What Really Happens When You Hit ‘Snooze’

We can probably all agree that there are few things more satisfying in life than shutting off your alarm clock to stay in your dreamy slumber. However, there are certain things that happen to your body when you wake up, hit snooze and fall back to sleep.

When you surrender to your sleep once your alarm clock goes off, perplexity rises for your brain and body, causing you a state called sleep inertia. Sleep inertia is a foggy feeling that can last throughout the day, making you feel drained and exhausted. 

Drowning in the ocean of snooze can also have a significant impact on your REM sleep -a time when the brain is active, and body is inactive. Typically, the body transitions through different sleep stages to fall back to the final stage of sleep-REM.  Hitting the snooze button repeatedly makes it difficult for your body to restore the full consciousness. Not only this, but it also deprives you of having the restorative advantages of REM sleep. Falling back to sleep makes it harder for the brain to achieve the state of REM once you turn off your alarm.

A study conducted by the University of UK has found that abrupt snoozing not only disrupts your sleep cycle but also affects cognitive functions of the brain. It slows down brain processing and gives you a lethargic feeling that stays with you throughout the whole day. Ultimately, your disoriented mind suffers from the lack of concentration required to make important decisions.

Lastly, having constant interruption in the REM cycle can also affect your long-term memory. Sleep experts believe that we tend to process different skills and experiences during our REM stage of the sleep cycle, so if you’re one of those people who like to set an early alarm so you can experience the joy of snoozing, you may want to rethink this approach, as it disrupts the patterns of your sleep cycle.  

Although snoozing in the morning can be a magical feeling, it's not without its consequences. Practice setting your alarm for the exact time you need to wake up to enjoy a better night's sleep and more productivity throughout your day. 

Not a morning person? Here's how you can become one