If you've been dealing with sleep issues since going low carb, keto, or carnivore, please share your experiences in the comments & also please connect with me and others on my new forum here: lifeanddiy.com/forum/diet-fitness/carnivore-keto-insomnia-sleep-issues-and-solutions/. I created a post to address the sleep issues, hoping we can help each other through the forum. This video mostly focuses on the unique issues related to tryptophan, although there could be numerous other causes of the issue many of us are experiencing. I'll talk about those other causes in future videos. It took me a very long time to create this video because I wanted to spend a lot of time tracking and analyzing all kinds of things to hone in on the exact issue causing me (and many of you) this problem. I have been using a program called Julius.ai to analyze all of my daily data, to find trends. So far the trends are slim, which is surprising and a little disappointing, but I won't give up. Other potential issues involve low blood sugar levels in the morning, and high resulting cortisol. I will do some at-home tests to see how my serotonin, melatonin, and cortisol levels are doing throughout the night. I have a great doctor who I can consult with too. My sleep has improved since I posted my last video, but it's very unpredictable and for many days it may be great if I go to sleep around 6 PM, and some other days it's rough as I may wake up at 1 AM. Some days I eat some carbs, but so far I haven't noticed any significant trends with that impacting my sleep. Maybe I'm not having enough. I'll share more on this later. For anyone curious about my carnivore diet - I eat carnivore some days, ketovore or keto on other days. I often eat meat, eggs, and I've added in avocado, plus I have blueberries too sometimes, but not large amounts so the carbs are still pretty low. I will continue on with researching and experimenting and I will keep you all posted. I think labwork will help me figure some things out next.

I am getting good sleep since I stoped fasting, cold showers,, stoped drinking tea and coffee, reduced environmental stress. If I can not change something, I don't worry about it. I also increased my fat intake. Eating Kefir, or high fat yogurt before going to bed. I don't go to the gym any more. Having a good sleep at night is 100 times more beneficial than stressing my body and mind in a gym.

I eat a piece of butter before bed and have deep sleep till morning on carnivore.

Ha - it's currently 02:59...I've been awake for 30 minutes. Hmmmm - the thing is, I really like it. I just go to bed earlier at about 8pm and always wake feeling refreshed and pretty much ready to go. Overall, I need far less sleep on carnivore...it's just that I have to be mindful that I *am* going to wake up early. In a few hours I'll go for a run, then do some deadlifts, kettlebells and yoga. I'll have caught up on the news, planned my day, done a bit of reading, had a workout...and it'll only be 6am. I can see that it doesn't work for people who can't get to sleep early to compensate...but for me it's an absolute blessing.

Interesting article I saved a long time ago about awakening early. I would have posted it in its entirety but it's behind a paywall. I'll post a link just in case it's not blocked. "The liver stores glycogen as a quick fuel source to tide metabolism over in between meals. This will provide about 12 hours of accessible glucose (sugar) after which the body breaks down adipose tissue (body fat) and liberates ketones for fuel. With a healthy and flexible metabolism, this shift is seamless, and fasting for several hours is uneventful. If metabolism depends on sugar for fuel, the transition elicits a stress response by the body whereby the adrenal glands release the hormone cortisol to raise blood sugar. A drop in blood sugar is a root cause of waking in the night, stemming from Liver’s increased need for energy to metabolize life in the form of dreams as well as the liver’s demand for fuel to detoxify pollutants. Whether the stress is physiological or emotional, metabolism is taxed and waking ensues as the elevation of cortisol from the adrenals is accompanied by a release of catecholamine hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine. These potent stimulating hormones will assuredly wake even the most sound sleeper. Of course, these hormones need not be tapped if blood sugar is balanced. Becoming metabolically flexible is the key to staying asleep. There’s a simple way to see if unbalanced blood sugar is at the root of sleep disturbance. Eat an early dinner and don’t snack until bedtime, when you will consume ONE of the following: a teaspoon of raw honey, a slice of lunch meat turkey, OR a tablespoon of coconut oil. Try each separately and see which (if any) prevent waking at night. Which one(s) work is a clue to how efficient your metabolism is at burning fats for fuel instead of depending on sugar. If metabolically inflexible, the raw honey will likely be the only thing that works. If metabolically efficient, ketones from the coconut oil will work best. A protein such as a slice of turkey burns slower than the quick sugar of raw honey, but ultimately can be converted into sugar by the liver in a process called gluconeogenesis. Some people do best with a higher protein diet, and a slice of turkey will maintain their metabolic needs while providing a rich source of tryptophan, the precursor amino acid to melatonin. This nightly dietary experiment can aid sleep in the short term, and clue you into the resilience of your metabolism, but the long-term goal is to not need a snack before bed every night. The solution is twofold: mitigating stress to prevent a nightly cortisol spike and shifting one’s metabolism toward proteins and fats to become fat-adapted. The former strategy can be achieved by journaling before bed to vent the day’s frustrations. The latter can be realized over time by having a regular diet of lower carb foods and practicing intermittent fasting or time-restricted eating to strengthen one’s metabolism." Credit >> Brandon LaGreca LAc, MAcOM (The Epoch Times) www.theepochtimes.com/health/why-do-i-always-wake-between-3-am-and-5-am-4029997

