Take note...

We all want to get those extra few minutes of shut-eye in the mornings, at whatever cost, including being late for work, school or college etc. In an ideal world, we'd obviously wake up naturally because we've had enough sleep for that night and be full of sprightly energy for the day ahead. The reality is somewhat different for many of us... So as we don't have all the time to get all the sleep that we'd like to get, but unfortunately thankfully, somebody invented the alarm clock so we can all be up in time for work... with the Holy Grail, the snooze button. But, according to Columbia University Assistant Professor James E. Gangwisch, Ph.D., the snooze button is doing you more harm than good. Speaking to Tech Insider, he uses the example of someone who doesn't have to be up until 8am but sets their alarm for 7.30am, knowing that they'll be able to snooze their alarm three times before they have to get out of bed. Gangwisch warns that this can cut down on the total amount of sleep a person can get. We sleep in cycles of about 45 minutes according to him, and we're not able to get through that whole cycle in those 10-15 minutes of snooze time. He advises people to set their alarm for the time you actually have to get up and force yourself to get up at that time. Easier said than done, unfortunately. But one trick he uses himself is to simply place his alarm on the opposite side of the room, which forces him to get up and switch it off.