Vibrating alarm watch

[boringlyboring]

I have seen these mentioned from time to time, but I can’t find a full thread about them anywhere.

I struggle to wake up in the morning (but once I am up I’m up). I set several alarms to wake me up gradually, as if I don’t I’ll just fall back asleep after the first one. (I’ve always always been like this, so not a new thing). My main issue is when I’m in the half awake but still dreaming stage, I dream that I don’t have to get up. I dream that the alarm is actually a phonecal and I’m taking it, it’s a Sunday or I’m already awake and getting ready for work. It doesn’t matter what, but it’s most mornings the dream always feels so real that I’m convinced I don’t need to move.

Anyway, this is much to my DPs detriment. He doesn’t say anything, but I know it must be awful for him to listen to my alarms for so long, especially when he doesn’t have to wake up at that time.

So I’m thinking about trying one of the silent vibrating watches. I’m just wondering if anyone who struggles getting up has found them more effective than alarms? How? Can anyone recommend any? I’ve seen some cheap ones online. I don’t need an all singing all dancing fitbit or whatever, just something that will wake me up but I don’t know if there are different ‘qualities’ of vibration, or something, that will decide it’s effectiveness on waking me up.

Oh, and I know it will likely be suggested but I’ve tried putting it on the other side of the room so I have to physically move to turn it off, but it doesn’t work. I still just sleep/dream through it, and it wouldn’t help DP either.

Any advice about the watch is much appreciated

If you are sleeping through alarms I don't think a vibrating watch is likely to wake you. Mine wakes m very easily but I have friends who are not woken by theirs at all.

My fitbit does this, and before that I had a Mi Band 2 that did it. I’m a light sleeper though. Maybe one on each arm set 10 minutes apart?

It’s a difficult one. I can hear the alarms, it’s just that I have very realistic dreams in the stages of waking up. It must sound stupid, but I honestly dream that I don’t have to get up, so I don’t. The alarms then stop, and I’m in my dream for a while until I jolt awake (panicking I’m late).

This morning I was dreaming that I was checking my bank accounts, and contacting customer services. So I was already awake in my mind and didn’t need to worry about the alarm. The noise from it just kind of blends into the dream somehow (I set different sounds to try and remedy this).

I used to use songs I liked for the alarms, but that was a disaster.

The watches could work gradually, maybe? If I set them to go off every 5 mins or so over an hour? Would that be as bad as a normal alarm for DP?

Yes or one each arm. I can try it. I’ll have to test it out on a weekend. I need to sort something before I’m banished to another part of the house.

I’m not sure what I’ll do with them if they don’t work for me though.

Get a louder alarm if yours isn’t waking you. And get out of bed immediately so you can’t fall back asleep. Simples.

Not tried that thanks

I use my fitbit as an alarm and I find it brilliant. It's not the same sharp 'shiiiit it's time to get up' feeling, it's more gentle but somehow more effective. At first I used to set my phone and alarm clock for 10 minutes after the fitbit until I learned to trust it!

I have a fitbit flex as my alarm. However I don't think that this is going to work any better for you if you are dreaming that you can ignore the alarm. The fact that its on my wrist makes it a gentler wakeup, and I don't see how a gentler wakeup will work in your situation.

Have you tried one of the sunrise alarms - the one that has a light that turns on gradually - to try and trick your body whilst its still in sleep mode? Not ideal for your DH, but then neither is your current scenario.

My Fitbit does this and is useful when I have to be up for work at 04:45 but don't want to wake up DP or DS.

I am always paranoid about sleeping through it though and end up setting 2 vibrating alarms and a phone alarm just in case.

99% of the time I turn the phone alarm off before it sounds though.

Just started using my Fitbit alarm too-it's gentle & doesnt disturb dh

Sorry but I really don’t understand why you don’t just leap straight out of bed after the first alarm. Then you can’t fall back asleep.

set an alarm that isn't next to your bed, like an old school ringing type alarm clock. Put it somewhere where you have to get up and walk across the room to turn it off

there are several options

fitbit (i have a flex) that vibrates
i also have a lumie alarm clock, the light comes on 30 min before the alarm and slowly gets brighter until your alarm goes off, i find i wake when the light comes on whch allows me 30 minutes to 'come to'

I have also seen alarms that run around the room etc until you catch them but if you dont wake up to a normal alarm i doubt it would be any good!

I second the Fitbit recommendation - I don't have any other alarm clock now other than that. It's a gentle but persistent wake up call rather than shocking the living daylights out of me with an audio alarm

The other place to look is places that sell equipment for deaf people. There are vibrating alarms for people with hearing impairments as obviously they can't always hear an audio alarm