Thanks for sharing such important information Holly. God bless you!

I heard that it’s a fat adaptation issue: if you’re not fully fat adapted your body will wake you up early in the morning with a cortisol spike. When it does that if you eat a small amount of fat (slice of butter) you can help your body to calm and teach it to rely on fat reserves.

Thanks for sharing your experience and the research you’re doing. It’s so helpful! I’m two-three weeks into carnivore and similar to your story/ I was already eating a high protein/high fat Whole Foods diet before switching. This is my first time really cutting out carbs though and going fully into ketosis- I am not having trouble falling asleep but I wake up at 5 am and have a hard time getting back to sleep. My fasting insulin is at a 2 from my recent blood work so I’m not sure if it’s insulin but it could be. So interesting. I’m definitely going to monitor it because I don’t want to go months and months on terrible sleep which can cascade into a bunch of other stressful health issues. I started carnivore to heal some hormones but progesterone likes a little carb, so I’m not opposed to bringing back in 50g or less to help aid in progesterone production. Please keep us updated, God bless! 🙏🏼

I am so thankful I ran across this video because I have been waking up between 1:00 and 3:00 for months now This just might be the answer I've been looking for

The issue of waking at 3:00 a.m. - which I did this morning - is probably much more complicated than just a tryptophan issue. Blood sugar spiking to wake you for the day, the commensurate insulin response and other counter-regulatory hormones come into play. Plus, circadian rhythms play a role, and morning sunlight in the eyes may be beneficial. When we eat probably has some influence as well. I don't have the answers. If I did, I would get a nice 7-8 hours of sleep per day. I'm getting around 5 hours, if I'm lucky.

Gosh it sounds like you’re telling my story exactly.

Thanks for posting this. I’ve been carnivore for 11 months. I’m tired by 11pm and fall to sleep quickly. Over the last few months I wake at 1:50 to 2:05 am (no exaggeration, it’s that tight a window) most nights feeling wide awake. I’ve been getting up for about an hour and then going back to sleep. It isn’t really impacting things yet, but it’s frustrating. I’ve never before had sleep issues.

I'm 78 and no alarms for me. When I wake up I just read my current fabulous book until I'm sleepy again.

A beautiful scientist. 😊

Thanks for posting

Wow! Great information! I have just been rolling with it, but I go to bed early. I will try to supplement.

100% Carnivore for over 2 years, I recently noticed a connection between my eating patterns and waking at 3am. I was easting 2 meals per day ie: lunch and dinner and waking at 3am. When I changed my meal pattern to breakfast 8am and lunch at 2pm I sleep till 5-7am mostly 7am.

I went high protein keto a few weeks ago and am experiencing the 2 or 3 am wakeups. Thanks for posting.

Just found you on KZfaq. You’re pretty good. I lost 150lbs on Keto/Carnivore.

Interesting! I had not heard about this. I’ve been waking up between 1:30 and 4 (usually 3), for over a year. I have also been following a super low carb diet. Thanks for bringing this to my attention!

