Have you ever wondered why you always seem to be waking up during the night at particular times?
And it’s not just an odd night here and there. After a while you begin to realise you’re waking up again and again, the nights of sleeping through a distant memory. You start to look at the clock and find it’s always at the same time – 2:55am or between certain hours like 4am to 5am. You’re not drinking coffee late in the afternoon, you’ve cut down on your much loved sugars and you’re fairly active during the day (incidentally if you are drinking coffee all afternoon and you’re dipping into refined sugars, consider stopping and then see how you sleep!). Sure, life’s a bit stressful but how is it that it’s always 2:55am?!
Those who use Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) would tell you “that’s easy – look at the Chinese Medicine ‘Meridian Clock’”. It’s one of my favourite tools to use in Kinesiology. The great thing about the Meridian Clock is you don’t have to be a Kinesiologist or a practitioner of TCM to understand it or gain insight from it. Here’s a basic explanation to get you started.
What’s your time?
Firstly, have a look at the clock above and find the time you’re waking up. Take note of the name that sits directly beneath it. For example, if you’re waking between 1am and 3am then you would look at the information about the Liver meridian. Don’t worry – it doesn’t necessarily mean there’s something wrong with your liver, it’s just the way they’re named in English.
14 major meridians – our electrical system
There are 14 major meridians or flows of an energy substance (you may have heard of Qi/Ch’i which sustains life) with 12 of them sitting within the 24 hour clock. All are constantly flowing with energy from your environment and penetrating your body through your skin, central nervous system and organs. These portals on the skin are what acupuncture and acupressure use. Each has a two hour period where they are the primary meridian. Each meridian is linked to particular parts of the body, mechanisms of the body, other meridians, thoughts and emotions, colour, sound, seasons and other spiritual aspects. They’re also partnered together as Yin (receiving energy) and Yang (expressing energy) of an element – Earth, Metal, Water, Wood, and Fire.
Think of it like electrical circuits – when the energy of a meridian is not flowing well due to a block (like stress), you’ll find that you’ll experience a sign or symptom from the meridian(s) involved. This block will also cause an imbalance in the flows between meridians. So when waking up in the night at the same time, or becoming exhausted with 3:30-itis in the afternoon, you can look at the meridian at work and what may be happening with you. Here’s a list of the basic emotions of each element (the ring below the meridians).
- Earth – Empathy, sympathy, balanced giving and receiving
- Metal – Grief and loss
- Water – Fear and anxiety
- Wood – Anger, frustration and resentment
- Fire – Love, hate and joy
What now?
Self reflection people! It can be quite simple; you just need to stop and listen. Your body is trying to tell you something by waking you up at the same time. Back to our previous example, if your time is the Liver meridian and the Wood element – ask yourself “What am I angry or frustrated at?” Or think of the Liver organ and apply this to your life “What is toxic in my life that I need to get rid of?” Perhaps you have symptoms that your digestive system is not working so well?
I’ll leave you with this as food for thought. Spend some time to reflect on your life and what’s keeping you awake based on the ancient wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine. I will cover this in more detail in the next post Why You Wake Up At The Same Time Every Night (Part II). If you’re having trouble falling asleep at night, have a read through the Sanctuary of Sleep Series Part One Sleep & Stress: Why You Can’t Fall Asleep
If you’d like to read more about Traditional Chinese Medicine start with ‘The Web That Has No Weaver: Understanding Chinese Medicine’ by Ted Kaptchuk.
This post is the first instalment of a series I’ll be writing on Traditional Chinese Medicine and how you can use it to help you in daily life. Easy!
Why You Wake Up by Kate Pamphilon is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Abby says
I wake up at about
3am
Sleep
5-6 am
I then struggle to get to sleep until 6:30
This is every day for the past week now
Hunter Wolf says
Im aged 17, and I have been recently been waking up around 4:50 – 5:00.
It be caused by fear from a horror game that my older brother has got into called “Five Nights At Freddy’s”
Idea is to surive from 12pm to 6am with out dying, so I’m guessing its fear that I won’t surive the last hour, if i play the game; or the animalentronics are standing there ready to kill me!
Or it could be that I want to become a werewolf and its the fear that I may not have control over my wolf form, kill a friend or even a family member.
Any ideas whats causing me to wake up around 5am?
Victoria Cochrane says
I use your blog for guidance as I often wake up at the same time. I am a spiritual healer and also recommend it to my clients. Thanks so much!
Victoria
Kate says
Thank you, Victoria. I’m delighted that you’re sharing the wisdom of the meridian clock xx
Diane says
I sleep either for 4.30 hours which continues for a long time and can then start sleeping for 5.5 hours, rarely ever longer. My time of awakening depends on time I go to bed. So often is around 3.30 – 4.30 am as I normally go to bed around 11 pm. I can never get back to sleep again. Am aged 72 years and a light worker. Also see 11.11 and similar times often.
Feel tired and have sleep deprivation.
Your answer will be most appreciated.
Sophie says
I’m aged 15, and I keep waking up in the night anywhere between 4:30 and 5:45 and then GOIG back to sleep, and have been doing so for the past week or two. I go to sleep around 11:40-12:00. I’m not really too sure what could have brought it on and would be interested to know why I keep waking up.
Claudia says
Hi I’m 18 and I have recently been waking up around 3 or 4 ish . Since the past few weeks now . And I would really appreciate it if you can help me out ! because I can’t fall back asleep until 7 ! And it’s really a pain in the butt . :,( helpp
Sophie says
I am aged 15, and I keep waking up in the night anywhere between 4:30 and 5:45 and then going back to sleep, and have been doing so the past week or s. I go to sleep around 11:40-12:00. I’m to really too sure what could have brought it on and would be interested to know why I keep waking up.
Bernadette says
I am 9weeks pregnant and recently had some devastating news, my partner committed suicide last week and sine that day i have woken up at 00:29 and 03:03 every night then im Up by 4:54 this is so unlike me i can normall sleep thru anything. I know obviously with the stress of whats happened i wouldnt be sleeping perfectly but to ser the same times every night is a little odd. I just wondered if anyone had any ideas what these times could mean if anything? Thanx in advance xx
Aman says
It was helpful. Thanks