The Time You Wake Up At Night Reveals Your Emotional Conditions (And Health Issues Too)

#1 9:00 PM To 11:00 PM: Stress and Worries

This is the bedtime for most people. If you’re not able to sleep in these hours, it’s due to the stress and worries of the day. You may also find that your fearful or anxious thoughts become louder and make you feel either threatened or unsafe in some way.

#2 According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), feeling hot can make it hard to stay (and fall) asleep.

"The temperature of the room, what you wear or don't wear to bed, the sheets and blankets—all figure into keeping your body at the right temperature," says Marc Leavey, MD, a primary care specialist with Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.

#3 Your Bedroom Is Too Cold

If you’re not covered in sweat but you still wake up in the middle of the night, it’s probably your insanely cold bedroom. We almost forgot… you can’t sleep when the room is too cold. So use the AC timer and turn that thing off once your room feels cold enough already.

#4 Don’t wait for your brain to signal your body to wake up because your muscles are freezing and your bones feel too brittle already.

Please have mercy on the air-conditioning. And please have mercy on your body. All it wants is to sleep. Try turning down the AC a bit, okay?

#5 People can sleep comfortably at a range of temperatures.

But a room temp between 60 and 65°F is ideal for most, the NSF reports. Also, try a bath before bed, Leavey suggests. "Taking a warm bath raises your temperature in the tub slightly while exiting the tub triggers a slight drop in temperature—a signal that your brain associates with sleep," he explains.

#6 11:00 PM To 1:00 AM: Self-Esteem Issues

This time frame is considered as the time when the energy meridian of the gall bladder is active. You’re going through emotional disappointment at this time.

According to the Chinese Medicine Body Block, being disappointed by a loved one can also trigger this stage of wakefulness, making you unable to sleep or forcing you to wake up during this time.

#7 Jose Colon, MD, founder of Paradise Sleep and author of The Sleep Diet said:

"Waking up in the middle of the night is completely normal and part of our human DNA"

"Nobody sleeps through the night," Colon says. In fact, he says even 4 to 6 nocturnal awakenings are considered normal. "This goes back to our caveman days where one would wake up, scan the environment, make sure there are no tigers, and then go back to sleep," he says.

#8 1:00 AM To 3:00 AM: Guilt & Rage

You stay awake at this time because of the energy meridian associated with the liver. It deals with anger and the yang energy.

According to the Chinese Organ Body Clock, guilt and rage are associated with this timing. The anger lingering from the heated argument you recently had with your partner or at work could be waking you up in the dead of night and having an excess of these feelings can also be contributing to it.

#9 Waking up between 1 AM and 3 AM could mean that your liver is struggling.

Knowing how important our liver is, problems with waking up during this time should be addressed as soon as possible. It could mean that your liver is being overworked with all the toxins to deal with and a solution could be readjusting your diet to healthier eating and reducing alcohol.

#10 You’re Secretly Stressed Out

Apparently, being stressed out is not as simple as we think it is. Sometimes, stress is hiding inside of us. Totally lurking. We think we’re doing okay because we’re functioning like any other normal person. But at night, we find it difficult to sleep straight. We wake up in the middle of the night and stare at the ceiling for hours.

Instead of dealing with too many sleepless nights, try to examine your life and see what can potentially cause you stress. Address that and observe your sleeping habits.

#11 Lekeisha A. Sumner, Ph.D., a board-certified clinical psychologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, said:

"Stress-reduction interventions, such as mindfulness meditation and progressive relaxation, have demonstrated some effectiveness for sleep disturbances, including frequent awakenings from stress."

#12 Sumner says,

"Meditation and similar practices may help decrease worry and improve mood, which supports sounder sleep."

#13 3:00 AM To 5:00 AM: Grief & Sadness

Grief and sadness are linked to this timing. Waking up during this timing is suggestive of negative things that have happened in your life such as the death of a loved one or a breakup.

#14 Emotional well-being

Talking to family members confiding in close friends can do a lot of good to your emotional well-being and although it can be difficult, finding ways to move on is important.

#15 Ease emotional feelings

To ease any emotional feelings at this time, try to release control over events and have more faith and trust in the flow of the Universe. You may also benefit from taking deep, conscious breaths.

#16 5:00 AM To 7:00 AM: Feeling Stuck in Life

Feeling stuck about the lack of growth in one’s life is also a critical emotional problem if you wake up during this time.

This is when the meridian that flows into the large intestine is activated and symbolizes a need to let go and release control.

#17 The large intestine is responsible for clearing the body of toxic waste from our digestive system,

so waking up during this time could indicate a weakness in this area. You may also wake at this time if you are feeling emotionally blocked or restricted in your life in some way.

#18 It may also be a sign that you need to release and let go of guilt or burdening emotions.

A good way to solve this is to have a morning ritual that makes you happy and driven such as planning the day ahead, listening to uplifting music or simple meditating to clear the mind for the day ahead.

#19 Troubleshooting Made Easy

If you are unsure at what times you are waking up during the night, have a notebook placed beside you and if there is ever a time you wake up and can’t get back to sleep, record the time in that notebook.

#20 Track sleep pattern

By tracking our pattern of sleep, we are able to troubleshoot it and find the best solutions for better sleep in the future.