5 am to 7 am is the time of the Large Intestine making it a perfect time to have a bowel movement and remove toxins from the day before. It is also the ideal time to wash your body and comb your hair. It is believed that combing your hair helps to clear out energy from the mind.
At 1am is when our liver energy starts to flow, and the liver is the main detoxifying organ in the body.
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.
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.
1–3pm: Small Intestine Hand-Taiyang. 3–5pm: Bladder Foot-Taiyang. 5–7pm: Kidney Foot-Shaoyin. 7–9pm: Pericardium Hand-Jueyin.
If you wake up between 5 am and 7 am then your large intestine is trying to tell you something. You need to pay attention to getting proper hydration and fiber since the large intestine is responsible for releasing digestive waste from your system.
There are many reasons why you might be waking up too early. They include external factors, such as environmental disturbances like temperature, light, and noise. They also include internal factors, like your circadian rhythm, sleep disorders like sleep apnea, and/or medical issues, like heartburn.
During 24 hours, qi is thought to move in 2-hour intervals throughout the organ systems. While you're sleeping, qi is believed to draw inward to fully restore your body. 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.
Let's take a look at the liver. According to the Organ Clock it is the most busy during 1-3am at night.
If you consistently wake at 4 AM - it could be due to an imbalance in your Lungs, which is related to grief and sadness, fatigue, or reduced immune function.
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 SCN is located in the hypothalamus. The SCN is sensitive to signals of dark and light. The optic nerve in your eyes senses the morning light. Then the SCN triggers the release of cortisol and other hormones to help you wake up.
The liver detoxifies numerous toxins. It also destroys drugs, such as alcohol, nicotine, and prescription medicines, because these things are not normal to the body.
If you wake up at 3 a.m. or another time and can't fall right back asleep, it may be for several reasons. These include lighter sleep cycles, stress, or underlying health conditions. Your 3 a.m. awakenings may occur infrequently and be nothing serious, but regular nights like this could be a sign of insomnia.
Liver Metabolism
Being the key organ for detoxification, the liver naturally detoxifies when you're in the deepest non-REM cycle which normally takes place around 12 – 3am.
Between the times of 10:00 pm and 2:00 am the body goes through a dramatic process of physical repair. Between roughly 2:00 am and 6:00 am the body will go through a process of psychological repair. A disrupted sleep pattern will cause the Cortisol to elevate and negatively affect the regenerative process.
Core body temperature starts to rise, sleep drive is reducing (because we've had a chunk of sleep), secretion of melatonin (the sleep hormone) has peaked, and levels of cortisol (a stress hormone) are increasing as the body prepares to launch us into the day.
Researchers find that your brain can flush out toxins during sleep. It is sometimes referred to as the body's toxic evaporation technique. Good sleep functions as the body's natural detox process.
Second, you will find you will need to urinate more frequently and may perhaps experience loose stools, both of which can be dehydrating to the body. It is commonly understood that dehydration causes headache, and that liver cleansing can cause dehydration.
Increased appetite: Digesting foods and nutrients can become easier as the liver healing continues. Usually, your appetite can improve as well. Improved blood work: Liver healing can lower toxin levels in your blood and improve liver function. You can see evidence of these improvements in your lab work.
“The first consecutive week you will start to get slightly more adjusted to the 5 a.m. wake-up call,” Greuner explains. “Your body and muscles will begin to get allocated to the flow of your sleep cycle.” In fact, Smarr likens waking up earlier to jet lag.
If your school or work schedule requires you to be up between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m., these are the suggested bedtimes: School-age children should go to bed between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. Teens should try to go to bed between 9:00 and 10:00 p.m. Adults should try to go to sleep between 10:00 and 11:00 p.m.
Researchers have studied the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and have found that cortisol is highest in the first hour of waking for people with an increased level of stress in their lives. This helps explain why you may experience an increase in anxiety in the morning.