Getting Your Body Started

With my current job I have worked a variety of shifts, which have caused problems with my sleeping pattern and real difficulties in getting up in the morning. One of the most recent shifts was working alternate weeks with one week getting up at 6am and other at 8:30am. Getting up at 8:30am wasn’t as bad as the 6am start as it was much lighter but 6am starts were horrible, even though on both weeks I would have the same number of hours of sleep. Most mornings I used to wake up really tired and have on at least 8 alarms to ensure I woke up as I LOVE to snooze. I would keep hitting the snooze button until the very last moment and never have that fresh feeling when I woke up. My shifts then changed and now I have one start time and get up at 6:45am everyday (apart from a lie in on weekends) which is a little better but during the winter months it is still very dark when I get up and so hard to get out of bed.

After a lot of reading I came across the Lumie Bodyclock Starter clock 30 and they were kind enough to send me a clock to try out and review. I have tried the Lumie Clock over the course of a few months and during different shifts and over the weekend to see if it made any difference to how I felt when I woke up. I was really excited about this clock but have to admit I was a bit skeptical. I have struggled getting up for so many years and wasn’t sure if it was going to work. I really wanted to give the clock a go and see what it was capable of doing. Maybe I could cut down my 8 alarms on my iPhone to just one haha!

The clock itself isn’t too big and has a dome like shape. It has a simple design so didn’t stand out too much on my bedside table. The clock comes with a bulb which is really easy to install as the dome clips off and you can screw the bulb in. There are only three buttons on this clock so it’s really easy to set up and not over complicated. There are a number of options with this clock, you can personalise it to your needs, which is brilliant. I decided to set my alarm with the gradual 30 min light that simulates a sun rise along with an alarm beep at 6:45am. So for example, if my alarm was set for 6:45am, the bulb would light up gradually at 5:15am and get brighter so I would wake up to a very bright room. The clock has slits cut out of the dome cover at the back so when the light is on and the clock is near a wall it looks like the rays of sun. As I struggle with getting up and can fall back to sleep shortly after the alarm goes off, I have needed 8 alarms on my iPhone to get me up. So, during this trial I decided to keep my iPhone alarms on as a backup, but I set it for 15 mins after my Lumie clock, so I could feel the effects of the Lumie clock and I had the peace of mind that I had a back up alarm incase the Lumie Clock didn’t wake me up.

During my trial period I noticed that I have not required the iPhone alarm to get up. I am able to get up and out of bed within the 15 minutes from the time my Lumie Clock has gone off and my iPhone alarm is set for. I am truly amazed! Don’t get me wrong I still feel tired and have thoughts like, ‘wish I could stay in bed all day’, but I feel fresher, more awake, happier and don’t have to drag myself out of bed at the very last moment and then run around getting ready like a headless chicken. It’s very hard to explain but I feel like I have more energy. Please don’t expect to use the Lumie clock and your eyes to ping open as soon as the alarm sounds. I have however noticed that on about 3 days a week I do wake up about 10-15 mins before the alarm sound goes off. So, I think my body is getting into a routine and the light is stimulating my brain to stop producing the sleep hormone resulting in me to naturally wake up.

The clock also has another great feature, it has a 30 min fading sunset that helps you unwind and get ready for bed. I have used this feature and love it. I’m one of those people I don’t need to unwind to go to sleep. Once my head hits the pillow, I am out like a light. I have loved using the clock as a bedside table light and using the + and – buttons to set the light on just enough to read and if I fall asleep I don’t have the worry that the light is going to be on all night, it will gradually turn off. This is great, as I have fallen asleep in the past with my bedside lamp on and after a lot of research online, it shows that you don’t get a good night sleep with the light on. This is due there being any Melatonin (sleep hormone) being produced. Whereas as the light dims you begin to feel sleepy and less alert as the sleep hormone is being released.

So after my trial I can say I LOVE my Lumie clock and it has changed the way I wake up. If you struggle to get up and feel grouchy and not in a good mood, I would definitely suggest to try it out. Everyone’s body is different, but It could make a big difference to your life, especially if you are working shifts and have early starts and waking up when it is dark outside.

Lumie have kindly sent over a Lumie Bodyclock starter 30 for us to giveaway!! So, if you would like a chance to win it, all you need to do is any one or all of the following. Only one entry per route is accepted. Enter via the Blog, Twitter and Facebook to have three chances of winning.

Competition rules:
Competition is only open to people in the UK.
Only one entry per method will count.
Max of 3 entries per person (Facebook, Twitter, Accessory Freaks Blog). The reason we have 3 methods is to give more people a chance to enter.
Competition closes on Friday, 15th May 2015 at 12pm (midnight) GMT.

There will be one random winner picked from all the entries on Facebook, Twitter and the blog. The winner will announced on our social media sites on 17th May.

Here are the three ways you can enter.

Accessory Freaks blog:

1. Subscribe to the Accessory Freaks blog, if you haven’t done so already. If you scroll to the top of this post there is a subscribe section on the right hand side column.
2. Leave ONE comment simply saying “Enter Me” under the ‘Getting Your Body Started’ post (One entry per person)

Twitter:

1. Must follow @AccessoryFreaks  and @Lumie_lights on twitter

2. Tweet the following to enter
Just entered the @AccessoryFreaks & @Lumie_lights giveaway 2 #win a #LumieBodyclock! To Enter RT & Follow

https://blog.accessoryfreaks.co.uk/getting-your-body-started/

Facebook:

1. Like the Accessory Freaks page https://www.facebook.com/AccessoryFreaks

2. Share and like our giveaway post.

Good luck everyone 🙂