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Why do I keep waking up too early in the morning?

247 Answers
Last Updated: 10/15/2018 at 2:53pm
Why do I keep waking up too early in the morning?
★ This question about Sleeping Well was starred by a moderator on 5/12/2016.
1 Tip to Feel Better
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Moderated by

Tracy-Kate Teleke, PsyD, M.A., LMFT

Marriage & Family Therapist

I assist adults and couples in CA experiencing relationship challenges and interpersonal struggles including anxiety, depression, and a myriad of other life challenges.

Top Rated Answers
BronaghC
July 26th, 2015 9:56am
It all depends on what time you go to sleep at. Or how much energy or sleep you need. So if you wake up early then that's all the sleep up need.
Anonymous
November 15th, 2014 10:02am
Good question. This is a subjective question that only the individual can answer by self reflecting and insights in one's own behaviors, actions, and cognition.
inplantDDT
February 7th, 2017 8:19pm
Sometimes if you are stressed about something in your subconscious, you can wake yourself up without realising, try to do some deep breathing before you go to sleep and sort things out the night before to avoid being stressed in the morning.
Anonymous
August 12th, 2015 7:17pm
Well, it depends! It may be that you are feeling stressed and wake up so early because you have many things to do during the day and many things on your mind! But from my experience, mostly people wake up early due to their biological clock! Your body has got used to waking up early or you are just an early-waker type so your body wakes you up too early! If you feel that waking up too early affects the rest of your day you can discuss it with an expert such as a phsychologist or a doctor and see what you can do to solve your problem! :)
Anonymous
October 29th, 2014 9:00pm
It may be from stress that you are feeling that hasn't been resolved or poor eating or a set time schedule your body is used to in life.
Anonymous
July 10th, 2018 8:23pm
I usually wake up super early when i’m either hungry or too warm. Make sure to never go to sleep with an empty stomach. Also make sure you leave the window open at night so you are able to receive fresh air along with a cool breeze. When you’re cold you tend to sleep more/stay in bed.
PileOfRubbles
June 19th, 2015 7:31pm
The brain got used to a certain timetable and your internal clock follows it. Its mostly biologically. But it can be changed. Don't know why you would want that tho
leanonme93
August 9th, 2015 9:06pm
If you're prone to anxiety, chances are thoughts can bring you want to get the day started early. If not, think about your alarm, if it's too early, or your health life. processed foods can upset the stomach even in deep sleep. And lack of exercise can leave the body without enough melatonin for the body to use for a good night's rest.
calmingPresence26
January 13th, 2016 7:09pm
There are a few things to consider when trying to figure out why you are waking up too early. First of all, are you under a lot of stress? If so, try to find a way to decompress. Take a daily walk, catch a yoga class, practice sitting quietly before going to bed and notice the rhythm of your chest rising and falling with each breath. Try a little stretching and/or take a warm bath soak to soothe jangled nerves and relax tired muscles. Modern environmental stresses can affect your circadian rhythm, too. TV and mobile phone usage before bedtime can definitely upset your body's natural rhythms so why not try turning off the devices, dim your lights and/or enjoy the flames of a candle dance about? And avoid junk food, too. That can disturb your biological functions. Another idea is to listen to a meditation to re-train your body/mind to release tension and heal anxiety. These are just a few ideas to start with.
Anonymous
November 2nd, 2014 7:13pm
It is great, you can use that time for procrastination or work. Enjoy it ! most people go to bed late and wake up late. Much love :). Ps. close the blind's it cud be just morning light :P
Anonymous
June 18th, 2015 6:08pm
Sometimes I wake up too early because i'm used to my school routine, so I'm used to waking up at 7am in the morning. It can be frustrating, but such is life! :)
Anonymous
June 19th, 2015 2:40am
You might be going to bed too early. If you usually wake up early for school or work, your body has a natural rhythm. This means that your body has gotten used to waking up early, and just does it automatically. It's like a natural alarm clock!
Anonymous
June 10th, 2016 7:21am
It's possible there might be some kind of outside disturbance waking you up, like your neighbour mowing the lawn or a light (even a small one like thr air con timer) turning on in your room. Apart from that, you could be sleeping too early or too late, so that you're always entering light sleep around that time and get easily woken up. You can try calculating your ideal sleeping times with an online calculator like this one: sleepyti.me
Anonymous
July 3rd, 2015 8:59am
In my experience, I wake up early because of a couple of reasons - Jet lag Bad sleep cycle Insomnia etc
Anonymous
August 8th, 2015 8:17am
Maybe its because if a nightmare you may have forgotten once waking up. It may possibly be because of something you faced during the day, such as too much stress or maybe a fight with someone close to you.
Dillion
August 2nd, 2015 11:59pm
Sometimes you wake up early in the morning because its a routine thing for your body to realize its time to get up, a lot of people ask this question when they are on vacation, or have a day off from work. Other times it could be an underlying medical condition, you would want to see your family doctor for this.
igetcha
January 13th, 2016 9:03pm
I wake up too early when I'm nervous about something. I tend to naturally sleep less when I'm anxious & more when I'm depressed
Supporter0498
December 31st, 2015 11:34pm
Your body could be used to waking up at that time possibly. Try to set a sleeping schedule up.
CoffeeTeaAndHonesty
April 3rd, 2015 12:33am
There can be multiple causes for this, such as: insomnia, anxiety or depression provokings, sleep apnea, or some other circadian rhythm disorder.
Snakefoxbox
June 19th, 2015 6:42am
My body remembers what it was like to wake up early for school, so maybe your body's clock works like that
Anonymous
June 19th, 2015 8:26am
Well, when I had that problem, it usually meant that I was hungry because I hadn't eaten before going to bed.
introvertedwolf
June 8th, 2016 9:37am
Stress and depression have this common symptom. Before going to bed, make sure you are relaxed and relieved, drink a tea, have a hot bath, it will help.
Supergirl94
June 19th, 2015 9:07pm
If you go to bed to early than your body gets the rest it needs and will wake up when its replenished
Lotusflowers
August 12th, 2015 10:41am
It could be that you go to bed too early, or maybe you just don't really need a lot of sleep. It really depends on if you wake up tired and can't get back to sleep, or you just wake up fresh and happy to start you're new day. If you wake up tired, and can't get back to sleep, it might be useful to discuss this issue with your doctor. There could be hundreds of reasons why you're not sleeping properly.
shiningautumn
August 9th, 2015 10:36am
if you wake up in the morning at the same time your body gets used to it. so you inner clock wakes you up at the same time.
Anonymous
August 12th, 2015 5:23am
Do what you love never work a day in your life. Do what you dream, never sleep another. ~~~~~~~~~~~
littlesnowflake1
July 25th, 2015 11:08pm
The reason for waking up early in the morning is caused by what you have to do on that day and what happened the day before.
Anonymous
July 29th, 2015 2:47am
Maybe you are stressed because you know you have stuff to do and scared it won't get done on time or your scared your alarm won't go off
Anonymous
August 9th, 2015 2:23am
It usually depends on your sleeping schedule. Altering it will alter what time you wake up and go to sleep.
BillytheCook
July 26th, 2015 4:18am
I used to wonder why I would wake up so early at times, and I would always come back to the same conclusion. I had to be up at 5 every day for my last job, I think that by doing that I trained my body to always get up at that time.