CLEVELAND — Most of us think that sleeping better means sleeping for a longer period of time. While that can be true, what about hitting that snooze button on your alarm when it’s time to wake up?
The 3News Go! team talked to Michelle Drerup, PsyD from the Cleveland Clinic's Sleep Disorders Center. She is a sleep psychologist and behavioral sleep medicine specialist, who specializes in treating conditions like insomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, sleep apnea and more.
We asked her about the snooze button, and if it can actually help.
“For most people it is not helpful, it's harmful, Dredrup says. “The idea is ‘Oh, I'll help myself feel a little more alert by just gradual waking.’ But if you're snoozing say 30 minutes, it's much better to get that as part of your 30 minutes of additional consolidated sleep time, versus in seven-minute fragments.
Drerup also says you can experience what’s called "sleep inertia" when you hit snooze and sleep in increments.
“An object at rest wants to stay at rest. So best is, just to get up and get moving.”
Her number one tip for people who have trouble sleeping, is consistency. That includes going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, even on the weekends.
"The best thing you can do is start the morning at the same time."
Drerup also recommends being consistent with what you do before bed time to help you wind down.