I wish I had a solution. My sleep schedule is similar to yours. I can't blame carnivore, though. It's been an issue for me for 14 years -- since menopause. I go to bed around 7 so that I have a chance of getting 6.5 or 7 hours before waking up. It means saying no to any evening activities because I know if I don't get to bed until 11, I will be miserably tired plus, I'll wake up between 2 and 3. My friends and family don't understand.

Castor oil liver pack~wear all night. Fixed it finally for me.

Thanks for sharing. Thought it was only me.

Aw I'm sorry you're still going through this challenge. I wish I could help. I'm sure you will find the right solution for you because of your highly admirable capacity to research and do the hard thinking. In the meantime I'll definitely keep my eyes and ears open for any useful information on this topic, and I'll keep you in my prayers.

Thank you, I been struggling waking up like you for months since I switched to carnivore. I'm experimenting as well but definitely learning something new. This is affecting my relationship, my wife doesn't want to go bed early, I usually go around 7-9 and that's early but depending the day how I feel. I really to get this fixed asap. Please help keeping us informed on your discoveries. Thank you,

Dr. Elizabeth Brand explains that around 2/3am is the time cortisol begins to increase gradually to get us to our natural wake up around 6/7am... if our hormones are in need of balance because of stressors it often means we need to increase our fat... you should look up some of her recommendations via several interviews on various YT platforms..

I fall asleep so easily... but I wake around 3am or so... it's become such a problem I have intentionally been eating carbs before bed to help me stay asleep... i hate it but I've gone through this so many times its the only thing that works

i drink two green tea during the day (mood) and a big warm milk at bed and this has improved my sleep length. I am also fasting so only eating one carnivore meal a day but have moved that meal to 6pm rather than 4pm. Our bodies store at night but because of my fasting it has to consume that only meal and so no tummy rumbles that i have found happening when i was woken at 3am. so in summary i am waking at 5am now and if 6 hours sleep i can go through the day at my age (56) on that. Based on your vid i will try fiber with my only meal and see if i can get to 6am. cheers!

I have struggled with insomnia for years and years and it has literally ruined my life. I am so tired all the time and my health and productivity is really affected. Sleeping pills do not help as they make me so brain dead the next day that it’s hardly worth it. Vitamin D3 supplements changed everything for a while but it seems to have stopped working for me. I am back to waking up every night around 2:00 or 3:00 again and not being able to get back to sleep. Afternoon naps help but not possible with a full time job . I am on low carb, no tea or coffee, moderate exercise etc but nothing seems to help. Randomly however I will sleep through but I just can’t figure out what the trick was that particular night. It’s really frustrating. Nobody around me is sympathetic as they all seem to sleep ok. The worst is when my friends say they just don’t know how I function on so little sleep as they need their 8 hours - like I am doing it deliberately. 😢

Sleep was terrible on carnivore for about the first 5 months then improved. I go to bed about 8pm but still wake up every 3 hours or so but feel rested by 6am. If I have trouble falling back to sleep I'll do squats or lunges. Seems like it's pent up energy or something. No difference if I do omad or 2mad, high fat or high protein. Adding carbs only makes me binge eat. I can recall only one night that I slept straight through and felt amazing. Wish I knew how I did it.

So sorry to hear about the sleep issues. I had an issue with falling asleep at bedtime. I started to shower before bedtime and that has helped me to fall asleep faster. Maybe having a ketovore dinner would help. I wish well

This is the exact reason why i had to stop keto and carnivore. Otherwise i felt better than ever but the constant lack of sleep several years made me almost loose my mind. When i eat carbs i still wake up during the night but can fall back to sleep. When no carbs its impossible. If i would ever found fix to this i would be happy go back to keto or carnivore without second thought. So happy you made this video.

Carnivore for over 4 years and one pickle fix my problem for the sleep side

Great video! Thanks. I also wake up in the middle of the night. I used to wake up twice per night to pee and I did an experiment to keep track of when I drank water in the evening. I increased the time between my last drink of water and sleep and it helped me to reduce my waking times to only once per night. I'm happy about that because I can usually go back to sleep. I'm very interested in your tryptophan suggestion and I will do more research. Maybe you can do a video regarding tryptophan supplementation dosage, timing, etc. I also take collagen before sleep and I need to experiment with not taking it. Thanks for that suggestion as well!

