It’s a problem that many of us face: you’ve drifted off to sleep but come 2am, you’re wide awake staring at the clock. According to YouGov, 58% of Brits often wake up during the night and for 17% this happens more regularly.
But waking up is, in fact, normal.
“Most of us wake up at least three times a night, but you need to be awake for five minutes to remember it,” says James Wilson, known as The Sleep Geek on social media. “So, the general rule I have is if you don’t remember waking in the night at all, then you’ve slept well.”
However, night-time wake-ups can become a problem when you’re awake for long periods, typically 30 minutes or more; you struggle to fall back asleep; it happens most nights or multiple times a night; you begin to dread going to bed; and/or it affects your daytime mood and energy.
Sleep is pivotal to good health and with one in five of us not getting the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep as it is, it’s time to get to the root cause of frustrating wake-ups…
1. It’s your afternoon coffee
Your afternoon pick-me-up might have more of an impact on your sleep than you think.
“The general rule with caffeine is to wait six hours from your last coffee to sleep in your thirties and 12 hours in your sixties,” says James.
“However, we all metabolise caffeine at different rates so if you’re having a cup of tea or coffee before bed and you sleep well, it’s not a problem.”
Samantha Sadighi, a certified sleep practitioner at Easy Sleep Solutions, warns that it’s also worth thinking about other caffeine sources – not just tea, coffee and energy drinks, but also chocolate. “The darker the chocolate, the more caffeine,” says Samantha.
2. It’s your dinner (or lack of)
It might feel harmless, but coming in late and skipping dinner may secretly hinder your sleep. It’s all due to your blood sugar.
“If this drops too low during the night, the body releases stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline to correct it. These hormones are alerting, waking you up suddenly, sometimes with a racing heart,” says Samantha.
This can also happen if you eat very early in the evening or eat high-sugar foods before bed.
“A balanced evening meal including protein, fibre and healthy fats helps stabilise glucose levels overnight,” says Samantha. Think fish or meat with vegetables, brown rice and olive oil or lentils with roasted vegetables.
If you do eat, avoid large, heavy or high-fat meals or spicy foods. Samantha says they take longer to digest and can trigger reflux when lying down.
3. It’s the post-work drinks
A few glasses of wine in the evening could be enough to hamper your shut-eye.
“Alcohol sedates initially as you metabolise it but then eventually it stimulates,” says James.
So after your initial ‘sleep’, you might wake up more frequently.
Alcohol is a diuretic too, so it could cause you to wake up several times needing a wee.
“The safe amount is different for everyone. A glass of whiskey or wine; a bottle or two of beer, you’re probably okay. When you start getting beyond that, it will affect your body,” says James.
4. It’s your indoor job
Spending time inside, avoiding daylight, interferes with your circadian rhythm aka your body’s natural sleep-wake cycle.
Getting outside when you can, whether it’s first thing with a cup of coffee or on a walk at lunch, helps to keep this rhythm in check.
“Natural daylight makes it more likely we’ll fall asleep within five and 30 minutes, which is healthy, and makes it more likely that we will feel like we’ve slept through the night,” says James.
“If you don’t get that sunlight, particularly in winter, your body’s not quite certain as to when wake-up time is. Often, it won’t start producing daytime hormones such as cortisol, making you feel fatigued and lethargic during the day.” It may also produce cortisol later in the day, keeping you awake longer than you’d like.
If you’re struggling to get enough light, try a light box with a lux (the unit of illuminance) of 10,000 lux at 50 centimetres.
“You can also try light therapy glasses; these put the right frequency of light into my eyes to wake my body up in the morning,” says James.
5. It’s your messy bedroom
Piles of clothes on the floor or a desk filled with work can increase cognitive arousal, according to Samantha.
“If your brain associates the room with emails and stress, it can increase alertness during natural night wakings and also make it harder to fall asleep at the beginning of the night.”
6. It’s the streetlights
Light can trigger wake-ups too – even small amounts from streetlights, phone chargers, standby lights or early morning sunrise.
“Blackout blinds or an eye mask work well. Ideally, the room should be the same level of darkness throughout the night,” says Samantha.
As for noise – think snoring partner or traffic outside – this can wake you up and keep you awake. “Having a fan on or playing white noise can mask any sudden noises,” says Samantha. Ear plugs also help to block out sound.
7. You’re too warm
Feeling toasty? Consider turning the thermostat down. “The body needs to drop its core temperature to stay asleep. If the bedroom is too warm, particularly above 18 to 20C, it can disrupt sleep,” warns Samantha.
In fact, Samantha explains that overheating is one of the most common causes of 3am wake-ups as it’s around the time your core body temperature is at its lowest.
“A chillier room is better than a room that’s too warm.”
Female hormone changes during menstruation or perimenopause can also increase body temperature. James suggests a 4.5 tog duvet or a bamboo sheet when you’re warm during your cycle. “Look at your mattress too as foam is an insulator. Try natural fillings or man-made fibre fillings that are designed to regulate temperature.”
8. It’s your sleep anxiety
When sleep becomes an issue in your head, you can become hyper-focused on sleep and fearful of being awake at night. All it takes is a few poor nights of sleep to cause sleep anxiety to kick in.
“The problem isn’t the initial waking, it’s the clock-watching and mental spiral that follows: ‘I won’t cope tomorrow,’ ‘I’m broken’,” says Samantha.
“This activates the sympathetic nervous system – your fight-or-flight response – which increases cortisol and heart rate, making it biologically harder to fall back asleep. Over time, your brain associates nighttime with alertness and worry rather than safety and sleep.”
Samantha says we should reframe night waking as normal. “Remove clocks from the bedroom; most of us have an alarm clock that will wake us, so we don’t really need to know the time during the night.”
Try breathing exercises too; inhale through your nose for four counts, slowly exhale for six counts. Repeat a few times to calm your mind.
9. It’s a deeper problem
Your persistent night-time wake-ups could signal that there’s something more serious going on. Samantha says it could be obstructive sleep apnoea, where breathing stops and starts while you sleep.
“This is often accompanied by loud snoring, gasping, morning dry mouth and headaches or excessive daytime sleepiness.
“Depression can also cause wake-ups, particularly between 3 and 5am, with difficulty returning to sleep, low mood, loss of interest or appetite changes also being common symptoms.”
If you need to pee a lot in the night and you’re excessively thirsty, it could be diabetes. If you’re worried, visit your GP for advice.
10. It’s your late workout
Hitting the gym in the evening? Don’t expect the soundest of sleep afterwards.
“Overtraining or late intense exercise raises your body temperature and evening cortisol, disrupting your sleep,” warns Samantha.
If you are exercising in the evening, go for low-intensity activities such as walking, Pilates or yoga. Save intense workouts for the morning or during the day.
Enjoyed this? Now try…
Energy-boosting breakfast recipes
Low-sugar recipes
How to get to sleep
Best sleep supplements
Best sleep trackers
Best sleep earplugs
All health content on goodfood.com is provided for general information only, and should not be treated as a substitute for the medical advice of your own doctor or any other health care professional. If you have any concerns about your general health, you should contact your local health care provider. See our website terms and conditions for more information.