Who Else Wakes Up At The Same Time In The Middle Of The Night?

[Smallhold]

Interesting. I wake up most nights around 3.30 as well. Been sleeping with sleepmeds for eons now and will still wake up around that time.

Now the arthritis has kicked in it wakes me up even harder but still around that time.
I often take the dog for a pee and take another sleepingpill. Which is something I fought for years but have come to accept as part of being me lately.

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[PerfectlyFlawed]

I am reacting the same way. I have a nightmare about the same time every night, and I wake up in a sweat at the same time.
Stress hormones can disrupt our sleeping habits and wake-sleep cycles. Humans are creatures of habit. Have you tried sleeping medication? Or maybe a mild form of sleeping pill over the counter, such as Tylenol PM or Advil PM?

 

[mamachick]

About 2 years ago I started waking at 3 am and could not go back to sleep until 5 or 6. I thought that was bad. Then I started not being able to fall asleep at all. It got to be 6 am, then 7, and even now it is between 7 and 8 am before I can fall asleep. Then I sleep most of the daylight hours. I hate this but dont know what to do. Once in awhile, I will force myself to just stay up and am tired all day, go to bed at 9 pm and do sleep. That lasts about one or two nights and I am back on the crazy "sleep the day away" pattern. ??? Sure would like to know why.

 

[Smallhold]

In a documentary on BBC a while ago, a topic was sleeping and bedrooms through the ages. Apparently in medieval times it was normal to sleep early, wake up around 3am, talk, eat, pee or have sex and then sleep a bit more until 6 or 7am.

Looking at sleeping patterns with people that live a lot close to nature, there are usually a few individuals on guard during the wee hours. Predators, invaders, fires that need tending...

Could it be that something in our genes makes us wake up around that time?

Some of us being more vigilant than others? Perhaps it's just a natural reaction to more human-suited ways of living. As in, not modern times with it's unnatural patterns.

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[mamachick]

Maybe. All I know is that I had babies 18 months apart. Bother nursed and I know it was at least 6 months before they slept through the night. Finally, when I got to sleep through the night, life was feeling normal again. Personally, I think my body needs that regular 8 hour stretch of sleep uninterupted to feel my best.

After years of not getting it, I can now sleep 12-15 without waking to pee even. I just cant get up, Im so tired.

 

[Lav]

PerfectlyFlawed, I'm on an anti-depressant which aids sleep as well. Are your nightmares trauma related?

Smallhold, thank you for your replies in aiding us to get some answers.

brat17, are you depressed? Have you tried meds? I hope you get into a better sleeping pattern, not good that your so tired all the time.

 

[Barberian]

Who Else Wakes Up At The Same Time In The Middle Of The Night?

Not me, that would require regular sleeping hours. Sometimes I'm up for over 24 hrs streight. Sometimes I'm in bed tossing and turning for 4-10 hrs. The longest I can sleep in one stretch is usually around 4 hrs.

 

[SimplyComplex]

3am every night. It takes about a week with the time change to get back to that 3am wake up. No idea why. I am on a SSRI/SNRI and I take lunesta for sleep. Without the lunesta I wake up more and tend not to fall asleep after 3am.

It isn't related to any biological need (like thirst, bladder, hunger). I believe my sleep issues are trauma related, but not to the specific traumas. Just all that early trauma rewired my brain. I started having sleep problems when I was 8. When I was young I would have a very hard time falling asleep, but then I would be dead to the world while I was asleep...which I think was a defense mechanism. I remember actually thinking anything done to me while I was asleep wasn't actually done to "me". Wow, thats something to follow up on.

 

[mamachick]

It just clicked for me how it is trauma related. If we calm and let it make sense-it will. I am on anti depressant and that is not the answer.

 

[mamachick]

Thanks Lav--goood point. I have been focused on abuse that occurred during the night. I was an adult though. I disregarded the impact.

 

[Lav]

It makes me happy to see people getting some answers, other peoples replies have helped me grasp some understanding for myself.

Thank you for taking the time to contribute to this thread.

Isn't the brain a wonderful thing!!

 

[Grama-Herc]

I wake up everynight about 2 hours after falling asleep and MUST eat something inorder to go back to sleep. This is not doing much for my weight! This has been going on since I moved mother in with me. Stress related????????