Johann Hunt
You’ve probably found yourself wide-awake at 3 a.m., wondering if something’s wrong with your sleep. Good news: you might simply be echoing an ancient habit. For centuries, people didn’t expect one unbroken eight-hour block of rest. Instead, they went to sleep early, rose for a period, then slipped back into bed. Let’s explore how this rhythm changed—and what it can tell you about your night.
Ancient Night Rhythms: First Sleep Then Second Sleep
Historians have found that before the Industrial Revolution, people followed a two-stage nightly rest—sleeping for four hours, waking for a period, then returning to bed until dawn. In a world ruled by candlelight and natural darkness, it made perfect sense. Villages grew quiet early, and the human body responded by sleeping in shorter, rhythmic cycles instead of a single stretch.
This pattern wasn’t confined to Europe. References to segmented sleep appear in diaries and literature from Africa to Asia. People didn’t describe it as strange or unhealthy—it was simply “night’s way.” The first sleep restored the body, while the second followed a peaceful mid-night pause. Understanding this rhythm sets up what came next: how people spent that quiet interlude between their two rests.
The Middle-Of-The-Night Wake Interval
Historical accounts from the 15th to 18th centuries show that this wakeful period wasn’t wasted. People prayed, read quietly, checked the fire, or shared hushed conversations. In the stillness of a winter night, the room glowed softly from the hearth while the outside world slept. It was a time for calm reflection and connection.
Because the night was truly dark and clocks didn’t dictate life, the pause between sleeps felt natural. It shaped a balance between activity and rest that modern routines rarely allow. So if you find yourself awake at 2 a.m., it may not be restlessness—it might be your body remembering an older, slower rhythm.
What Changed: Light, Industry And The Eight-Hour Default
Starting in the 1700s and accelerating through the 19th century, artificial lighting—oil lamps followed by gas lamps and then electricity—pushed people to stay awake later, compressing the night. At the same time, the industrial revolution imposed regular work hours and the expectation of one continuous slumber. Those two forces combined to shift the norm toward an uninterrupted eight-hour sleep, gradually displacing the first-and-second-sleep pattern.
However, when people are deprived of evening light and free of rigid schedules, segmented sleep re-emerges naturally. That suggests the eight-hour block isn’t the only “normal” sleep pattern. If your night unfolds with an early rest, a natural pause, then a second rest, it might be less about dysfunction and more about a rhythm from long ago.
Final Thoughts: Rewriting Your Night Narrative
If you wake in the middle of the night, you’re not automatically failing at sleep. Instead, you might be tapping into a tradition older than electric bulbs and factory shifts. View the wake interval as an opportunity rather than an interruption. You can use it for reflection or simply accept that your body is following a very old script. Let your night evolve. Give yourself permission to rest in whatever pattern comes naturally, and let history lighten your expectations.