Why you wake in the night and how to get back to sleep
If you wake in the middle of the night and then struggle to fall back asleep, it can feel incredibly frustrating. You are tired, you want rest, and yet your mind or body feels wide awake at exactly the wrong time.
One really helpful thing to know is this. Waking during the night is normal.
Our sleep naturally moves through lighter and deeper stages, and brief awakenings are part of that rhythm. Most people wake several times each night without remembering it. The problem usually is not the waking itself.
It is what happens after you wake.
Why night waking can turn into a cycle
When you wake and realise you are awake, the mind often jumps in straight away. Thoughts like how tired you will feel tomorrow or how long you have already been awake are very common.
Those thoughts can quickly shift the body into a more alert state. Once that happens, sleep feels harder to reach, and the longer you lie there awake, the more your body starts to associate night waking with tension and effort.
Over time, this is how a simple waking can turn into a repeating cycle.
The goal is not to stop waking altogether.
It is to break that cycle so your body can settle again more easily.
Things that help break the waking cycle
1. Do not check the time
Looking at the clock often kicks the cycle into motion. It invites worry and mental calculations, which wake the brain up further. Turning the clock away removes one of the biggest triggers.
2. Avoid your phone
The light from your phone immediately suppresses melatonin, the hormone that helps you sleep. Even a quick look tells your body it is time to wake up, not rest, making it much harder to drift back to sleep.
3. Settle your body first
Instead of trying to fall asleep, focus on easing physical tension. Notice your shoulders, jaw or hands and allow them to soften. A few slower breaths can help your body shift out of alert mode, which often allows sleep to follow.
4. Take pressure off sleeping
Trying hard to sleep can keep the body switched on. Letting go of the idea that you must fall asleep right now helps reduce that tension and makes it easier for sleep to return.
5. Give your mind something gentle to focus on
If thoughts keep looping, a simple focus can help interrupt them. This might be slow counting, imagining a familiar place, or paying attention to how the bed feels beneath you.
6. Use Sleep Balm again if you wake
Sleep Balm can be used during night waking as well as at bedtime. It contains relaxing herbs traditionally used to support sleep and help settle the nervous system.
Gently massaging it into areas like your chest, neck, shoulders, legs or feet gives your body both herbal support and calming sensory input. Many people keep it on their bedside table so it is there if they wake and need help settling again.
Thinking about night waking differently
Waking during the night is part of how sleep works. The key is not letting those moments turn into long stretches of tension and effort.
By reducing stimulation, easing physical alertness, and using familiar supports like Sleep Balm, you help your body relearn that waking at night does not require action or worry. Over time, this can make it easier to drift back into sleep and reduce how disruptive night waking feels.
Often it is these small, consistent responses that help break the cycle and support more settled sleep.
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