Can't Fall Back Asleep? 9 Things to Try When You Wake Up at Night

You open your eyes, glance around the dark room, and realize you're awake.

Then comes the temptation to check the time.

2:47 a.m.

Suddenly, your mind starts calculating.

“How many hours do I have left? Why am I awake again? How tired am I going to be tomorrow?”

Occasional nighttime awakenings can happen for many reasons. The bigger problem often begins when a brief awakening turns into a long period of frustration, stimulation and worrying about sleep.

If you're lying awake wondering how to fall back asleep, the goal isn't to force yourself to sleep.

Instead, try creating conditions that allow your mind and body to settle naturally.

Here are nine things worth trying.

1. Stop Checking the Clock

One of the simplest changes you can make is to stop monitoring the time.

Checking the clock repeatedly can turn an ordinary nighttime awakening into a mental countdown: “Only four hours left.” Then: “Now only three and a half.”

That kind of thinking can make you increasingly preoccupied with falling asleep.

If you need an alarm in the morning, set it before bed and position the display away from you.

Tonight's idea: set the alarm, turn the clock away and give yourself permission not to know what time it is.

2. Keep Your Phone Out of Reach

The phone beside your bed can be difficult to resist.

One quick check of a notification can easily become ten minutes of messages, news, videos or social media. And now your brain has something new to think about.

Instead, keep your phone somewhere you can't automatically reach for it when you wake up.

If your phone is also your alarm clock, you don't necessarily need to remove it from the room. Simply putting it farther away and turning the screen downward can remove some of the temptation.

3. Try Slow, Gentle Breathing

When your thoughts are racing, shift your attention away from them and toward something simple: your breathing.

You don't need an elaborate technique.

Try breathing slowly and comfortably. Notice the sensation of the air entering and leaving your body. Allow your shoulders, jaw and hands to soften.

If your thoughts wander, gently bring your attention back to your breathing rather than becoming frustrated.

The objective isn't: “This breathing exercise must make me sleep.” It's simply: “I'm giving my body an opportunity to relax.”

4. Relax Your Body, One Muscle at a Time

Sometimes your mind feels tired while your body is still carrying tension.

Try a simplified version of progressive muscle relaxation.

Starting with your feet, gently notice each part of your body: feet → legs → abdomen → hands → arms → shoulders → jaw → face.

You can lightly tense a muscle group for a few seconds and then release it, noticing the contrast between tension and relaxation. Keep everything gentle.

You may discover tension in places you hadn't noticed before—especially the jaw, forehead and shoulders.

5. Don't Try to Force Yourself to Sleep

This may be the most counterintuitive tip on the list.

Stop trying so hard to sleep.

Sleep isn't usually something we can command.

Thoughts such as “I need to fall asleep right now,” “Tomorrow will be terrible,” or “Why isn't this working?” can make the experience increasingly frustrating.

Instead of demanding sleep, change the objective. Your immediate goal can simply be: resting quietly.

If sleep follows, wonderful. If it doesn't happen immediately, you haven't failed at anything.

6. If You're Still Awake, Leave the Bed for a Little While

If you feel completely awake and increasingly frustrated, staying in bed indefinitely may not be helpful.

Instead, get up and move somewhere quiet. Keep the lighting low and choose something unstimulating.

You might:

• read a few pages of a calm book
• listen quietly to relaxing audio
• sit comfortably and breathe
• simply rest somewhere outside the bed

Return to bed when you begin feeling sleepy again.

This approach is sometimes called stimulus control and is used in behavioral approaches to insomnia.

Do not obsess over counting minutes. The important signal is that you're clearly awake and becoming frustrated.

7. Keep the Lights Low and the Room Sleep-Friendly

If you get out of bed, resist the temptation to switch on bright overhead lights. Keep the environment quiet and dim.

When you return to your bedroom, aim for a space that feels dark, quiet and comfortably cool.

Small environmental disruptions can also matter. Consider whether something repeatedly wakes you: a room that's too warm, outside traffic, a bright hallway, notifications, a pet moving around or another source of disturbance.

The solution doesn't have to be complicated. Sometimes improving the environment is more useful than adding another bedtime ritual.

8. Give a Racing Mind Somewhere Else to Go

Night has an unfortunate talent for making tomorrow's problems seem urgent.

You remember an unfinished task. Then a conversation. Then something you need to do next week. Before long, you're mentally solving your entire life at 3 a.m.

Instead of fighting every thought, give your attention somewhere calmer to go. You could visualize a peaceful familiar place, focus on slow breathing or quietly repeat a neutral word or phrase.

If worries frequently appear at bedtime, consider writing them down before going to sleep.

You don't need to solve tomorrow tonight.

9. Protect Tomorrow Night, Too

What happens after a difficult night matters as well.

It's tempting to compensate by completely changing your routine the following day. But maintaining a reasonably consistent sleep-wake schedule can help support your normal sleep rhythm.

Also pay attention to things that may affect the next night's sleep, including: caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, late meals, daytime naps and your sleep schedule.

Rather than treating tomorrow as a recovery emergency, think about protecting the conditions for the next night's sleep. Consistency matters more than perfection.

Why Do I Keep Waking Up at Night?

Getting back to sleep is one question.

Understanding why you're waking up repeatedly is another.

Stress, environmental disturbances, sleep habits and a variety of other factors can contribute to nighttime awakenings.

Why Do I Keep Waking Up at Night? 9 Common Reasons and What You Can Do →

When Nighttime Wake-Ups Keep Happening

An occasional restless night doesn't necessarily mean something is wrong.

Persistent difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, however, can be associated with insomnia or other sleep-related issues.

If sleep problems are happening regularly, are affecting how you function during the day, or you're concerned about symptoms such as breathing interruptions during sleep, discussing them with a qualified healthcare professional is appropriate.

For long-term insomnia, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is commonly used and includes strategies involving thoughts about sleep, relaxation, sleep education and stimulus control.

A Better Goal Than “Perfect Sleep”

It's easy to become obsessed with achieving eight uninterrupted hours every night. But sleep doesn't always cooperate with our expectations.

If you wake tonight, remember:

• Don't watch the clock.
• Don't immediately reach for your phone.
• Keep things quiet and dim.
• Allow your breathing and body to relax.
• And if you're clearly awake, give yourself a calm change of environment until sleepiness returns.

Sometimes the most helpful thing you can do is stop treating sleep like a task you have to accomplish.

Frequently Asked Questions

This article is provided by SleepWell Journal for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice, diagnosis or treatment, and it does not replace guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Individual experiences vary.