You know that feeling—you wake up at 3am, wide awake, mind racing, and you're already dreading how tired you'll be tomorrow. If this sounds like you, you're not alone. As a functional sleep coach, I've worked with hundreds of clients dealing with these middle-of-the-night wake-ups.


The frustrating part isn't just being awake. It's not knowing why you're awake or what will actually help.


In this post, I'm sharing three strategies that helped me (and my clients) get back to sleep faster—plus what you need to understand about fixing this problem long-term.


Why You're Waking Up at 3am


Here's what's usually happening: your body is releasing cortisol in the middle of the night when it shouldn't be.


Cortisol is your stress hormone. When it spikes, it gives you energy and makes your mind race—which is great at 7am, but terrible at 3am. Your body releases cortisol at night when it's stressed or dealing with inflammation.


Once I understood this was happening to me (I struggled with middle-of-the-night insomnia for two years), I could finally do something about it.


Strategy #1: Get Out of Bed


I know—this sounds counterintuitive. You're comfortable, you're tired, and you're hoping you'll fall back asleep any minute.


But here's the problem: when you lie there tossing and turning for hours, your brain loses the association that bed = sleep.


What to do instead:

- Get out of bed and do something relaxing

- Keep the lights dim—no phone, no TV

- Read a book (I use a Kindle Paperwhite)

- Go back to bed when you feel sleepy again


This didn't stop me from waking up at 3am, but it helped me fall back asleep so much faster. 


Give it at least a week before deciding it doesn't work. Your brain needs time to relearn the pattern. It's also a helpful distraction from the racing thoughts that create more stress and more cortisol.


Strategy #2: Try Tapping (EFT)


This might sound a little woo-woo, but tapping—also called Emotional Freedom Technique—has been a game-changer for me and many of my clients.


You tap on certain acupressure points around your face, and studies show this actually lowers cortisol and calms your stress response.


When I do this in the middle of the night, I start yawning almost immediately. I'll tap and talk through whatever's on my mind: "I'm wired right now. This is what I'm stressed about. And I'm letting it go until tomorrow. It's time to relax."


It usually takes just a few minutes, and then I go back to bed and fall asleep quickly.


I interviewed an EFT expert who walked through sequences specifically for sleep—check the link in the resources if you want to learn more.


Strategy #3: Use Breath Work


If tapping feels too out there for you, breath work is another powerful tool.


The key: make your exhales longer than your inhales. This tells your nervous system you're safe and it's okay to calm down.


Try this:

- Inhale for 4 counts

- Exhale for 6 counts

- Gradually increase to inhaling for 5 and exhaling for 10


This physically helps your body clear cortisol and calm your nervous system. The goal isn't to fall asleep immediately—it's to calm down enough that sleep becomes possible again.


The Long-Term Solution: Fix the Root Cause


Here's the truth: these strategies help you get back to sleep faster, which is huge. But they don't solve why you're waking up at 3am in the first place.


Your body releasing cortisol in the middle of the night is a signal that something is off. And I'm not talking about mental stress (though that matters too). I'm talking about physical imbalances like:


- Blood sugar crashes (when blood sugar drops too low, your body releases cortisol to raise it back up—and wakes you up in the process)

- Poor detoxification

- Gut pathogens that are most active at night

- Hormone imbalances (low estrogen and progesterone, especially for women in perimenopause)


The real solution is finding out why your body is releasing cortisol at night and fixing those underlying issues. That's when you either sleep through the night or—like me—you wake up, go to the bathroom, and fall right back asleep.


Ready to Stop Guessing and Start Sleeping?


If you're tired of the nightly battle with sleep and ready to understand what's really going on in your body, I'd love to talk with you.


I offer a free Sleep Better Consultation where we'll discuss what's been happening with your sleep, and I'll answer your questions. If it makes sense, we can talk about working together in my Complete Sleep Solution program—where we focus on finding and fixing the underlying imbalances keeping you awake, typically in six months or less.


Book your free consultation by clicking the button below!


And if you want to learn more about the specific imbalances causing these cortisol spikes at night, check out my post on the "Five Hidden Imbalances Keeping You Awake.".