For example, you’ve probably had some variation of a conversation like this before: One person (the light sleeper) says, “Wow, that storm was so loud last night—it woke me up!” and the other person (the heavy sleeper) says, “I slept right through it.” Now, as sleep and health psychologist Joshua Tal, Ph.D., previously explained to mbg, waking up in the middle of the night isn’t necessarily a bad thing. “Usually you’re waking up between stages of sleep, so you’re not really interrupting anything,” and it’s naturally easier to wake up during the light sleep stages (stages 1 or 2) than the deeper ones. “One is that, for whatever reason, some people spend more time in the deep sleep stage than in light sleep stages,” Stephenson says, and these people would likely be deeper sleepers. The other theory has to do with something called sleep spindles, she notes. “Sleep spindles are a type of brainwave. There are bursts of brain activity during stage 2 non-REM sleep and […] they seem to protect sleepers from waking up in response to noise.” In fact, research has shown sleepers who have more sleep spindles1 also tend to sleep more soundly and deeply, Stephenson notes, “whereas sleepers with fewer sleep spindles tend to be easier to awaken.” Here’s a refresher on those four stages of sleep and what happens in each one: And as Stephenson notes, the cause may be largely genetic. “Some people have been light sleepers all their lives, while others have always been heavy sleepers,” she says, adding that “several studies2 have looked at gene mutations that predispose people to more deep sleep or more REM sleep.” “Everyone needs a quality seven to nine hours of sleep on most nights for good health,” she says, “and this is easy for some and a bit more challenging for others.” However, unless you have a medical condition or sleep disorder (which we’ll touch on later), she says you should be able to reach this threshold—no matter how lightly or deeply you tend to sleep. Try practicing relaxing rituals before sleeping to calm stress: “Take a warm bath, read something relaxing, listen to calm music, or try meditating before bed,” Stephenson suggests. Eating and drinking too late can keep your body digesting into the night, and alcohol is known to disrupt deeper sleep stages4. Even beverages like water or tea should be consumed in small amounts before bed, to avoid needing to wake up to use the bathroom. Stephenson agrees, adding that these could be signs of an underlying medical problem like sleep apnea, restless legs, or poor blood sugar control. And as functional medicine doctor Frank Lipman, M.D., previously explained to mbg, melatonin is good for regulating sleep rhythm, but if staying asleep is more of the problem than actually falling asleep, he says magnesium might actually be a better option.* “Magnesium may also help to calm stress before sleep,” Stephenson adds, “so it could help naturally light sleepers be less likely to awaken due to stress.”* Note that depending on your age, the amount of sleep you need varies. (Check out our full guide to sleep duration by age.) One of the most obvious options is to invest in a bigger bed that makes tossing and turning less noticeable. On top of that, try to respect your partner’s needs for a dark and quiet room, and if it comes down to it, consider getting a “sleep divorce,” even if only for a couple of nights a week.
