When I was younger, I had this unexplainable ability to jump out of bed the second the alarm went off and somehow, on autopilot, start getting ready for the day. Tragically, that skill vanished ages ago, and waking up has since become one of my most painful daily experiences. I have tried to fix it for years, even read The Miracle Morning, hoping to find a simple cure, but not a single bit of magic worked. In the end, I had to accept the truth: I am not a morning person, and probably will never be.

Still, over time, I have gathered a few small insights that make the process slightly more bearable. In this column, I am sharing little survival strategies that help me — and others who can’t properly process their existence before 10 am — get through the mornings.

The paradox is that I actually love being awake in the morning — as long as I don’t have an unpleasant obligation to be somewhere by 9 am. I enjoy stepping out into the quiet streets, taking my dog for a walk, and grabbing a croissant on the way. Even better if it is one of those rare mornings that mark the start of a holiday. As long as there is no pressure, I genuinely savour that blissful calm and the feeling that I have got all the time in the world to live this day.

Sadly, though, enjoying mornings is not the same as managing to face them. Getting out of bed is a whole different story, especially when real-life responsibilities kick in.

Every now and then, when my morning plans have nothing to do with fun (and sometimes even when they do), I start questioning my life choices and negotiating with myself — “Do I really need to do this?”, “Can I reschedule it for a more civilised hour?”, “Do I actually feel well? What if I’m not sleepy, just... ill?”

So, my number one trick for dealing with your own nature is to adjust your lifestyle to your body clock as much as possible.

And since I know I am not alone in this daily battle, I asked a couple of fellow sufferers to share what helps them survive the early hours.

Dara Morgan, Chief Editor at the Sandy Times

Only gets up under pressure

"Nothing really helps me wake up in the morning — except having some urgent plan scheduled for the morning. Ideally something involving another person.

If it is a workout, it works best if I am going with a friend, so that she can call and wake me up — and I can fully experience the shame and guilt of her getting out of bed while I am still wrapped up like a burrito. Or she can assign me the responsibility of waking her up, which also works, because then I feel accountable.

But the best scenario is when I manage to get up and she doesn’t. Then I instantly feel like a far superior human being. Because excuse me — I rose from the dead, and you didn’t. Early bird, God’s favourite, etc. That is the first point.

The second one: any morning activity I plan has to be prepaid. Non-negotiable. Because then you can instantly convert the extra sleep you are considering into the money you are about to lose.

Let’s say I paid 140 AED for a Pilates class, and I am thinking of sleeping an extra hour. I genuinely have to ask myself: “Is 1.5 hours of sleep worth 140 AED?”

Sometimes the answer is yes — and then I try to be kind to myself — but honestly, that is rare. If I had free cancellation, I would choose to sleep far more often. Prepayment forces me upright.

And third: the airport factor. You can sleep one hour before a flight, 15 minutes, or just blink for a second — you will still get up if you are flying somewhere on holiday. Works every single time. Tragically, not very applicable to daily life."

Alexandra Mansilla, Senior Editor at the Sandy Times

Appreciates mornings for keeping her sane

"It has always been easy for me to wake up early, but after ten years of being a mum, it has become my second nature. I get up at 6 am every day, because anything before 7 am is priceless me-time. That is the one hour when I don’t need to rush anywhere — I can have breakfast, do a bit of sport, work in peace, or tackle a few chores.

From 7 am until evening, the race begins, and I sometimes lose myself in the chaos. But that quiet hour in the morning keeps me sane. It is when I can think, plan my day, and actually breathe.

Even before my daughter was born, I used to wake up early for work — I have always been more productive in the morning than in the evening."