How to wake up feeling fresh during the dark winter mornings...

It has been said that teaching is the best and hardest profession in the world. I won't argue with that, but some days it does feel that little bit harder when just starting the day is like trying to wake from a coma.. or is that just me? I find this is especially true this time of year with those dark, cold mornings... There is that long battle with the mind and body to convince myself to get moving when it's pitch black and too cold to get out of bed!

If you're like me in the mornings, then you might want to try a sunrise simulated alarm clock like this one, click on the image to find out more:

It's such a simple concept, but highly effective for me! The way it works, is the alarm gets increasingly brighter over a period of time mimicking a natural sunrise, tricking your body to biologically thinking it's time to get up. The brightness and time span is all controllable (I like full brightness over a half hour period myself: I need a gentle awakening...!) Don't worry about the idea of sleeping through the light though, as it can play sounds too. I have mine set to birds chirping :) So now even in the thick of these cold, winter mornings, every day is like a sunny spring morning in my bedroom!

I'll be honest though, sometimes I am so exhausted even the bright light isn't enough to wake me up immediately, but the sound always will (which is still gentle) and there is something so refreshing about waking up with the room brightly lit already (no more bleary, stingy eyes at least!). 

So there you have it, if you want to start your day of teaching on the right side of the bed (haha) then why not try a sunrise stimulated alarm clock and wake up to sunshine every day, no matter what the weather!