Constant wakings when falling asleep (stage N1) without clear cause

I had a similar problem but always though it was just insomnia. My husband commented one morning that I was snoring. I didn't believe him so he took a video the next night. After trying OTC sleep apnea mouth pieces and having some success, I went to a sleep specialist who did imaging and a sleep test that confirmed the obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis. I was custom fitted for a mouth piece and now I only wake up once a night to go to the bathroom. These mouth pieces don't work on all people, which leads to a CPAP but you have to do what works for you. I also take Lunesta.

First talk to your regular doctor I think. See what they say.
You may have sleep apnea when I was first diagnosed I was unaware of awaking up due to apnea. I just I snored a lot but I did not know it. I thought I slept Ok, but I couldn’t stay asleep, I would go to bed in my bed, then try the couch, then a kids rooms. So I was hoping between beds all night looking for that sweet spot where I could sleep well.
Good luck !

@cherawgirl @lauriefeenstra

I also usually snore if I lie on my back without head tilted back. However, many people snore and not all snorers have sleep apnea. Apparently 25-45% of adults snore and only 50% of those who snore loudly and consistently have it. I read that waking up choking/gasping is a key symptom of sleep apnea, which neither I, my girlfriend nor others have noticed. My gf recorded me snoring and I wouldn't describe it as loud.

In terms of the recent issue in waking up at the point of N1 transition, which fortunately seems to be subsiding, that seems to often correspond with sleep myoclonus (which I never noticed before a bit over a month ago), and/or conditioned arousal due to those recent constant wakings from myoclonus. Fortunately, last several nights, I feel asleep within 10 minutes at the start of bedtime, although myoclonus still seem occasionally present later in the sleep cycle when attempting to return to sleep (nonetheless despite these instances I've typically been able to continue sleeping that night). Besides that, over the longer term in terms of waking up multiple times during the sleep cycle past N1, these usually seem to correspond with what I've suspected is a need to urinate, although I've been trying not to drink much water before bedtime.

In any case, I didn't notice any breathing issues at those points, but I won't rule it out at this point, so will consider an at-home test kit if issues continue. Thanks for the heads up.

@inquirer2

Thanks, I plan to ask a doctor about a free test kit.

Sleep log last 3 nights - seeming return to normalcy (for me):

4/12 evening
mel 1mg 11:30pm, myo (including teeth clicks) and random n1 wakes woke me (only difference I could tell from past few nights when I fell asleep within 10 mins is I ran over 2mi close to bedtime (10pm) last night [due to not enough time next day to run] which I understand can negatively impact myo and sleep). took dayvigo at 1:15am; 2nd time ever taken it. unlike 1st time, which seemed to bypass myo and random n1 wakes, still encountered these (ate a little grapefruit the day before which I understand can stay in system for a few days and is unfortunately the one food [I'm aware of] that supposedly interacts with dayvigo). nonetheless the sleepiness gradually increased in intensity and seemed to hit full sleep in an hour or so; i'll estimate 2:15am. got up shortly before 7:30am so about 5h sleep including n3. felt relatively rested considering only 5h sleep. had breakfast, then napped lightly 1h (n1+2+rem) during start of which I encountered a few myo. napped in car (very approx 1h) N1-2. ~7h sleep after those naps

4/13 evening
no mel. took a dayvigo at 1127pm and got at least 3h sleep on plane (wakeup partway, 151am, to use restroom), including seemingly n3, until (during n2?) someone shook my headrest and made a loud noise at roughly 3am (noted 314am; i asked the guy behind me, he said some kid fell / passed out). then plane was starting to arrive. good I can get some quality sleep in economy with this (although i had a little grapefruit juice yesterday and grapefruit a few days ago; grapefruit is the one food that supposedly negatively interacts with dayvigo). also used a neck pillow to prevent head/body falling sideways while sitting. no myo noticed. although only slightly over 3h sleep due to mentioned reasons, prob the best sleep ive had on economy since much of it seemed deep. next time i'll take window seat of front exit row so not only have the extra legroom but also less distraction from other passengers. got mb 80mins light nap (N1-2) in car (825am-1005am minus 20mins). napped more at home. 1220-3pm minus ~10mins = ~2.5h. all stages. just earplugs, no drugs or noise machines. so total sleep since last night around 7h

4/14 evening
1mg melatonin 3am, went to bed 345, fell asleep within 5-10mins. earplugs and noise machines, no headphones. woke up to use bathroom either 0 or 1 time. woke 1110. over 7h sleep. no myo noticed. this and the nap at home yesterday seem like the most normal I've slept in a while, coincidentally when my sleep schedule is back to delayed (genetically I'm predisposed to DSPD and I understand that attempting to shift sleep schedule earlier can make issues like myo likelier)

The sleep study test kit is great for detecting obstructive sleep apnea, but not for central apneas, which you may have. That needs an overnight sleep study. If the test kit does not detect obstructive sleep apnea ask your family doctor for a referral directly to an in‑lab sleep study (polysomnography) Tell your doctor "I’m concerned about possible central sleep apnea. Home sleep tests often miss central events, so I’d like a referral for an in‑lab overnight polysomnography."

