To stay asleep more often, work on the things that break up the second half of the night: skip alcohol, coffee and tea in the hours before bed, keep the bedroom quiet, dark and not too warm, and get up at the same time every day. And plan for the waking you can't prevent, because brief waking is part of normal sleep: IQWiG's patient site notes that some people completely or partially wake up after each sleep cycle, and cycles last about 90 to 110 minutes.
This page is about the pattern: why you might wake and what helps over the next weeks. If you're awake right now, go to how to fall back asleep.
Why you wake up at night: what's normal
A night of sleep isn't one long block. IQWiG explains that it's a series of cycles, each with light sleep, deep sleep and dream (REM) sleep, and that as the night goes on, the REM stages get longer and the deep-sleep stages get shorter. So sleep in the early morning is lighter, and small things wake you more easily then.
That's why waking briefly isn't a problem in itself. IQWiG describes good sleep as falling asleep easily, not fully waking up during the night, not waking too early, and feeling refreshed in the morning. It also says that regularly having trouble sleeping through the night isn't normal for healthy people of any age.
Common reasons you can't stay asleep
These are the causes IQWiG and the NHS list that most often affect the middle and end of the night:
| Cause | What it looks like | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol | Falling asleep quickly, then restless sleep later | IQWiG: "Although some people can fall asleep faster after drinking alcohol, it also makes their sleep less restful." |
| Caffeine and nicotine | Feeling more awake, disrupted sleep | NHS: caffeine can make you feel more awake; alcohol and nicotine can have disruptive effects on sleep |
| Heat or cold | Waking up too warm under the covers | NHS: "a room that's too hot or cold" |
| Noise | Waking at the same sound: traffic, a partner, a neighbor | NHS and IQWiG |
| Stress and worry | Waking with your head already busy | NHS and IQWiG |
| Needing to pee, pain, hot flushes | Waking for a physical reason | IQWiG |
| Snoring or interrupted breathing | Breathing that stops and starts during sleep | NHS: sleep apnoea; see a doctor |
| Shift work | Sleep at changing times | NHS and IQWiG |
How to stay asleep: 9 habits for calmer nights
These are the sleep habits from the NHS and IQWiG that matter most for staying asleep. Research hasn't clearly shown which ones work best, IQWiG says, so try a few for two weeks and keep what helps.
- Get up at the same time every day, weekends included. The NHS advises it, and not to sleep in after a bad night.
- Keep alcohol out of the evening. IQWiG suggests no alcohol, coffee or tea four to six hours before bed; the NHS insomnia page says at least 6 hours for alcohol, tea and coffee.
- Don't eat a big meal late at night. Both sources name heavy or large late meals.
- Keep the room cool, dark and quiet. Curtains or an eye mask for early light, earplugs for noise. The NHS suggests a quiet, dark and cool room.
- Plan for the temperature at 4am, not 11pm. A lighter blanket or a window open a crack (if it's safe) helps if you often wake up too warm.
- Mask sounds that wake you. A steady, quiet background sound can hide sudden noises. Our guide to white, pink and brown noise explains how and a safe volume.
- Move during the day. The NHS recommends regular exercise during the day, but not in the 4 hours before bed.
- Skip daytime naps for now. The NHS says not to nap during the day if you have insomnia. IQWiG adds that the research on naps is mixed, so if a short nap never affects your night, you may not need to drop it.
- Wind down the same way each night. The NHS suggests relaxing at least an hour before bed. Our bedtime routine guide has a simple one.
For the full list of daytime habits, see how to sleep better, and for the concept behind them, our sleep hygiene checklist.
When you do wake up: a plan for the moment
The waking itself is often short. What keeps you up is what happens next: checking the time, picking up the phone, starting to worry about tomorrow. A small, fixed plan helps:
- No clock, no phone. The NHS suggests keeping clocks out of view and placing your phone face down.
- Bathroom in the dark, or with the smallest light you can.
- Back to one comfortable position, and breathe out a little longer than you breathe in.
- Let your body get heavy from the face down to the feet.
- After around 20 minutes awake, get up and do something relaxing in low light, then go back when you feel sleepy. That's the NHS advice.
