Sleep is one of those things that, even though it's a universally necessary part of life, everyone goes about it a little differently. Think about what time you go to bed and wake up every morning, compared to your best friend or a co-worker’s sleep schedule. A decent night’s shut-eye is essential for every human body and mind to function properly, and yet it’s such a personal process. When you think about it, your sleep schedule can reveal a lot about your personality, like whether or not you’re the type of person who genuinely enjoys waking up a little earlier to bask in the golden pink sunrise, or someone who struggles to get out of bed without pressing snooze once or twice because an overactive brain kept you up late again.
Don’t sweat it if you’ve never really thought about your sleep patterns before. After all, sleep is an instinctive human behavior — it’s just something we do. But details like when you close your eyes and rise out of bed, and which part of the day you prefer most, are worth considering from time to time. These fun facts about your unique bedtime behavior reflect who you are as a person.
So what does it mean if you can’t wake up early, or if you stay up late browsing social media versus working well into the night? Here's what a few different experts have to say.
If you can wake up naturally without the nudge of a blaring alarm, first of all, congratulations. Second of all, this might indicate that you're the type of person who's a stickler for being on schedule.
See, everyone has a unique circadian rhythm, aka a natural, internal, sleep-wake clock that your body follows. Someone who is very in-tune with their circadian rhythm, experts from Mattress Online tell Elite Daily, might be able to wake up without an alarm.
However, this doesn't necessarily translate to you being a morning person. "It could just mean that they are in a regular routine," the experts explain, "which your body then starts to learn, and may be able to wake up at the same time every day without a need for an alarm."
Early birds are a special kind of human. They're the people who actually choose to wake up at the crack of dawn (aka me), who thoroughly enjoy being up early. Sound familiar?
If you're the stereotypical morning person, you probably set your alarm an hour or so before you actually need to. You ensure you'll have time to make breakfast, maybe get a workout in, and take a leisurely shower, all while leaving plenty of time to make it into the office or get to class before even your boss or professor does. As for the weekends, well, sleeping in just means less free awake time — no thanks.
"Waking up early can potentially mean someone is a morning person who is motivated and ready to face challenges head-on," Robert Glatter, M.D., an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Lenox Hill Hospital, Northwell Health, tells Elite Daily. "It’s often a sign of being organized, and [of] someone who knows the value of careful planning in forging their life and career path."
What's more, to someone who'd rather give a public speech than wake up before sunrise, smiling before 10 a.m. is probably unheard of. However, Glatter adds, morning people are generally quite chipper throughout the day, and tend to have a more positive outlook on life.
As far as certified sleep science coach and founder of SleepZoo, Chris Brantner, is concerned, there are two types of people who stay up late: night owls, and sleep procrastinators. However, he says, one is not synonymous with another. There's a big difference, Brantner tells Elite Daily, and that is that night owls are people who thrive late at night, while sleep procrastinators stay up late just because they can.
"Sleep procrastination is failing to go to bed at the right time when no external forces are keeping you from getting to sleep," Brantner explains. In other words, instead of getting under the covers, closing your eyes, and legitimately making a decent effort to fall asleep, you're either scrolling through social media, going down a YouTube rabbit hole, or watching Netflix. You either aren't interested in sleeping, or might be harboring some anxieties about the next day that you just don't want to face yet.
Night owls, on the other hand, are more productive at night than they are during the day. "Night owls are creative and productive at night," Brantner clarifies. "They do their best work at this time." So if you're a night owl, you might be catching up on work projects, or tapping into your creative side by dedicating the late hours of the day to labors of love like writing a novel, journaling, or re-organizing your entire closet.
So you hit snooze once, twice, maybe even five times over. That doesn't necessarily make you a night owl. However, sleep expert and Boll & Branch ambassador, Dr. Michael Breus, says it certainly doesn't make you a morning person, either. It could very well be that you just really love your bed, sheets, and pillows, and are too comfortable to wake up, Breus tells Elite Daily. Or, he adds, it could mean you've gotten into the bad habit of going to sleep too late.
And unlike morning people, who spring out of bed ready to start checking things off their list, people who press snooze every morning tend to be a little bit disorganized, according to Breus. But, he explains, these types of people are also his "most creative patients, and that can be an aspect of a creative person, as well."
What's more, professional life coach Katie Sandler says that people who press snooze in the morning, particularly those who do so to gather their thoughts before getting on with their day, might actually be more mindful than they're given credit for. "Taking a few moments to start the day with an intention instead of falling back to sleep for a few moments like most people do, is a great way to utilize the comfort of your bed," Sandler tells Elite Daily.
So you might be a bit on the lazier side of the spectrum if you're attached to your alarm's snooze button, but there's also a good chance you're just an extremely mindful, pensive person. I'll let you decide which one aligns more with your personality.
