I've done a stretch of 2 weeks to 2 months of being an early riser, but inevitably, like clockwork, the sleep schedule drifts back to me going to bed around 2 AM and waking up around 10AM.
As a parent of a 5 and 3 year old, I can confirm. No matter how long I’m forced successfully into getting up early, I’m still more alert and focused and happy as soon as the sun sets, and given the opportunity I’ll instantly slip back into sleeping at 1-2 am again.
My secret has just been consistently going to bed and getting up at the same time as my wife, who is not a night owl, every night. Some nights are frustrating and take me longer to fall asleep, most mornings I feel bit groggy, and I'm overall not thrilled with my experience with sleep, but I'm able to keep a consistent schedule without rubberbanding amounts of sleep, I'm rarely truly exhausted during the day, and my waking hours overlaps consistently with society and businesses.
It's certainly an imperfect compromise, but it works well enough.
I've tried to chase down the literature on the genetic basis for DSPS. It's still a developing field, but there have been some compelling studies that are narrowing down gene loci for night-owls.
I've done a stretch of 2 weeks to 2 months of being an early riser, but inevitably, like clockwork, the sleep schedule drifts back to me going to bed around 2 AM and waking up around 10AM.
And yes, I've tried everything.