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Does anyone wake up daily at 3am?

Posted by livelivetothefullest @livelivetothefullest, Sep 29, 2024

I have problems falling sleep. I haven’t able to have good night sleep as fatas I can remember. Went I finally fell sleep I have broken sleep pattern, and I wake up every night at 3am, I do not know why and I cannot fall sleep again, sometimes I go back to sleep at 6am. I do not feel refreshed in the morning. I have black circle under my eyes from the lack of sleep. Also feel irritated, sad, and brain fog/forgetful from lack of sleep. This is terrible. Any one have similar issues. Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

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darleneporter | @darleneporter | May 15, 2025
In reply to @dredk "3:00 am. On the dot. It's uncanny. Annoying. I feel good. 2:55 am. Maybe 3:20 am...." + (show)
Profile picture for dredk @dredk

3:00 am. On the dot. It's uncanny. Annoying. I feel good. 2:55 am. Maybe 3:20 am. What the heck. Are we responding a beacon somewhere emitting a very special frequency just for us?

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I too wake up in the middle of the nite, so I drink sleepy time tea made from Celestial Tea, I drink it an hour before I go to bed, and meditate it helps me. Hope this helps , they also make it with 5 grams of melatonin, there are 2 kinds one with melatonin and one with out.

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bellereve | @bellereve | May 18, 2025
In reply to @mmmerrimac "I'm curious about the waking-up-at-3am phenomenon too. I've suffered from it and read about people experiencing..." + (show)
Profile picture for mmmerrimac @mmmerrimac

I'm curious about the waking-up-at-3am phenomenon too. I've suffered from it and read about people experiencing the same thing in different sections of Mayo Clinic Connect.

I've tried researching it and talking to doctors and specialists about it, but I haven't found any answers. I'm a night owl, so I was going to sleep at about 1:00 a.m., while others were heading to bed at 11:00. My solution, which isn't really a solution, has been to go to sleep later and later.

When I was waking up around 3 or 4, my heart would be racing, my BP would shoot up, and I would have "night terrors"—thinking there were snakes on the floor and/or sinister shadows lurking behind my door. I'd have to put all the lights on and sit up until I felt safe again. It was awful!

I started going to bed later and later. The sweet spot has been waiting until dawn started to break. That way if I woke up after a few hours, I could see that there was no one in my room nor snakes on the floor and go back to sleep. I'm retired now, so I can keep these strange hours, but obviously most people can't. I also take a lorazepam (1.5mg) just before going to bed, which seems to help. I'm still having sleep problems, but the rapid heartbeat, the high BP, and the waking nightmares have subsided, thank god.

I do have severe obstructive sleep apnea and some central apnea, but I've used a bi-pap religiously for 15 years and added oxygen a few years ago due to a diagnosis of hypoxia. I've had multiple sleep studies, but because the only hours I can get one are 9pm-5pm, they don't reflect my regular sleep schedule. Because of this, I don't cycle through my normal stages of sleep during the studies, and the results aren't necessarily what they would be on a normal night at home.

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I also have been waking up between 3am and 4am. Not sure why, but I find it difficult to fall back asleep after waking up.
I retired last year, not very active since I retired but I don’t sleep during the day.

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tiredandthristy | @tiredandthristy | May 19, 2025

Most have a similar sleep cycle which is essentially two cycles of stage 1, 2, 3 and 4, for around 4 hours and then it starts over again. Many of us get the one cycle only and it's best to get up instead of tossing and turning for the second cycle. I feel so much better, and have no pain in body, when I get up and then later take a nap. Even though I total just 6 hours with 4 and then a 2 hour nap, I feel much better than 8 or 9 hours of what I described above. If you lay in bed not sleeping well it's what I call "anti-sleep" which the opposite of healthy sleep, causing body pain etc..

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cindisue | @cindisue | May 20, 2025
In reply to @bellereve "I also have been waking up between 3am and 4am. Not sure why, but I find..." + (show)
Profile picture for bellereve @bellereve

I also have been waking up between 3am and 4am. Not sure why, but I find it difficult to fall back asleep after waking up.
I retired last year, not very active since I retired but I don’t sleep during the day.

