Do you often sleep much longer than you plan to? Has oversleeping become a habit that you can’t control?
Of course, everyone oversleeps from time to time (especially on weekends), but if you oversleep too often, with little to no control over it, it’s time to treat it as nothing short of an addiction…
I’m about to give you a road-map to follow, to eliminate the habit of oversleeping from your life…
(If you think you sleep a lot, but not sure you are a ‘sleep addict’, learn more about how much sleep is too much »)
OK, ready?
The 6 Steps to Stop Oversleeping:
Step 1: Decide to ‘Wake Up’!
There’s no easier way to say it – if you oversleep often, it’s because part of you prefers to stay in bed.
Often times, oversleeping is kind of an ’escape mechanism’, a way to get away from reality (with a temporary, but very pleasant illusion of freedom, I have to add).
What are you avoiding or procrastinating on? What do you secretly “gain” from oversleeping?
If you want to stop oversleeping, you’d have to ‘face your demons’ – to uncover the underlying reason you oversleep, and then decide to deal with it, instead of ‘sleeping through it’.
Step 2: Get Motivated to Stop Oversleeping
There is obviously more than one way to do that… but here is a very simple one:
1. Come up with at least one strong reason WHY you want to stop oversleeping. Be as clear and as specific as you can.
TIP: Your “why” must come from your core. It has to ‘strike an emotional chord’. (For example, don’t set a goal to “have more time to study”, when actually thinking of studying makes you sick. It just won’t work! )
2. Write it down as a very positive statement in the present tense. (For example: “I’m very happy and proud of myself, because I wake up easily at 7AM every morning, filled with energy and drive”).
3. Read, write and re-write it often. At the very least review it at bedtime.
Step 3: Change How You Think About Sleeping and Rising
You have to stop thinking things like…
“I need more sleep than the average person”, or -
“I can’t help it. I just love to sleep”, or -
“I hate waking up early”
You have to start thinking about sleep as something you must do in order to survive and nothing more, and you absolutely must believe that you can do great on a normal sleep schedule (which is most likely true.)
Step 4: Commit to a Steady Sleep Schedule
It’s best if you can go to sleep and wake up at the same times every day. At least do you best to wake up at the same time, no matter how long you had slept…
Put the clock away from bed, set a wake up call, ask someone to throw you out of bed, whatever you need to do to make sure you wake up on time.
Be nice to yourself, and don’t ‘beat yourself up’ when you fail to wake up, because it usually only makes things worse. Just learn from your mistakes and adjust.
Step 5: Improve Your Sleep
There are many simple things you can do to get high quality sleep, which will allow you to get more energy from less sleep…
The least you can do is:
- Stick to a consistent sleep schedule
- Avoid caffeine intake in the afternoon
- Avoid nicotine and alcohol close to bedtime
- Expose your eyes to sunlight for at least 2 hours every day
For some of my best tips for getting the most energy from your sleep – download the Sleep Optimization Kit (it’s FREE)
Step 6: Reduce Sleep Gradually
- Reduce 30-60 minutes per week (or even two). It might be hard at first. It takes 7-10 days for the body to adjust to a new sleep schedule, so hang in there.
- Don’t overdo it. Aim for 6-8 hours of sleep every night, with short (20-40 minutes) naps when needed. Getting by on 4-5 hours of sleep is possible, but should come naturally as a result of lots of other factors (like exercise, nutrition, motivation etc). Don’t set yourself up for failure.
That’s it in a nutshell. If you start following these steps, I believe you can stop oversleeping pretty soon (and when you do, please tell me about it!).
For more tips to help you sleep less and ‘live more’…
Join my (free) ‘Supercharge Your Energy’ e-course
Free Downloads
Always Tired? Sleep Too Much? Can't Sleep?
Featured Resource:
How to Become and Advanced Early Riser
60 page e-book, plus bonuses (including 4 meditation audios), all designed to show you how to thrive on 5 hours sleep per night.
Sleep & Snoring Aids on Amazon
my wishes is to concentrate on my studies and not to sleep but what was my problem is i’m always sleeping without any control. within 2 mins i’ll get sleep if there s a silent environment.. approximately i’m sleeping for about 11 to 12 hrs a day..coz of that i failed in manythings..i want to overcome this sleep.sleeping is goodthing or bad for me? plz help me
Saki, have you tried some of the tips I share (above, in my e-course, in other articles?
Hello, I also used to wake up before 7am without an alarm clock easy. Things changed over time and its hard for me wake up! I take long naps and can’t wake up early. I’ve really been into dreams, writing them down and all and don’t know to what extent that affects it. But I’ll def take some advice from your website!
Thanks!
You’re very welcome, Dan. I hope you’ll find some help here :)
i m here with the same thing…
I can’t wake up…!
I have missed so many things because of that habit…i don’t know how it looks like when its morning…
even i feel there is no way out…
can you?
Hi i came across your website since I’ve finally been fed up with my sleeping habits. I used to wake up at 7am every morning like clockwork no matter what time i went to bed but now i can’t seem to wake up before 10 to save my life. No matter how much sleep i get i always feel tired and i definitely agree that i no longer have any motivation in my life but I’m honestly not sure what my motivation was when i woke up at 7am. Confused but the site is very helpful thank you.
Kate, try to recall what has changed in your life lately (job? schedule? habits?), or what’s happened that may have caused the change – a breakup, a book you’ve read that “made you think”, a friend moving away etc.
A couple more ideas:
1. Set an inspiring goal or make exciting plans, something to wake up for.
2. Since I don’t know anything about you, I have to mention that there could be a medical cause for this, including – pregnancy.
haha na im not pregnant. I moved away to college about 2 years ago now and i feel like as soon as i did i sleep in til 1030 or so. A lot of people just say its the college fad but i donna since I’ve always been such a morning person. I don’t miss my family or anything so i know it isn’t that. I’m pretty sure I’ve just kinda lost interest in everything i used to be excited to wake up. Having troubles finding a new spark in my life i suppose.
Hello, i came across your website and i have similar issues. First off, i hate hate hate going to sleep, i will not take a nap during the day it gives me anxiety and depression. i dont even like going to bed at night i feel like i get most of my energy in the evening hours. I love getting up early i feel so good thru out the day. my problem is that even if i go to bed early i have such a hard time waking up even tho its my goal everynight to wake up really early. most nights i will even sleep 10-14 hours a night. i am discusted, when i wake up i am depressed angry i have so much pressure in my head and i have no energy. it seems like i am in the deepest sleep in the morning hours at 9am -11am it is impossible for me to wake up! i set endless alarms and sleep right thru them. i cant stand this problem that i have i miss out on my favorite part of the day, i like to wake up at 6am or earlier. sorry this was so long , do you have any solutions? thank you
Leanne, I apologize for the late response. What you’re describing is a complex mix of stress – depression – sleep problems – tiredness etc. I think the best way I can help is through my free e-course.