Science Explains Why You Wake Up at 3 am, and How to Go Back to Sleep

About one in five people have middle-of-the-night insomnia.

EXPERT OPINION BY MINDA ZETLIN, AUTHOR OF 'CAREER SELF-CARE: FIND YOUR HAPPINESS, SUCCESS, AND FULFILLMENT AT WORK' @MINDAZETLIN

What should you do if you wake up at 3 am and can’t fall back to sleep? This is one of the most common, and frustrating, forms of insomnia. It turns out there’s a biological reason people wake in the middle of the night and can’t fall asleep again. And there are things you can do that may help you drop off again quickly.

If you’re an entrepreneur or business leader, chances are this may have happened to you more than once. Starting a business, and being responsible for a team of employees means you may have a lot to worry about. In the middle of the night, those worries seem to grow more powerful, and harder to set aside or ignore. You find yourself stuck going round and round in an endless cycle of negativity. Pretty soon, it’s morning, and you have to face the day feeling exhausted.

Middle-of-the-night insomnia.

Middle-of-the-night insomnia affects about one out of every five people. It’s even more common than having trouble falling asleep in the first place. And there’s a biological explanation, according to psychologist and sleep expert Michael Breus. In a recent Washington Post interview, he explained: “Every person on earth wakes up between 1 and 3 o’clock in the morning.” This is because our body temperature naturally starts falling around 10 pm. That sets off melatonin production and signals our bodies that we should start heading for sleep. Between 1 and 3 am, our temperature naturally starts to rise again, and we shift into a lighter stage of sleep. Often, we wake up, but most of us are barely aware of it. We shift positions and go back to sleep.

Except, sometimes we don’t. Some of us have a lot more trouble falling back asleep, a problem that may be worsened if we have a lot on our minds. We wind up mentally spinning our wheels, and sleep becomes that much harder.

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If this happens to you, here’s what to do.

1. Resist temptation.

Your hardest assignment for falling back to sleep might be not doing most of the things you instinctively want to do. For example: Do not pick up your phone or other mobile device, or even an ebook. Many studies have shown that looking at screens interferes with falling asleep, even if what you’re looking at is something relaxing, such as a puzzle or light reading. You may really, really want to break this rule. Don’t.

You might also be tempted to get out of bed, especially to go to the bathroom. But standing up and walking will raise your heart rate, making it harder to fall back asleep, Breus said. And, he added, sleeping on your side can create the false sense that you need to pee. So he recommends lying on your back and counting to 30. If you still need to go to the bathroom, then go.

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