How do Sunrise Alarms Work?

What is a Sunrise Alarm?

A sunrise alarm is an alarm clock that wakes you up with light instead of sound. It’s also called a dawn simulator, because it mimics the gradual brightening of the sun rising in the morning. When the light hits your lids, your brain is notified that it’s morning and time to wake up.

Have you ever scrolled through the sound options on your phone alarm? Each option is more unpleasant than the one before. You might have had a restful night's sleep, but it all can be ruined when you’re startled awake. By using a sunrise alarm, you skip the distress of a sudden and jarring phone alarm in favor of a more gradual wake up. 

Sunrise alarms wake you up primarily with light, though some, like Hatch Restore, give you the option to add a soothing alarm tone once full brightness is achieved. 

Sunrise alarms are a more natural way to wake up. Instead of starting the day on the wrong side of the bed with a piercing beep-beep-beep, your body rises with light and is prepared to get moving. More on this later.

Sunrise Alarm Benefits

Waking up with light can have tangible benefits to your sleep, like:

• Reinforcing a regular sleep schedule
• Supporting healthy levels of cortisol
• Balancing melatonin to help you wake up easier
• A partner in managing Seasonal Affective Disorder

How Do Sunrise Alarms Work?

How exactly does a sunrise alarm work (and how does it lead to so many benefits)? Since the dawn of time, sunlight has been a powerful force in creating our internal schedule. Sunlight has not only signaled the time of day, but our bodies have used sunlight to regulate hormones and create a sleep-wake cycle.

These days, sunlight is a vital force regulating our bodies and minds. Your sleep-wake cycle (aka circadian rhythm), depends upon light to keep it on track.

Your circadian rhythm is a natural 24-hour cycle, regulated by your light exposure. Your circadian rhythm is especially sensitive to light about 2 hours before bedtime and through the night until about 1 hour after you wake up.

Understanding how it works can help you create better habits to promote sleep and make it easier to wake up. For example, avoiding light exposure 2 hours before bedtime confirms with your circadian rhythm that you’ll be winding down for bed shortly. This lets your sleep cycle kick off hormonal changes preparing you to fall asleep faster and stay asleep. 

On the flip side, by exposing yourself to light when you wake up, whether letting sun shine in through your windows or by using a sunrise alarm, your body senses that it’s morning and will commence its natural processes to wake you up. A sunrise alarm works with the circadian rhythm, supporting your morning sleep cycle.

The Science Behind Sunrise Alarms

Let’s go deep on what’s happening behind the scenes when you use a sunrise alarm. Your eyes, hormones, and brain all play apart in nudging you awake.

When a sunrise alarm starts, the light will begin dim and slowly increase in brightness. The first part of your body to recognize a change is your eyes. The retina senses the light, signaling the optic nerve, which carries a message that day is beginning, straight to your brain. From there, the pineal glands, adrenal glands, and hypothalamus are prompted to kick into gear. These are all responsible parties in your circadian rhythm. 

Next up, glands start to shift the balance of your hormone levels, leaning into the chemicals that promote wakefulness. When you fall asleep, your pineal gland releases more melatonin. In the morning, it pulls back on this sleep-inducing chemical using environmental and bodily signals, like light. The adrenal glands also follow light signals, releasing more cortisol when exposed to light. Cortisol is also called the stress hormone, which kick-starts your day by spiking in the morning.

Finally, the hypothalamus is connected to many arousal centers, which are key to your sleep cycle. When you experience darkness before sleeping, the hypothalamus calms with fewer arousing inputs. A similar effect occurs in the morning. When your brain gets the signal that day is dawning, you become more aware of your surroundings, and are more easily awoken. 

By exposing yourself to light in the morning, you’re starting a chain reaction of activity in the brain and body that wakes you up. Hello, morning person!

Additionally, some studies show that disorders like Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) can be combated by sunrise alarms. Depression and SAD are especially common in the darker winter months, and light (sunrise alarms, light therapy, sun exposure) has been shown to help with symptoms. Not only does light help, but consistent quality sleep plays a large part in symptom reduction as well.

Sunrise vs. Traditional Alarms

Sunrise alarms provide a gentle and bright wake-up experience. Traditional alarms (on your phone or not) wake you up suddenly with a loud beep or music. 

When the alarm chimes, all we can think about is shutting it off–you can't do it quick enough! If you’ve ever had the experience of turning off your alarm to only immediately fall back asleep, you know why that can be a problem: more oversleeping and more snoozing.

Sunrise alarm hit you with a dose of light exposure first thing in the morning. In the darker months, that can be essential to supporting your circadian rhythm. Keeping your sleep cycle on track is about more than just getting to bed on time, it’s making sure you’re fully awake in the morning and staying energized throughout the day. 

Rise with the Sun

Light can be a game changer for your mornings, as it's a key input in helping you wake up and feel energized. Sunrise alarms let you wake with the sun on your own schedule, and create the wakeup experience that prepares you for all you have to tackle in a day. For a fully customizable sunrise alarm that wakes you up gently, check out Restore. You’d never know you were a morning person.