I am 100% a night person. I do not start school work until after dinner because before is too early and 2 am is an early bedtime for me. This ~nocturnal~ lifestyle would be fine and all except for the fact that I have morning classes every day, including an 8:30 am twice a week. I can survive mid-morning, but 8:30, boy is that difficult. To avoid hitting that snooze button, accidentally sleeping through class(we've all been there and done that), or closing your eyes mid-lecture, I have figured out some strategies on how to survive an early class if you are not a morning person.
Have Coffee In Your Room
Coffee is a necessity especially when you are up at dawn. In the beginning of the year, I would find myself waking up too late and I would not have enough time to get coffee before class. Surviving an hour and 15 minutes super early class without coffee was very difficult. So, I came up with a few strategies. I would buy an iced coffee the night before and keep it in my refrigerator so it would stay cold. When I would wake up the next day, I'd grab it as I leave my room. Because this is not always practical due to lack of money (thanks, shitty mean plans!) I have started buying huge jugs of ice coffee. Starbucks, Dunkin, and many other brands have these big bottles that you can just keep in a fridge and pour as you wish. You get more coffee out of this and save too. A Keurig is also an option if you are ~crafty~. Coffee in your room as you leave to a morning class is a huge, huge help.
Eat And Hydrate
This may seem basic and obvious, but when you are tired and wake up later than you should've, it is really easy to forget to eat before class and drink water. Not eating and drinking makes you more tired as your body is not fueled for the day. Even something as small as granola bars or cereal will help tremendously. And, bringing water to class will help too. When you see yourself wanting to close your eyes, drinking water makes a difference. Eating and hydrating are always very important, especially in the morning.
Set Constant Alarms
When you are all cozy in bed and comfortable, hearing an excruciating alarm is quite painful. I find myself waking up easier when I set constant alarms. Hearing that brutal sound every five minutes gets you out of bed because you want the sound to stop. You then become ready for the day opposed to one alarm that you can easily snooze. While the sound is less than pleasant, alarms are saviors and get us up.
Early morning classes are no fun. At all. However, they are inevitable and it is very likely that most college students will have some during their four years. Hopefully, with these strategies, we can all be more awake at the wonderful, beautiful hour of dawn.