It’s Totally Normal to Wake Up in the Middle of the Night—and It Doesn’t Always Tank Your Sleep Quality

It’s happened to the best of us. You wiggle into bed, turn the blue light off your devices, turn on some of your favorite sleep sounds, light your aromatherapy sleep candle, and settle in for a long, uninterrupted, restful night of sleep. Just kidding! Suddenly, you’re waking up hot at 4am, clammy, confused, and very much not rested. What’s the point of all that bedtime routine when you can’t stop waking up in the middle of the night?

Well, know that you’re not alone and that it’s not your fault. If you do some math, you’ll find that in a typical seven- to eight-hour night of sleep, there’s room for about three to five complete sleep cycles—which would also mean two to four awakenings between them. Beyond that, it’s also common for people to awaken super briefly out of light sleep as many as 20 to 30 times (!) a night, says neurologist and sleep specialist W. Chris Winter, MD, sleep advisor at Sleep.com and author of The Sleep Solution.

“If the awakening is fewer than five minutes long, there will be no memory of it.”—Brandon Peters, MD, neurologist and sleep specialist

That number might seem unlikely, especially if you’re someone who considers themselves a good sleeper. But in many cases, these normal arousals are so short or non-eventful that we don’t remember them. “If the awakening is fewer than five minutes long, there will be no memory of it,” says neurologist and sleep specialist Brandon Peters, MD, sleep expert at Amazon Halo. “It is also possible to roll over, adjust the covers, or even briefly talk to someone, and have no recollection in the morning.”

But what exactly does waking up in the middle of the night mean? Is it bad for you? Does it ruin healthy sleeping habits? And perhaps most urgently when you’re Googling this at 4:06 a.m., how to fall back asleep after one of these wake up calls? We spoke to the experts to find out.

What are some common causes of waking up in the middle of the night?

1. Environmental factors

Things like noise, light, and fluctuations in the temperature of your bedroom can affect sleep and possibly have you wake up in the middle of the night, explains Shelby Harris, PsyD, sleep specialist, and Director of Sleep Health at Sleepopolis. While the bad news is that there are a lot of environmental factors that have the potential to wake you up in the middle of the night, the good news is many are fixable—ear plugs, blackout curtains, and investing in a white noise machine can help.

2. Internal factors

“Internal factors like stress, anxiety, or needing to use the bathroom can also disturb your sleep,” Dr. Harris also notes. Farhan Malik, MD, board-certified physician in family medicine and sports medicine, owner and Senior Medical Director at Prometheus by Dr. Malik, also adds that “stress can lead to middle of the night awakenings due to increased cortisol production and stimulation of the nervous system,” which in turn, “prevents deep restorative sleep and causes more frequent transitions between sleep stages,” he says.

3. Medical conditions

Dr. Harris also adds that certain medical conditions such as sleep apnea or restless leg syndrome can also cause frequent wake-ups. Other conditions like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and asthma can also cause airway obstruction or acid reflux that disturbs sleep, Dr. Malik explains. If these are potential causes, he recommends getting to a doctor who can properly diagnose and treat these conditions so you can be on your way to better rest soon.

Is it bad or harmful to wake up in the middle of the night?

This might surprise you, but “everyone wakes up 4–6 times at night, just most of us don’t remember the awakening because they’re so fast,” says Dr. Harris. So no, it’s technically not harmful to wake up in the middle of the night, but very, very normal.

Tips for sleeping through the night in one continuous block

1. Stick to a consistent schedule

“To help yourself sleep through the night, stick to a consistent sleep schedule by going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, even on weekends or days off,” says Dr. Harris.

2. Modify your sleep environment

“Keep your sleep environment cool, dark, and quiet,” says Dr. Harris, adding that you should “limit any exposure to screens and blue light before bed, as they can be stimulating and keep you up.”

3. Practice relaxation techniques

Another tip Dr. Harris has for helping you stay asleep throughout the night is to incorporate techniques like mindfulness and meditation at bedtime, “to signal to your body that it’s time to wind down.” Plus, considering the relationship between cortisol and stress, “managing daily stressors and practicing relaxation techniques before bed can help minimize awakenings,” Dr. Malik says.

What to do instead of worrying when you wake up in the middle of the night

It can be unsettling to find yourself awake, lying in bed and staring into darkness when you’d rather just be getting those very necessary zzz’s. “People tend to get anxious about waking up in the middle of the night, likely because they fear the consequences of not sleeping,” says Dr. Winter. “Control is probably part of the reason for that, too,” he adds. “There’s a desire to control sleep when we want it to happen and not to be stuck in a situation of not being able to ‘do’ anything.”

But that act of getting worried, annoyed, or feeling really any type of way about a middle-of-the-night awakening can work against you. “If you have one or two bad nights where you’re awake and then start to worry that you’re up or get more worried about whether you’ll sleep well the next night, that’s when you start to put pressure on yourself to sleep—which is the worst thing to do, as sleep can’t be forced,” Dr. Harris says. In fact, you could end up keeping yourself awake that much longer to negative effect.

