For some people, mornings can be cruel. No matter how many alarms you set, you manage to sleep through them all, ruining any attempt at getting out the door in time. Even more, no matter how soundly you sleep through the night, you may still feel tired during the day.
What Makes Someone a Heavy Sleeper?
The terms heavy and light sleeper are often tossed around, but what is it that causes someone to veer toward one category or the other? There are a couple of possibilities, including:
- The sleep stage you spend most of the night in. We cycle through four sleep stages, with some correlating to light sleep (that is easy to wake from) and others being deep sleep. It’s suspected that light sleepers spend a lot of time in REM sleep (the final sleep stage before you wake up), while heavy sleepers spend more time in NREM stages, one of which includes the deep sleep stage.
- Your amount of sleep spindles. Sleep spindles are brain wave rhythms that help us ignore certain distractions in our sleep, and those who are heavy sleepers may have more of these spindles.
- Your stress level. Stress has been associated with more disturbed sleep, so if you are a heavy sleeper, it may be a sign that you’re not very stressed—a good thing!
- Sleep disorders. Certain sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, can cause someone to be a heavy sleeper. With sleep apnea, you get very poor quality sleep because of frequent awakenings due to obstructed breathing, often without you realizing you woke up. However, all these disturbances can make you very tired, leading to heavy sleeping.
- Sleep deprivation. If you have an irregular sleep schedule or don’t sleep enough, you may be more likely to be a heavy sleeper because, by the time you finally sleep, your body is very tired.
It can help to know whether you’re more of a light or heavy sleeper, as it can alter the habits that you adopt in terms of sleep. Those who are light sleepers typically focus more on improving their sleep quality, while heavy sleepers may need to focus more on ways to rouse themselves.
How to Stop Being a Heavy Sleeper
Being a heavy sleeper is not always a bad thing. For instance, being a heavy sleeper can be a sign that you’re not stressed. Furthermore, when you’re a heavy sleeper, you’re less likely to be awoken during the night, leading to more restful sleep.
However, there is a difference between being a naturally heavy sleeper and being a heavy sleeper because of the choices that you have made and the factors affecting your sleep. For instance, being a heavy sleeper because you’re sleep deprived or have a sleep disorder is not a good quality and should be remedied in order to improve your health.
Some ways in which you can look after your health and sleep quality and ease out of heavy sleeping—if it’s because of factors affecting your sleep—include:
- Following a regular schedule. If you are a heavy sleeper because you don’t get enough sleep, your first step should be to take a look at your sleep schedule, see where consistency is needed, and then stick to a new plan. If you’re going to bed at 10 one night but then 1 a.m. the next, your body will have a hard time preparing for sleep, which can lead to later and later bedtimes and a lack of sleep, especially if your wake-up time cannot be changed. To combat this, determine the time you need to go to bed and go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
- Make your bedroom comfortable. If you’re trying to sleep in a room that is not conducive to sleeping, you’ll spend more trying to fall asleep rather than actually sleep. To help fall asleep, ensure your room is dark, cool, and quiet. It may not be as important once you’re asleep if you’re a heavy sleeper, but it can be crucial for helping you fall asleep.
- Power nap during the day. Those who are heavy sleepers may feel excessively tired during the day. Power naps can help you combat this sleepiness without sacrificing your nighttime sleep. The key, though, is to cap the nap at 20-30 minutes and to nap early in the afternoon rather than close to bedtime.
Tips for Waking Up as a Heavy Sleeper
While the tips above may help you transition out of being a heavy sleeper, that’s only the case if poor sleep is the reason for your heavy sleeping habits. Some people are naturally heavy sleepers, so the key is to learn how to work around this.
For heavy sleepers, waking up in the morning can be challenging, especially since it’s natural to feel an overwhelming urge to go back to sleep. Being creative in your wake-up, though, can help.
Consider using a different type of alarm clock. Rather than the standard clock that is easy to snooze (or even turn off) without any thought, try a different type. Sunlight alarm clocks offer gradually increasing light, which can help pull you from sleep, while smart alarm clocks, like Pillow, can monitor your sleep and wake you when you’re in a lighter sleep stage.
With your alarm, it can also be helpful to place it on the opposite side of the room so that you cannot just turn it off and roll over to fall back asleep. By getting up, you may have an easier time staying awake.
Augment your mornings beyond your alarm clock, too. For instance, natural light can be key in the morning to help shake the last holdings of sleep and can help signal to your body that it is time to wake up. So, once you’re out of bed, open the blinds or stand outside for a few minutes.
All of these tips have one purpose: to help you wake up by quickly disrupting the sleep environment. The goal is to, soon after waking, add light, sound, and movement to help shake away sleepiness.
Lightening Heavy Sleep
If you’re a heavy sleeper, it may be because you’re not getting enough good, quality sleep, so when you do sleep, you easily fall into a heavy slumber in order to get as much sleep as possible. In these cases, modifying your sleep hygiene can help you to become more rested and, as a result, remove your body’s need to sleep heavily. It may also be wise to talk to a doctor about the possibility of a sleep disorder.
However, some people are naturally heavy sleepers, a good trait when you’re sleeping in an environment where distractions may occur, but challenging in the morning. By getting creative with your wake-up style, though, you can help overcome lingering sleepiness so that mornings aren’t so drowsy.
