Let's take a look at the liver. According to the Organ Clock it is the most busy during 1-3am at night.
The liver gets down to the work of processing the day's nutrients and detoxifying the day's toxin load. Deep resting and dreaming also occurs during this time and it is the worst time to eat as the small intestine is at its lowest ebb.
1-3am is the time of the Liver and a time when the body should be alseep. During this time, toxins are released from the body and fresh new blood is made.
For example, the liver meridian is associated with the hours of 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. If you wake up during this time frame, then there is an issue with your liver meridian. So knowing this information can be very important to an acupuncturist/Chinese medicine practitioner.
At 1am is when our liver energy starts to flow, and the liver is the main detoxifying organ in the body.
Reasons this might happen include drinking caffeine or alcohol late in the day, a poor sleep environment, a sleep disorder, or another health condition. When you can't get back to sleep quickly, you won't get enough quality sleep to keep you refreshed and healthy.
According to sleep specialists, most people actually wake up about 6 times per night, and one of those is usually around 2 or 3 am, depending on when they hit the hay. They also say that waking up at that time is just a sign that we have shifted from deep sleep to a lighter sleep where our brains are more active.
The liver also has a lot to do with stress and anger. Physically, an imbalanced liver can create tight tendons, necks and shoulders, and emotionally it can lead to a tightness of the spirit. The key emotions of the liver are anger and frustration.
The liver begins to cleanse toxins. 1-3 a.m. — Liver — Cleansing of blood and processing of wastes. This is a common time to wake up. At 2am, our blood sugar drops to its lowest point.
One of the most important 2-hour intervals is between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m., which is when the liver is believed to be cleansing the blood. It's during this time frame that the body begins to prepare for qi to move outward from the body again.
So if you wake up at 3 AM, when Liver energy peaks, you may be suffering from Liver Qi stagnation, which could be related to an unhealthy diet, excess alcohol consumption, unresolved anger or high levels of stress.
It's a common occurrence which we can chalk up to body chemistry. At 3am, when these irrational fears or regrets are taking place, your core body temperature starts to rise, secretion of the sleep hormone melatonin has peaked, and cortisol levels are rising as the body prepares to wake. Like what you see?
The hours between 1am and 3am are governed by the liver meridian. Emotionally it is associated with anger and physically associated with your shoulder. The hours between 3am and 5am are governed by the lung meridian.
Normally, at night time, melatonin levels will naturally increase, and cortisol (our stress hormone), will naturally be lower (than in the mornings). If you are under acute stress, or you have been under chronic stress, you may notice that you tend to wake up between 2-4 am and have difficulty falling back asleep.
According to the TCM theory, qi and blood become most active in the gallbladder and liver meridians from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m., and it is therefore recommended for people to be in a deep sleep state during this period of time.
Reducing or eliminating all animal protein, alcohol, sugar, wheat, corn, soy, tobacco, processed foods, caffeine, and nuts will give your liver a much-needed break to do some long-overdue house cleaning. Give the digestive system some helpers.
Emotional information is stored through “packages” in our organs, tissues, skin, and muscles. These “packages” allow the emotional information to stay in our body parts until we can “release” it. Negative emotions in particular have a long-lasting effect on the body.
Guilt, Fishkin says, is associated with activity in the prefrontal cortex, the logical-thinking part of the brain. Guilt can also trigger activity in the limbic system. (That's why it can feel so anxiety-provoking.)
Anger is the emotion of the liver and the gallbladder, organs associated with the wood element. Emotions like rage, fury or aggravation can indicate that this energy is in excess, and when we experience these emotions consistently, our liver can get damaged. At this point, headaches or dizziness can be common.
The most important function is detoxification which happens during our sleep hours. So ideally between 11 pm to 3 am…. most of our blood circulation concentrates in our liver. The liver gets larger when filled with more blood.
If you wake up between 1 am and 3 am it means your liver was overloaded. The liver is responsible for detoxifying our bodies and processing emotions each night. You may be suffering from an unhealthy diet, excess alcohol consumption, and/or unresolved anger or high levels of stress.
5 am to 7 am: The large intestine is active. If it's out of balance, you may feel defensive or stuck in a situation. If you're frustrated about waking up before your alarm clock sounds, you may need more fiber or water in your diet so your large intestine can properly eliminate waste.