To ask if any night owls have managed to become morning larks?

[Atticusblame]

I've always been a night owl. Given my way, I'd go to bed at 4am and get up at 1pm, earliest. Obviously jobs don't tend to work around those hours so in reality I usually go to bed at 1am, asleep by 2, and up at 8:30 for work. I've found that there is no point in going to bed before 1 because I end up lying awake getting increasingly frustrated.

Anyway, I've started running lately. However, I have many evening meetings and don't have time to finish work, run, shower and get ready and back in time for meetings, so I end up missing exercising on loads of days. I would love to get up before work to exercise, but it genuinely feels impossible. I go to bed determined to get up early, but when my alarm goes off there is no chance. Nothing could drag me from my bed.

I have friends who say that once they're awake, they need to get up. I want to be one of those people. Is it possible to change?

No, it is genetically determined. One is born an owl and dies an owl. Prof Matthew Walker writes about it in his book Why We Sleep.

I changed when I had two children and subsequently have been unable to sleep for 3 years. I used to go to bed at about 3am and wake at 10/11ish as I work in hospitality so normally don't start work until the afternoon then finish at 1am. Now I still do those shifts but wake at 7am latest every day anyway.

I did. Had kids, and already had a dog which meant getting up at 6am to walk dog/ exercise and get dressed for work before kids waking at 7/7.30.
I found I liked it, being up and out the door still half asleep to wake up in the park. and as long as I got enough sleep 7-8 hours getting up early was easy.
Now I’m basically a morning person and rarely sleep in, weekends I’m up at 8.30am which is a ‘lie in’ now! Even if I’m out till late on a Friday/sat

Oh yes - weekends you really need to have a plan to stop the inevitable lie in (until you find you no longer want/need it). So the kids and I do parkruns, me on Saturday and them at a junior one on Sunday. Even if you don't want to run you can volunteer, it's a really lovely atmosphere and I enjoy volunteering more than the run.

I got a teasmaid

I'm like you OP. Nothing so joyous IMO as staying up really late - 3 or 4 am late - so you are properly tired and then sleeping as long as you like. On the weekend slept 3 am - almost 2pm. Amazing. I don't normally sleep 11 hours but it was so nice.

Generally speaking I'm up early for work and school run (am divorced which is why I get the occasional night to listen to by own body clock). So can't do it very often.

I wonder larks feeling that joy about their early to bed, early to rise stuff?

Even when I do go to sleep early and manage to get up early on the weekend it feels all wrong. There's far too much morning for my liking! That's even without having been up late.

Luckily my youngest (5) is also and owl and sleeps until 8 or sometimes 9 on the weekends and holidays. Eldest is 11 and now enjoys having a bit of lark time to herself in the mornings- she tells me to.go back to bed if I happen to be up!

Am totally the same. Revert to type In three days. Cannot be arsed to sleep early even when I want to!

Yes! At uni I'd do most of my studying late afternoon and evening. That's naturally my best time to work and I get my best work done then too. When working pre kids I wAs also the same, I'd do face to face meetings in the morning then spend afternoon /eve doing all the intelligent stuff. Now with kids, the only time I get to myself is before they wake at 7, so I get up around 530 to run, yoga, shower.
I got a sunrise alarm clock (husband hates it ha! So eventually had to get rid of it but that helped, plus the thought of listening to my fav songs and having some me time spurs me on.

No matter how hard I try I just cannot become a lark, life would be so much easier if I were, the world is geared towards larks, for me to fit my hours run I would have to be up at 4.30am, I’m rarely asleep before 2.00am no matter how early I get up, I could not do a run on 2.5 hours of sleep so I have to stick to evening runs, I really envy larks.

When I turned 60 this year I found myself needing less and less sleep. I need to go to the loo about 6 and can’t get back to sleep afterwards.
When my DC were young I would have killed for extra sleep and in my twenties I could sleep till noon.
I enjoyed the early mornings this summer but not sure how I will feel about being up before dawn.

I'm up before dawn regularly for work and as much as I'd rather be in bed the sunrises more often than not make up for it. Some of the autumn /winter ones are really spectacular (if the sky isn't just a solid blanket of cloud)

I'm a lark but DH is an owl. For years he has needed to be up and out of the house by 6:30.

He's still an owl though.

I personally haven't found it possible to change my programming. I've been getting up at 6:30 or earlier for work for over 20 years now, but my natural waking time remains between 8 - 8:30. I spend the week in an increasing sleep deficit.

I did it , but naturally happened as I got older. Used to stay up late and have to drag myself out of bed. Normally up now at 6.30 weekdays and weekends I call 9am a lie in. I am usually asleep by 10.30.
If I have a late night, exhausted for days.

Being peri-menopausal was a big help

I did. I had twins. I wouldn’t recommend it as a strategy 😬

Although I had to do it years ago for work stuff. My body clock was absolutely busted though after years of staying up late and then jet lag, I was basically on reverse time. I got some phenergan and took it about 7pm so I fell asleep by 9pm and set alarm for 5am. Did this for 3 days in a row then stopped the tablets. It did creep slightly (10pm - 5am mostly). It feels very productive being up so early!

I have to manage it but it does really affect me. I’m naturally an owl but because of staggered child care pick-

Pressed to soon.

Because of staggered childcare pick-ups I’m up at 5. If I had the weekends to sleep I’m, I’d be fine but small people wake me up. I think it’s very difficult to swap natural preferences without it affecting you in some way. I’ve never been good at going to bed early enough to get enough sleep so I function on a lot of caffeine.

I'm a natural owl as are all my kids and DH, thankfully. I gave up on trying to be a lark because I was just far too grumpy when I had to start work at 7am. Switched to night shift and all was well with the world. DS And DH also work nights, so we need to coordinate well, but fighting against my nature was really bad for my mental health and relationships.

The other thing I find hard is I hit my most productive time at work just as I’m packing up to leave. I then find myself back at home sorting out the children and then going back to work until late which is not good when I have to be up. Basically my ideal working hours would probably be 2-10pm but that isn’t really compatible with my job.

I think saying people who get up early must have something they love getting up for is over simplifying it a bit. I get up at 5.45 every day because I have to to get myself and kids sorted and get everyone to work/ school on time.
If you don’t have any other option you just do it. Get up early for long enough and you’ll soon start being tired earlier in the evening.

I am a night owl but get up at 6am for work. I find it really hard to be honest - and wish so was more of a morning person

I manage for work but hate it. I feel tired a lot of the time and just don't sleep well going to bed early and getting up early. I suppose the problem is that I automatically default on holidays and weekends as DH is also an owl and wants to stay out later rather than rushing out in the morning.