1. Stop worrying about the time

Up first on the list: Keeping your eyes off the clock and relaxing about sleep debt (for now). “Checking the time can trigger a learned negative emotional reaction,” says Dr. Peters. Consider how you might see that it’s 3 a.m. and then start stressing over how being awake at this time will affect you tomorrow. “This reaction can activate the fight-or-flight response, prolonging wakefulness.”

2. Take it a step further and actually cover up your clock

To avoid that spiral, Dr. Peters suggests covering up your clock once you’ve set your alarm to remind you not to check the time. Cover up your phone, too, so you’re not tempted to grab it upon waking up, and “go down a rabbit hole of activity that promotes wakefulness,” he suggests. Instead, if you wake up at any point in the night or morning when your alarm is not going off, tell yourself, ‘Good! I get to go back to sleep,’ says Dr. Peters, “so that the awakening becomes a relief, not an aggravation.”

3. Try a sleep technique or method to help distract you

If you find yourself struggling to fall back asleep, Dr. Peters also suggests using a simple mind trick to take your mind’s attention off of your need to sleep—in order to help sleep come naturally. One of his favorites? Coming up with a word for each letter, starting at the end of the alphabet, and then spelling it forward and backward. For instance, you might start with “zebra,” spelling it both forward and backward before moving onto “yellow.” This offers just enough mental stimulation to distract yourself from worries, but not enough to keep you awake long. And FYI: Should you want more tips for sleep difficulties, we’ve got you.

4. Get out of bed

If you find that you’re still awake after what feels like ten or fifteen minutes, sleep specialist Rebecca Robbins, PhD, suggests actually getting out of bed so that you don’t start to condition the bed as a place for wakefulness, rather than sleep. “Try to do something mindless. Fold your laundry, put away your dishes, or read a couple pages of a boring book. And then when you’re tired, come back [to bed], and start the process again,” Dr. Robbins previously told Well+Good.

When waking up in the middle of the night is actually a problem

1. If you’re waking up more than usual

There’s no specific number of awakenings that is an indicator of a problem, but Dr. Winter says to look out for an increase in the number from your baseline. While waking up in the middle of the night a couple times (and for a few minutes each time) is normal, if it’s happening more frequently or for longer periods of time, it could impact your sleep quality.

2. If you’re already not getting the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep

Sleep quality is of special concern if you’re already not getting the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep, given that the awakenings will shorten your total sleep time even further, says Dr. Peters. “The timing of these awakenings may also matter,” he adds. “An awakening early in the night may be less impactful, but waking closer to the morning, when the sleep drive is diminished, could make it harder to fall back asleep, abruptly cutting off the night’s sleep.”

3. If you’re experiencing daytime sleepiness

Generally, however, the surest indicator that your nighttime awakenings may actually be a problem for your sleep is if you find that you’re experiencing daytime sleepiness, says Dr. Winter. That’s when it may be time to consider how you might optimize your bedroom’s environment for sleep. “Cool the room [to around 67° F, ideally], reduce noise, block out light, remove electronics, and usher out pets and children,” he says.

If you’re still experiencing frequent or lengthy middle-of-the-night wake-ups and feeling sleepy during the daytime, it would be wise to consult a sleep specialist, says Dr. Winter, just in case a sleep condition like sleep apnea, nocturia, or periodic limb movement disorder may be to blame.

FAQs

1. Is it normal to wake up 5 times in the middle of the night?

“Remember, awakening quickly for 1 or 2 times during the night that you remember is ok,” says Dr. Harris. However, she adds “multiple awakenings [aren’t] great, as it could mean there’s a bigger issue affecting your sleep,” In case you find that you are tired or sleep is otherwise affecting your cognition or mood during the day, Dr. Harris recommends seeing a sleep specialist to rule out other issues like insomnia or sleep apnea.

2. What should someone do if they wake up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep?

Give it twenty minutes first. “If you can’t fall back asleep after about 20 minutes, get out of bed and do something quiet and calming, like reading a book,” Dr. Harris says. However, don’t stress out too much if you can’t. “Don’t look at the clock as that can put more pressure on you. Instead, when you find your brain is very active or you’re anxious or frustrated, get up and out of bed and do something quiet, calm, and relaxing in dim light until you’re sleepy again,” Dr. Harris says.

3. How many times per night is it normal to wake up?

As Dr. Harris previously explained, it’s normal to wake up 4-6 times a night, and up to 1-2 times that you remember. It’s perfectly normal to wake up in the middle of the night in tiny little spurts that you barely remember. However, if you find sleep quality diminished to the point of daytime grogginess, it may be time to see a sleep specialist for help.