This type of middle insomnia can be caused by mental health issues like depression or anxiety, stressful life situations, night terrors, hormones, physical pain, sleep disorders, poorly timed naps, or environmental factors like a room that is too hot, cold, or loud.
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.
Everyone wakes up a few times per night. Cycling out of sleep roughly every 90 minutes to two hours is normal. But frequent wakings can affect physical, emotional and mental functioning.
Health conditions, insomnia, medications, stress, noise, anxiety, and a stiff mattress could all contribute to only a few hours of sleep a night.
In addition to anxiety over the stressors of life, there are several other reasons for insomnia. Some medical conditions such as chronic pain, hyperthyroidism, allergies or sinus issues, asthma, gastrointestinal problems such as reflux and neurological conditions such as Parkinson's disease can make it hard to sleep.
Common causes of chronic insomnia include: Stress. Concerns about work, school, health, finances or family can keep your mind active at night, making it difficult to sleep. Stressful life events or trauma — such as the death or illness of a loved one, divorce, or a job loss — also may lead to insomnia.
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.
A parasomnia is a sleep disorder that involves unusual and undesirable physical events or experiences that disrupt your sleep. A parasomnia can occur before or during sleep or during arousal from sleep. If you have a parasomnia, you might have abnormal movements, talk, express emotions or do unusual things.
You Have Insomnia
On the Mayo Clinic's website, Dr. Timothy Morgenthaler explained that waking up multiple times during the night is a form of insomnia commonly brought on by stress. The good news is that it can generally be treated with lifestyle changes like a healthy bedtime routine.
In fact, the average number of awakenings hovers around six times per night. As the body cycles through various stages of sleep, including deep sleep and REM sleep, it dips from shallower to deeper states.
The Dangers of Sleeping Only 3 Hours
This could lead to accidents, irritability, depression, or memory loss. There could be multiple physical ramifications caused by sleep deprivation as well. Some people have experienced weight gain, a decreased sex drive, and changes to the skin like dark circles under the eyes.
Overall, the studies showed that melatonin was better than placebo for improving both the time to fall asleep and total sleep.
Sleep deprivation can make this logic seem sound, but experts say taking melatonin in the middle of the night can actually make your sleep schedule even worse.
If you wake at the same time every day, it may be related to body functions such as sleep timing, circadian rhythms (your body's inner clock), and sleep cycles. These patterns affect when we rise in the morning. They also explain why we stir from time to time during the night.
"The overall best is if you can wake up naturally because you're done sleeping," he said. On the other hand, if you're waking up early on just a few hours of sleep, you should probably try and squeeze in some more shuteye.
One study of older adults with insomnia found that magnesium supplementation at a dose of 500 milligrams daily for eight weeks helped them fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer, reduced nighttime awakenings, and increased their levels of naturally circulating melatonin.