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It's most likely associated with you retiring.... try to be more active in the daytime. A good 1 hour walk or 2 half hour walks is a great thing to do. Or join an exercise class that meets daily....they have them for seniors. Or if you like to swim, try going to an open swim pool in your area. The YMCA has them. My mom had an exercise bike that she rode for 15-20 minutes a day. Enjoy retirement and maybe you don't mind waking up at 3am and not being able to fall back to sleep. That's okay. But it would drive me bonkers! I guess I'd try staying up later maybe. Take care!

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cindisue | @cindisue | May 20, 2025
In reply to @tiredandthristy "I've dealt with this most of my life. There was a time when I simply got..." + (show)
Profile picture for tiredandthristy @tiredandthristy

I've dealt with this most of my life. There was a time when I simply got up after 3 to 4 hours instead of tossing and turning the rest of the night and just started my day. Later I took a good solid nap and I felt great. If you can do a schedule like that I highly recommend it.
I do not recommend melatonin or other sleep aids except possibly low dose Trazadone which is widely used and very safe. Melatonin is a hormone and if you take it your body stops making it. You can make it naturally by getting up early and getting direct sunlight which sets your internal clock.
I only sleep well when I live like a monk.....never get upset, work easily but all day, read, meditate, get early sunlight....but I can't live like a monk....it's not in me.

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I could not live without my sleep pills! 🙂

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bellereve | @bellereve | May 21, 2025
In reply to @cindisue "It's most likely associated with you retiring.... try to be more active in the daytime. A..." + (show)
Profile picture for cindisue @cindisue

It's most likely associated with you retiring.... try to be more active in the daytime. A good 1 hour walk or 2 half hour walks is a great thing to do. Or join an exercise class that meets daily....they have them for seniors. Or if you like to swim, try going to an open swim pool in your area. The YMCA has them. My mom had an exercise bike that she rode for 15-20 minutes a day. Enjoy retirement and maybe you don't mind waking up at 3am and not being able to fall back to sleep. That's okay. But it would drive me bonkers! I guess I'd try staying up later maybe. Take care!

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Thanks, I will try some of your suggestions. I dd have shoulder replacement surgery 3 weeks ago, so I will have to wait until I can start exercising. I should be able to do the walks though. I had the 3am waking up prior to my surgery, so I don’t think it’s because of that.

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bellereve | @bellereve | May 21, 2025
In reply to @barbaradh "I am also on the 3 AM wake up list. I try to be in bed..." + (show)
Profile picture for barbaradh @barbaradh

I am also on the 3 AM wake up list. I try to be in bed by 10, but usually asleep by 11. CBD tincture (under the tongue) helps tremendously, and I have many posts on Mayo here about my experience. But after several months the liver builds up a tolerance, and it doesn’t work. Then you need to go off for three months and restart. BTW I have tried tart cherry juice concentrate before bed and a bunch of other OTC stuff and homemade remedies and nothing helps me.

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I am so afraid to take any CBD products. My mom had dementia and I was caring for her for 10 years before she passed away last year. Someone from my dementia group had recommended CBD for keeping her calm. I started giving her CBD with my brother’s permission , (he is a surgeon) and also her neurologist gave permission for me to give it to her.
What happened was mom was admitted in the hospital for seizures, which she always had. Well, the doctor at the hospital that was treating her, screamed very loudly at me and my mom asking “why is your mom taking marijuana?” I almost dropped dead right there on the spot. I was so embarrassed and scared that I did something wrong. My mom had no idea that I was giving her CBD and I did not know that it would show up in her labs as taking marijuana. I did explain to the doctor that I had permission from her neurologist to give it to her. It helped be her calm. The hospital doctor told me to stop because it was a drug that I was giving my mom.
So because of that indecent, I am so afraid to take any CBD for any of my conditions. Sorry, now I am in tears as I write this.

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nancypatton | @nancypatton | May 21, 2025

It used to be 3:00 am for me now it’s 6:00 am. I know how you feel, it’s frustrating.

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marialyce | @marialyce | May 21, 2025
In reply to @barbaradh "I am also on the 3 AM wake up list. I try to be in bed..." + (show)
Profile picture for barbaradh @barbaradh

I am also on the 3 AM wake up list. I try to be in bed by 10, but usually asleep by 11. CBD tincture (under the tongue) helps tremendously, and I have many posts on Mayo here about my experience. But after several months the liver builds up a tolerance, and it doesn’t work. Then you need to go off for three months and restart. BTW I have tried tart cherry juice concentrate before bed and a bunch of other OTC stuff and homemade remedies and nothing helps me.

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What was the name of the cbd tincture to buy

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