Keep in mind that you may not have any apneas at all. There may be some other cause. No matter the cause, you do need help. May you find the help you need. Good luck.

@inquirer2 If issues resume I'll seek help. Thanks. Recently been good.

I am reading these posts and feeling compassion for the kind of distress it causes to be unable to transition successfully to sleep and get enough rest in order to function well and comfortably in daily life. I have read a book that provided very helpful understanding of sleep neurology, an understanding of how adversive events in our lives could impact our sleep, and some great ideas for shifting some of the challenges. It is called, "Putting Trauma to Sleep," by Jaan Reitav and Celeste Thirlwell. He is a psychologist who has worked primarily with people who have experienced medical traumas (sudden heart attacks, etc) that have impacted sleep. She is a psychiatrist who has worked with people who have experienced trauma and both have been studying sleep together for decades. The book is well written. I don't want to interpret what they have written in terms of what each of you have been experiencing, but just wanted to offer this as a possible resource to some. Best wishes for improved rest to each of you.

@gynosaur42

I suspected an incident in 2025 may have played a part, but I'm not sure, due what seems to me to be the lack of a clear pattern.

My sibling whom I was close with in childhood died suddenly in their 30s last year, contributed to by fault of medical staff. I considered this traumatic, but besides trouble sleeping the night I was told by my parents of the death, I don't think I've noticed a clear pattern since then. Random wakes with subjectively heavier pulse for several weeks in late 2025 I attributed to elevated heavy metals of arsenic, mercury, thallium (since resolved via diet changes). By the time I started noticing the sleep myoclonus shortly before March, it had already been a half year since sibling's death.

A related event I also consider traumatic was watching the hospital CCTV footage of my sibling dying that had recently been released to my family, when I took detailed notes of my sibling's movements and of medical staff recovery attempts afterwards. I thought this would mess with my sleep, but that was the evening of 4/14 which I noted in a prior post - fell asleep within 5-10 minutes with just melatonin, 0-1 wakeups and over 7h sleep, no myo noticed. This is despite stopping the video before I finished logging it due to subjective distress, deciding to complete logging it the next day after returning subjectively more detached (which I did, and I don't have anything logged for my sleep on the evening of 4/15 either so I guess I slept fine that night too). So again, to me it seems there's no clear direct 1:1 relation between these incidents and sleep.

___

Sleep transition performance has been hit/miss last 5 days.

Evenings of 4/16, 4/17 and 4/19 were relatively normal, 7-8+ hours of sleep per night, in one case possibly 9h when including naps next day. Melatonin drops 1mg on 4/16, 4/17, nothing on 4/19. Recorded up to a few myo (including teeth click) on 4/16 and maybe 4/19 but was able to ignore it and get to sleep quickly after.

Evenings of 4/18 and 4/20 contrarily: reached N2-N3 only after 4am despite being in bed for hours (likely contributed to by late wakes preceding day). 4/20 evening, again experienced more than a few myo (including teeth clicks) and random N1 wakes. 4/18 also had up to a few myo and maybe an N1 wake but I attributed the restlessness largely to DSPD. On 4/18 I eventually took a Dayvigo; on 4/20 I withheld taking one again so soon, but eventually reached N2/N3 likely between 4-5am. On 4/20 I exercised relatively late (past 9pm) which I guess probably wouldn't help.

On both 4/18 and 4/20, after a few hours of failing to pass N1, I listened to the Sleep With Me Podcast (downloaded some full episodes and had them on shuffle repeat) which seemed to help due to the monotone voice and nonsensical "dream-like" chatter (although the voice itself generally seems enough).

Although transition on 3 of the 5 preceding nights were normal, notably, myo were still noticed on most of those nights (including teeth clicks, but also, especially 4/20 evening, subtle movements of jaw, eyebrow and other body parts, like was more prevalent for a few nights within the last few weeks, although not as bad as when I initially posted this thread), something I rarely or never noticed before early March besides the rare hypnic jerk. Since they're still occurring, I'll probably talk to another doctor and try to get a free sleep apnea testing kit and/or other suggestions. Also debating whether to get an enhanced full-body MRI at Prenuvo which includes a brain health assessment (https://www.prenuvo.com/enhanced-screening) in case there's anything neurological going on that can be detected via imaging. It's expensive but there's a member return discount lasting for another month. I did a regular whole body scan with them a few years ago with no regrets.

@cmx, you are a careful and comprehensive recorder of what is happening to you. Healthy sleep is so critically important for our quality of life during our daytime hours as well as our nights. Trust your own judgment regarding what may be happening and what's needed. I wish you well as you sort this out.