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.
Cristina Mejia says
I live in all alone in Dubai and spent a month in Canada with my nephews, I was very sad to leave them and felt very lonely coming back home. I had jetlag for a week, but it has been 10 days now and I am still waking up at 3:15 everynight regardless of at what time I go to sleep. Am I greiving? How do I deal with this? Is acknowledging it enough? Thanks.
Meghan says
I just had my puppy die and buried her in the front yard this morning so it makes sense now why I wake up at 4am…
ryan says
I wake up at 2-3am everyday for the last few wks. It doesn’t matter where u sleep what room I sleep in. And I noticed I been having more upper back pain since waking up at this time. Can you tell me what it means.
Stephanie says
My son who suffers from eczema and thus itchy skin wakes around 1am every night. If he goes to bed super late he will wake up around 2 am. Liver/wood. What could that mean for a 7 year old? When he wakes he itches like crazy all over his body and is difficult to deal with. He does have eczema but he is not very itchy during the day. It is not bed bugs and he doesn’t have any specific rash. What could we do to help him???? Interestingly-he suffers from many many food allergies and I wonder if his liver needs to detox or something? Any insight you can offer would be so appreciated!!! My husband and I are dying from lack of sleep!!!
kevin says
I just broke up with my long term gf and i feel so much anxiety it makes sense and i kept waking up at 430am in the past two weeks
Madi says
I’ve been waking up every night between 3-4 for a week now. I’ve been thinking about quitting the cheer team and I’ve been very nervous and stressed and I’ve been scared to tell anyone. I finally admitted it so I’m betting tonight I will not be waking up!
Jass says
I am in the same boat as Kevin. There is grief, restlessness, frustration. But it is not just the sleep, my days are like that as well. I lost appetite. I was ok with it when it started thinking that it will pass but now its been over a month and I am starting to worry more. There is nothing that seems capable of distracting me.
Anna says
I keep waking up at 236am every morning and could not figure out what it is until I found your website. Thanks
Mrs Sohler says
I have been waking every morning at 3am for a few weeks now. I am scheduled now for an MRI to rule out breast cancer.
Thankful for your insite!
Dorinda
KC says
Currently up at 3A, so i did a web search. I’m glad I did. Helps me know where to start. I definitely need to spend more time meditating.