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Morning stress for night owls

akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
in General 89 karma

Hi peeps, I've been having big fluctuations in my PT performance. I'm a night owl, and have been forcing myself to get up early (and go to bed earlier) to start doing tests from 9:30am. I've also done tests in the afternoon, when I'm less stressed and more awake, the highest and lowest difference would be 165-153. I feel that even though I can get up even earlier in the morning and prepare for the test, the general stress I feel in the morning is just much worse. (I guess morning isn't really for me.) How can I manage/control my mornings better as a night owl?

Comments

  • AudaciousRedAudaciousRed Alum Member
    2689 karma

    One possibility: You'll have to start getting up extra early so that the morning test becomes your "afternoon". A couple weeks of that might be enough to help you adapt.
    The other option is to try and take a 12:30 testing date. Sooo much easier on us night owls.

  • studyingandrestudyingstudyingandrestudying Core Member
    5254 karma

    What would your sleep and wake habits be if you had no obligations?

  • akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
    89 karma

    @AudaciousRed said:
    One possibility: You'll have to start getting up extra early so that the morning test becomes your "afternoon". A couple weeks of that might be enough to help you adapt.
    The other option is to try and take a 12:30 testing date. Sooo much easier on us night owls.

    I haven't thought of this tbh... because the earliest I can do is 7am... I guess probably I just need either a longer time to have a clear mind or better understanding of the questions overall? Thanks for your suggestion. :smile:

  • akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
    89 karma

    @lsatplaylist said:
    What would your sleep and wake habits be if you had no obligations?

    Something like 1am-8:30 or 9am... (It's bad I know.)

  • studyingandrestudyingstudyingandrestudying Core Member
    5254 karma

    Fascinating. So a 3rd shift would be perfect for you?

  • akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
    89 karma

    @lsatplaylist said:
    Fascinating. So a 3rd shift would be perfect for you?

    I haven't done any PT in 3rd shift so far, but my mind is usually much clearer starting from the afternoon.

  • studyingandrestudyingstudyingandrestudying Core Member
    5254 karma

    Are there any 12:30 tests that work for your schedule and timeline?

  • SuperMario929SuperMario929 Alum Member
    464 karma

    I had the same issue. Big night owl, could hit the 170s on PTs but got mid 160s for the morning tests (never took the 12:30 until the July 2019 test for some reason). Taking the 12:30 was a huge help, end-of. You can try to train it, but if your biological clock is working against you, I say delay and take the October test which is at 12:30. For me, it's a 7-8 point difference probably. 100% worth it, even if you have to use a vacation day for it or something.

  • akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
    89 karma

    @lsatplaylist said:
    Are there any 12:30 tests that work for your schedule and timeline?

    Yes I just realized that inspired by the comments here. I should probably cancel the morning test I registered and choose an afternoon one. Thanks for your suggestion!

  • akitagogoakitagogo Alum Member
    89 karma

    @SuperMario929 said:
    I had the same issue. Big night owl, could hit the 170s on PTs but got mid 160s for the morning tests (never took the 12:30 until the July 2019 test for some reason). Taking the 12:30 was a huge help, end-of. You can try to train it, but if your biological clock is working against you, I say delay and take the October test which is at 12:30. For me, it's a 7-8 point difference probably. 100% worth it, even if you have to use a vacation day for it or something.

    Thanks for sharing your experience. I've registered for a morning test in Oct... I'm thinking if I should cancel it and do an afternoon test? The difference is that I have to fly over to another country, since no afternoon test is offered in Asia till June. Ummm, or I could just go for the morning test, and if I don't perform well I can register for the next Afternoon test in Nov outside Asia? (Gosh this is a lot of information, sorry about that!)

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