me up to ask me for advice.  It’s the best birthday present I could get, and it’s not even my birthday!  Here is what I told him:

First of all, you ARE good at waking up early. You might not have been doing so lately, but there was a good year in your life when you were waking yourself up – without an alarm, even – at 6 AM. That is like an early morning super power, and you’re one of the only people I know who has it. Believe in your own strength!

Second, avoid blue light right before bed. Actually, that’s the wrong way to say it, because it makes you feel like you’re giving something up and will make you want to do it. Rather, find an activity to do for about an hour before bed that you want to do that doesn’t involve blue light. It might be reading, playing a board game with a friend, drawing a picture; think of it as an opportunity to do something else.

Third, find a short routine that you do every night before bed. Maybe you say a short prayer for every person in your family and then brush your teeth. One of my friends walks around his house closing all the blinds and checking that the doors are locked. Your pre-sleep routine doesn’t have to be a big routine; it’s just something that you do every night that will tell your body “now I’m getting ready for bed”.

Finally, when you do wake up, get some natural light. Go outside, and count 10 trees.  Or open up the window shades. In some way though, look at light that comes from the sun.

Epilogue: It’s a week later, and Nelson tells me that he’s been waking up at six, even before his alarm goes off. Am I right, or what?

Epilogue-beyond-epilogue:  it's actually more than a month later; apparently I never hit publish on this post!  Whoops!  Kinda like over sleeping, but different.  Sheesh.