There's a full 3-minute script for this in how to fall back asleep.
I fall asleep but can't stay asleep: a one-week check
If you're not sure what's waking you, a simple diary for a week can show patterns. IQWiG says a record of when your sleep wasn't very restful and what happened on those days can help identify possible causes or a pattern. Write down each morning:
Date:
Bedtime and wake-up time:
Woke up at about (if you know without checking the clock):
What woke me (noise, heat, bathroom, thoughts, don't know):
Alcohol, coffee or tea after 4 pm (what and when):
Evening: exercise, late meal, screens:
How rested I feel (1 to 5):
After a week, look for repeats: the same wake-up after evenings with a drink, the same noise, the same warm room. A diary is also useful to bring to a doctor.
Hypnosis to fall asleep and stay asleep?
The evidence is thin. The US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) counts self-hypnosis among relaxation techniques, and says relaxation techniques on their own "don't seem to be especially promising for sleep." It cites a 2018 review of 27 studies in college students in which "relaxation, mindfulness, hypnotherapy" treatments helped somewhat with sleep quality, and whose authors recommended combining them with cognitive behavioral therapy. For chronic insomnia, the American College of Physicians' 2016 guidelines strongly recommend cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) as the first treatment, NCCIH notes.
Our app doesn't offer hypnosis. If you're looking at it because nights have been bad for months, that's also a good reason to talk to a doctor about CBT-I.
Sessions for the moments you do wake
AI Meditation: Sleep & Calm has two sessions made for waking in the night. Gently Drifting Back to Sleep is short and simple, with long pauses and a gentle breathing exercise. Back to Sleep with the Yoga Nidra Method is longer and guides your attention through the body part by part, with slow breathing and calm images. For the start of the night, Falling Asleep Gently: Settling In, Letting Go combines a longer exhale, a body scan and optional muscle relaxation.
If a steady sound helps you stay asleep, the app has white, pink and brown noise, plus blue, violet and grey noise, with a timer or unlimited playback. You can make a session shorter or longer within its range, and the voices are AI voices. See how the app works, try it for free, no account needed.
When waking up at night needs a doctor
Waking every night for weeks is more than a habit problem, and it's the kind of sleep problem a doctor should look at. The NHS suggests seeing a GP if:
- "changing your sleeping habits has not helped your insomnia"
- "you've had trouble sleeping for months"
- "your insomnia is affecting your daily life in a way that makes it hard for you to cope"
The NHS counts waking up several times during the night and waking up early and not being able to go back to sleep among the signs of insomnia. It also lists long-term pain, restless legs syndrome, snoring or interrupted breathing while sleeping (sleep apnoea), an overactive thyroid and menopause among things that can cause or worsen it, and notes that many medicines can cause insomnia too. If you snore loudly or someone has noticed pauses in your breathing, mention it to a doctor. For the broader picture of what meditation can and can't do for sleep, see the sleep meditation guide.
Your health
This app is a wellness app and does not replace medical advice. If you wake up most nights for weeks, or it affects your day, talk to a doctor. The NHS insomnia page explains when to see a GP and what treatment can look like.
Sources
All pages accessed on September 25, 2026.
- NHS: Insomnia (page last reviewed March 19, 2024). Symptoms, causes, self-help do's and don'ts, when to see a GP.
- NHS Every Mind Matters: How to fall asleep faster and sleep better. Bedroom, clocks out of view, the 20-minute rule.
- InformedHealth.org (IQWiG): What is normal sleep? (updated August 1, 2024). Sleep cycles, waking after a cycle, what good sleep is.
- InformedHealth.org (IQWiG): Sleep disorders and problems (insomnia) (updated July 31, 2024). Causes, alcohol, sleep diary.
- InformedHealth.org (IQWiG): What can you do if you have trouble sleeping? (updated July 31, 2024). Sleep hygiene, naps, which methods work best.
- NCCIH: Relaxation Techniques: What You Need To Know (last updated June 2021). Self-hypnosis as a relaxation technique, relaxation and sleep, CBT-I guidelines.
