If insomnia strikes in the second half of the night, I have some good news (and advice) for you

If you tend to struggle with insomnia in the second half of the night, the good news is that you are probably getting most, if not all, of your deep sleep. This is the most restorative sleep and helps explain why sometimes you might not get many hours of sleep, but you feel relatively good during the day.

With that being said, it can still be frustrating to wake during the second half of the night and struggle to fall back to sleep. When this happens, the best thing to do is to implement stimulus control techniques.

This involves getting out of bed when you are unable to sleep and only returning to the bed when you feel sleepy enough for sleep. If you get back into bed and are still unable to fall back to sleep after 20-30 minutes, you repeat the process.

This isn't intended to improve sleep on the night you implement the technique, but — over time — it will help train your mind to associate the bed with sleep rather than wakefulness. This will make it easier to fall asleep when you wake during the night and it will ultimately make the bed a stronger trigger for sleep.

More on stimulus control in these videos:

Stimulus control is a core component of the best treatment for chronic insomnia — cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). You can learn more about CBT-I in these videos:

Also mentioned in this video:

The quality of your day isn't​ entirely dependent on the quality of your sleep:

How the body compensates for lost sleep by itself (and why stimulus control is so effective):

There is no evidence that chronic insomnia causes any specific health problem:

You can also find me here:

All content found on the Insomnia Coach YouTube channel is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice or medical treatment and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or other licensed healthcare provider. All content is provided as is, and without warranties.

#insomnia
#sleep

[InsomniaCoach]

All content found on the Insomnia Coach YouTube channel is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[xxChacaronXX]

Knowing that the first half of sleep is more important really brings peace to my mind and should allow me to fall back asleep in the second half! Thanks so much!!

[charlotteryner]

After 16 years of working graveyard shift I have come to terms with insomnia. I let my body sleep when it wants to, for as long as it needs to. If I can't get to sleep or stay asleep I get up and get busy with my day. Of course, it also helps to be single and retired!

[sonny]

After many years of chasing 8 hours of sleep and being told I would die quickly on only 4 hours of sleep a night .. sleep clinics, sleep apnea machines did not help. Within the last 5 years I found that I only need 4 hours of sleep per day. I have apparently what is called Short Sleep Syndrome and it's been with me all my life. I'm now 78. I usually go to bed about 9:00 at night .. and I'm then up at 01:00/02:00. I never am tired and I don't nap as a rule. This is both a blessing and a curse. 🤠

[taniaswain-williams]

Wow. I have already discovered if I get up then get back into bed in 15-30 min I am much more likely to fall back asleep than if I stay in bed.

[kvsalahuddin]

This video is fairly comforting and promising 🙂..unlike other videos where they make us fear and anxious about less sleep and make us even more insomniac

[desireeross]

This is so me. Thank you for saying this. I sleep deeply the first 4 hours and then battle to get back to sleep. Now I’ll chill knowing it’s normal . I do nap during the day if I need it

[bbbb]

It is 2 am and I am watching this video. I am wide awake and feel well rested. I do well during the day but take a nap in the pm. I think I am most productive at this time. No distractions thank you Ben

[Fawn]

Other videos say you should not get out of bed if you cannot go back to sleep. Because even though you are not going to sleep, you are still "resting" and that is important too. Getting out of bed raises your heart rate, and we need a heart rate of 60 or below to fall asleep. "Resting" is not the same as sleep, but it is still restorative according to the other video.

[angel.heart]

This is 100% exactly what I go through almost nightly… 😢

[susannortham.]

I just found this video and so grateful I did. I'm 65 and this has been my sleeping pattern for many years now. I have no trouble falling asleep and sleep a solid 5 hours. After that, I wake up and cannot fall back to sleep. So, I get up for an hour or two then start to feel slightly sleepy again and return to bed where I might sleep for another hour. Even though I'm only getting 5 hours plus 1 hour more if I'm lucky, I feel completely normal. I found worrying about it makes matters worse, so I've just accepted this as my normal. Hearing this from a professional makes me feel so much better. Thanks a million for making this video - just wish I'd found it sooner❣❣❣❣

[monikavarro]

I wake up at around 2 am every night and can't get back to sleep! This video is for me. 😩

[eileenhetherington]

I am 63, very active (I teach dance) and am not stressed or anxious. As a child, I never slept well, sometimes going 2 nights without sleep. Doctor told my folks I would "grow out of it". About 15 years ago, I stopped falling asleep completely. After a torturous week I went to a sleep clinic. They said well your brain is not going into any sleep cycles. At all. I was exhausted but NOTHING worked. First there was a brain scan which showed no abnormalities. I tried white noise, fans, reading, massage, meditation and visualization, breathing deeply and slowly, herbs, magnesium, L-tryptophan, melatonin, valerian, Kave-Kava, warm baths, eating, not eating, no caffeine and nothing worked. I was a zombie. Found a Doc who realized my insomnia was inexplicable for the time being, and gave me a low dose of sleep meds. Now I sleep like a baby. We have never had to increase the dose and I function fine. These meds may shorten my life. So be it. There is no agony like idiopathic insomnia.

[StephenMendes]

By experience I learned the absolute worst thing to do is get out of bed whether you are asleep or awake stay in bed for the full sleep time eventually you will fall back asleep if you remain CALM and do not panic but even if you do not fall back asleep occasionally, resting calmly in bed will make you feel a whole lot better the next day as opposed to getting out of bed and starting to do stuff.

[LivHard]

I stumbled on your channel while winding down for the evening. My sleep doctor advised me to avoid tv and other electronic devices at least two hours before bed. I’m 69 years old and recentLy retired. I’m up nightly around 3AM, after only 5 hrs. sleep. If I lie in bed for an hour or more, I’ll fall asleep again for another 60-90 minutes. I’ve tried a number of strategies, incl. deep breathing exercises, caffeine avoidance after noon and regular exercise. My sleep also advised me to get out of bed if I don’t fall back asleep within 15 minutes. When I tried this a couple of times, I didn’t get anymore sleep.

[DihelsonMendonca]

On the second half of the night, my sleep is so fragile, that mostly, I don't know if I'm sleeping. And sometimes, many dreams mixed with real noises and events, it's terrible. Dreaming almost awaken. That's the worst thing. 🙏👍

[tad]

I have insomnia the first half, the middle and the second half. I'm a mess, I get about 3 hrs a night if I'm lucky, due to chronic pain, and anxiety over my health and financial situation.

[Robmm]

Great news, thanks! I can sleep thru an explosion for the 1st part of the night and get a nap or 2 during the day so I thought I was ok. You are the first person to assure us that lack of sleep will not kill us, thanks so much!

[karinwolf]

I spend the second half of the night worrying about my kids and grandkids, whether or not we will have enough food, all the illnesses, especially my daughter with cancer, all the bad things in my life. I cry sometimes, too. 😱😰😭🙄🤷. 🌵👵

[TheSouthIsHot]

Why do I feel like I'm watching a talking driver license photo? 🤣