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Comment by k__ | Hacker News Reader

A few years ago, I stopped setting an alarm clock on a regular basis.

Now, I just sleep as long as I need, which is usually 8-9h a day.

I struggled with sleep for years, but now I sleep good.

If I don’t set an alarm I always wake up much earlier, and grab my phone in fear that it’s too late. Setting an alarm at a very reasonable tim (ie >8h after going to bed) helps me sleep calmly, knowing that I will not oversleep.

It’s interesting how different minds work. :)

I have the opposite problem. I have to sleep with a watch. Otherwise if I wake up and can't check how much time I have left to sleep, I get anxious that the alarm is about to go off and I can't get back to sleep.

they make clocks that project the time on the ceiling, I can't live without mine

I only worry like that if I've got a flight in the morning, in which case I set multiple alarms.

The risk with an inconsistent waking time is shifting forward the circadian rhythm, if you sleep in later and later. When that occurs you'll fall asleep later as well, or wake up more often. A wind-down period ahead of bedtime can also offer some flexibility, if you happen to have enough sleep pressure to fall asleep earlier some nights.

I wake between 11:00 and 13:00 for years now. And I go to sleep between 2:00 and 4:00.

When I stop using alarms and stop forcing myself to go to sleep early, my hours seem to converge to something very similar to yours. I experience the "shifting forward" until I get to 2am-11am, and the shifting stops.

I've noticed the same pattern on roommates and family members as well.

It wasn't always like that.

I fondly the time between school and university, when I was unemployed.

I was awake until 7 and slept until 16. I didn't even party much at that time.

I countered this by setting a go to sleep alarm. Alarm goes off, time to wind it up and head to bed. I do have a morning alarm (multiple of them) but I've been waking up before they go off.

Yeah I basically schedule time before bed. What people take for granted is that an increasingly fatigued state can also lead you to procrastinate on sleep, i.e. if you're tired and dicking around on electronics mindlessly, you'll just keep doing it and have trouble pulling yourself away. Whereas if I just read a book that's no trouble.

Haha I think that might be happening with me... do you suppose melatonin for a few nights a month would be a good idea to keep it stable?

Doesn't seem necessary, but at any rate only a small dose is needed to be effective i.e. 0.3mg. Too much OTC melatonin can backfire and lead to grogginess.

Melatonin levels should naturally spike near onset, but it can be suppressed by blue light emitting electronics and caffeine. A filter like flux on media devices in the evening can help - https://justgetflux.com/

Slightly different experience. Stopped using an alarm clock when we had kids. Seem to always wake up between 6 and 7am and often tired during the day ;)

Kids wake up with light and sun. Then they wake you. Invest into really dark things on windows in kids room.

Also, don't send them to sleep too soon.

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