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.
Anonymous me says
I keep waking up at 4 am , some times it’s not on the dot , it will be like 4:02,4:04,4:05 etc. this has been happening a lot lately . I use to wake up every now and then , normal I’m sure, well according to the things I have read in med books. I am leaving this comment because I don’t kno why I keep waking up , also I don’t know what it means by metal and lungs or if I have even read this right, I assumed the sun indicated the day time and afternoon for the other 4 , I could be wrong. I just want to sleep and not wake up early , today I woke up 1:30 min before I should have, it’s frustrating , and so I went to find answers . I unfortunately couldn’t answer everything with Google , I’m still gonna keep trying tho ;thanks to Larry page and sergi brin I can google everything . Ok, that was random, but this is hat I mean , once I’m up , I can’t sleep ! My mind goes in to a tail spin , constantly thinking and wayyyy too active for wee hours , I would like anyone to tell me what this all means and why I keep getting up at the same time , it’s been about a week now … It’s annoying me badly I’m irked and I m not tiered in the morning ; which I find strange , I have been told we need 8 hours of sleep I’ve been going on 6 to 7 on a good day . Help , if anyone reads this and knows anything , pleas , pleas do share your knowledge ! Thanks for reading , I type less than I think , that should sufice as answer enuough . Sorry, for it being so long , but I can’t sleep
Anonymous me says
I keep waking up at 4 am , some times it’s not on the dot , it will be like 4:02,4:04,4:05 etc. this has been happening a lot lately . I use to wake up every now and then , normal I’m sure, well according to the things I have read in med books. I am leaving this comment because I don’t kno why I keep waking up , also I don’t know what it means by metal and lungs or if I have even read this right, I assumed the sun indicated the day time and afternoon for the other 4 , I could be wrong. I just want to sleep and not wake up early , today I woke up 1:30 min before I should have, it’s frustrating , and so I went to find answers . I unfortunately couldn’t answer everything with Google , I’m still gonna keep trying tho ;thanks to Larry page and sergi brin I can google everything . Ok, that was random, but this is hat I mean , once I’m up , I can’t sleep ! My mind goes in to a tail spin , constantly thinking and wayyyy too active for wee hours , I would like anyone to tell me what this all means and why I keep getting up at the same time , it’s been about a week now … It’s annoying me badly I’m irked and I m not tiered in the morning ; which I find strange , I have been told we need 8 hours of sleep I’ve been going on 6 to 7 on a good day . Help , if anyone reads this and knows anything , pleas , pleas do share your knowledge ! Thanks for reading , I type less than I think , that should sufice as answer enuough . Sorry, for it being so long , but I can’t sleep
daniel says
dunno y everyday I keep on wakin up 11am on the dot no matter d time i fall asleep.
Valerie Brook says
I’m 12 and I keep waking up at 12:30 or 12:20 and idk y
Matthew says
The chines body clock explains why people wake up at certain hours.
If one wakes up between 1-3am then it may be due to the energy running through the liver, which can be a result of some Anger etc that you are feeling throughout your day or recent life.
It is a good idea to introspect and try to find out what is emotionally bothering you throughout your life. Another thing one can do to help themselves is incorporate foods in their diet to help clean their liver and eat less foods that tax your liver (google this to find out) since the physical is connected to the spiritual.
Another thing one can do to help themselves is go to Professional therapy to discuss the emotional issues that may be plaguing oneself.
Another route to help oneself is to go to Professional Acupuncture. There are specefic points in the body that correlate to the different body parts listed in the Chine Body Clock and Acupuncture can help get ones body back in a healthy rhythm.
This general idea can be applied to virtually any abnormal time that one abnormallt wakes up such as between 3am-5am etc.
If your body wakes up at an abnormal time, it is in my opinion that its trying to tell you that something needs to be addressed so that you can repair or heal it, not that ghosts are watching you (as someone previously mentioned) – There is no such thing as being watched by ghosts.
Good luck to everyone trying to heal themselves, including myself.
Madi says
I just woke up at like 11:00 pm and I have a busy day tomorrow and need my rest but it’s almost 1:00 pm and I can’t sleep!!!! PLEASE HELP ME!!!
And thanks if it works
Kate says
Place your hand across your forehead and breathe in and out of your nose, gently and slowly! Or, massage your feet! Make sure you are at the right temperature and darkened room xx Kate
rachel says
i wake at 4 every morning, why is this
Kari says
Hi, I got water for fear and anxiety which is true because I am scared of being in my house alone and the dark. My mom is on a business trip and I’m here watching the house.
Please help!