A good night’s sleep is one the foundations of a healthy lifestyle. The amount of sleep we get affects many aspects of our life – our ability to fight infection, our weight, our mood, how we interact with others, how well we perform tasks. It even affects cognitive health which is a major concern as we age.

It’s just no fun to start out the day tired and crabby. Sleep specialists recommend that adults get 7-8 of sleep each night, yet how many of us actually meet that goal?

Oh, I try. Early to bed and even earlier to rise. There are many nights that I’m in bed well before ten and asleep not much later. The problem is the “early to rise” can be a wee bit too early. I’m thrilled to sleep past 5am. In fact, 6am is considered “sleeping in” at our house.

On a recent “morning,” I woke up, looked at the clock and was dismayed to see that it was 3am. What does one do at 3am? It’s dark out. Way too early to get up and feed the dogs, fire up the Nespresso machine or otherwise start the day.

Three in the morning is even too early to read the online newspapers. So, I popped in my earbuds and launched a sleep story on my Calm app. Then another. While I did nod off a bit, I never fell fully back to sleep and when I peeked at the time again, it was 4:58.

I decided I might as well get up and rolled out of bed to feed the dogs. They’d been stirring for a good half an hour but we try not to feed them before 5am – no matter how much of a fuss the little one makes. Which begs the question; who’s running this house anyway? But that’s a topic for another column.

Waking up in the wee hours is nothing new to me. Around the age of forty-five, I started to have occasional sleep problems which included difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep or waking up way too early.  

I’ve tried many remedies, with varying levels of success, in my quest for a good night’s sleep. I use sleep apps and a sleep mat with little spikes on it that functions as a kind of acupressure treatment (it’s call a “Spoonk” for those interested). I’m not one for prescription sleep meds and melatonin leaves me groggy and with memories of weird dreams.

I try to follow good “sleep hygiene” which includes things like regular exercise, turning off technology an hour before bedtime, meditation, reading, sipping herbal tea, taking a relaxing bath and other behaviors that helps one “wind down.”

Still, there are those nights when nothing seems to stave off the insomnia or quiet an overactive brain that keeps bringing up things to worry about. Household to-do lists, work stress, the kids, something someone said (or something I said) or just general life angst.

I’ve come to accept that those nights of poor sleep just need to be tolerated with the hope that the next night, exhaustion will win out and a result in a restful slumber. And it usually does.

In the meantime, I’ve learned to embrace the early mornings. Since I’m up, I might as well make the most of it. I’ll brew my coffee, read my favorite news sources and see how many tries it takes to solve the Wordle.

When weather permits, I’ll open the door the deck, listen to the birds, watch the sun come up and go for a walk with my canine sidekick.  I’ll read, write, exercise, bake, shop online and organize my day – all before 9am! Those wee hours of the morning have become my favorite time of day.

So goes the life of the early riser. Of course, I’ll need a nap by 3pm. And to my comrades also up at the crack of dawn – a Nespresso toast to you – and let’s see those Wordle results.

Sidebar: How other early risers spend those bonus morning hours:

When I asked my Facebook followers: “How do you make the best of those predawn hours? I received enough real time replies (noting that I posted at 4am) – to confirm what I had always suspected – there are many of us who are wide awake before the sun comes up.

Here’s a sampling of how others spend those bonus hours:

“I go fishing” – Frank Young

“I read, watch a movie, or sometimes organize things.” – Maria Palmer

“I make lists of things I need to do, plan, read, do light research on my phone.” – Kristen Fedderson

“I practice languages on Duolingo” – Rich Montgomery

“I play Royal Match until I get sleepy again.” – Nelena Neff

“I journal, read my devotional and the Daily Bread.” – Leslie Sullivan

“I start laundry, check my flowers, empty the dishwasher, and enjoy the peace and beauty of the early morning in my sunroom.” – Debbie Benz

“I toss and turn and fret.” – Joyce Kramar

“I read, update spreadsheets, take my coffee outside and enjoy the sunrise. If no one else is still asleep, I start household chores like laundry. Chronic insomniac here.” – Kathy Young