The problem with that idea is that it completely misses the fact that most of us have to get up at a specific time in order to get to work or school or whatever else we have to do.
I tried the no-trigger approach for a while, when I was between jobs and didn't have anything to do otherwise. What I found out is that my natural schedule, without manual intervention, has me going to bed at approximately 2am and waking up at around 10:30-11am. When I regained employment, it was a pretty rough transition to go back to waking up at 7am again. After going through that experience, I'd caution people about buying into the no-trigger method. Yes, your brain will naturally get you the amount of sleep that you need. However, there is no guarantee that your natural sleep cycle will mesh with the other obligations you have in your life.
Wild idea: maybe some people's sleep cycles are just inherently incompatible with society and the arbitrary schedules and obligations that a particular society and context has landed on.
Yeah i sometimes wonder about this in the context of our evolutionary history. Having some people around who naturally stay up late to tend the fire and keep a look out seems advantageous. I suppose teenagers can fill this role, but their numbers fluctuate.
This is why I continue to seek out and work evening shifts. 3am-10:30am is just about exactly what my body wants to do naturally. Shifts that start at noon and get out after dark are perfect; once I got that synergy, I stopped feeling tired all the time.
That said, sleep is a complicated, personal thing, and everyone's a little different. You should do what feels right to your body, because it might be very different from what works for my own.
One major assumption that your reasoning relies on is that: human can't adjust their sleep cycle at all.
My unscientific assumption is that we can adjust our sleep cycle to be earlier. But it'll probably take time and effort to do so though.
When I say sleep cycle, I mean: I usually go to bed at 2am, and I want to go to be at 9pm. Can I slowly adjust my body to achieve that?
> After going through that experience, I'd caution people about buying into the no-trigger method. Yes, your brain will naturally get you the amount of sleep that you need. However, there is no guarantee that your natural sleep cycle will mesh with the other obligations you have in your life.
It seems you agree that the no-trigger method is good if we only consider health.
"why we sleep" convinces me that sleep deprivation (even a little) is bad. Essentially, it's a trade-off between damaging your health vs. obligations. This tradeoff is difficult to quantify, so it depends on how you perceive value in each.
Another way that I think about is: the mistake is "going to bed late". You already made the mistake, but you still can choose the punishment. You can choose to damage your health OR you can choose to fail the obligation.
Of course, a better way to avoid all this dilemma together is to go to bed early.
I'd suggest the no-trigger method as the way of life and re-arrange your life to fit the no-trigger method.
I tried the no-trigger approach for a while, when I was between jobs and didn't have anything to do otherwise. What I found out is that my natural schedule, without manual intervention, has me going to bed at approximately 2am and waking up at around 10:30-11am. When I regained employment, it was a pretty rough transition to go back to waking up at 7am again. After going through that experience, I'd caution people about buying into the no-trigger method. Yes, your brain will naturally get you the amount of sleep that you need. However, there is no guarantee that your natural sleep cycle will mesh with the other obligations you have in your life.