Excellent video! 75, carnivore, mostly lion, for two-years. I love it! I go to bed between 9 and 10. I generally wake at 3, stay in bed and think about a project that I am working on or a problem. Sometimes I'll go back to sleep, sometimes I'll go to my studio and paint.

Hi, I had this same problem when I switched from keto to carnivore about a year ago. Even quitting coffee for three months made no difference. I did some research and ended up viewing some KZfaq videos with Dr Stasha Gominak and her sleep protocol, I would say the probable solution was using B vitamins but I am not completely sure since I made some other small changes. Also after solving the issue I also bought tryptophan and used it for a few months just to make sure this never happened again and I am glad to say it did not happen so far. Hope this helps!

I was doing keto for a year and couldnt sleep through the night.. I tried all the usual...tryptophan, magnesium, melatonin,hot baths with Epsom salts, nothing worked consistantly until I added more fiber to my diet. Of course I couldnt be completely keto then but it worked immediately.

Thanks for this video. I've been on keto for about 5 yrs and rarely have a full nights sleep, waking between 1 and 3 am. I also have no problem falling asleep. I think you are onto something with the tryptophan levels. I alternateduring the week between Ashwagandha, a passionflower supplement, magnesium, valerium and an antihistamine labelled Phenergan to get back to sleep. The valerium and Phenergan work the best for me.

Great video sister! I’ve had this happen too (ands usually 3am) wide awake. Im doing lion diet for like 11 days and it hasn’t happened since. Not suggesting everyone does lion but maybe it’s worth a 3 day test. Also I really wonder if this 3am wake up would happen if we were getting proper, natural sunlight. I find my 3am wakeups (in retrospect) often happen to me in winter/ low sun days maybe Vit D related. The weird thing is, if I wake at 3am I’m not tired or fatigued at all. It’s annoying but not like when I was depressed and has insomnia and was weak and exhausted. I almost wonder if it’s my body just saying “dude, your good, this is all the sleep you need as a proper human now go enjoy your free time, this is your new normal” .. it’s so hard because everyone is different.

I had this issue, and still do to some degree. I’ve found that my sleep began to improve around the 9-10 month mark of being on carnivore. I still go to bed early, but I’ve been able to push to 8pm and wake around 4am now. Before it was 6pm to 1-3am like you mentioned. I’m not clear on why it shifted, but it did and it’s working well now.

Wow! I thought it was just me. I had no idea there was a group of people with the same problem. I thought it was because of low glucose levels but I don’t monitor my glucose levels. Because I don’t check for glucose levels, it was just a guess that low glucose could be the cause. Thank you for the information. It gives me another area to focus on. I stopped taking melatonin because I didn’t like the way it made me feel. I believe it possibly threw my hormones out of balance or created a greater amount of imbalance. I will be watching for future videos and information as you share. Again, thank you for sharing.

I’ve started bi phasal sleeping. I wake up between 3-5, drink some decaf coffee and stay awake for 2 hours and go back to bed. The next 1 1/2 to 2 hours of sleep are like an 8 hours sleep. Luckily I’m self employed so I can do this

Not on topic, but would you please do a make-up tutorial? What foundation do you wear? I love your content! 😊

I am one who also has sleep issues on keto, ketovore, carnivore etc. I fall asleep, but wake up once or multiple times. Ive tried several things like melatonin etc.

I have been carnivore for six months. I had sleep issues resolved by eating meat but now having the same happen again. Like you, I am waking between 1 am to 4 am. I suspected glucose issues and this is an issue since I thought maybe including some carbs might help. Ugh! It is much worse with carbs. I got a Keto- Mojo meter and had noticed my morning fasting glucose was higher. So I got a continuous glucose monitor. Wow! Each time my glucose is about to drop or drops, I wake up. I did not know that about tryptophan. Looking forward to munching on more turkey!

Included Sleep Therapy is a small hack. It's free and an ancient practice.

3AM is also a very spiritual hour. When we are asleep, the spirit world is still very awake.

Consider the possibility that your body rhythms may have changed along with your diet, and your body now prefers biphasic sleep. Researchers hypothesize that monophasic sleep became the dominant sleep pattern during the industrial era, when artificial lighting began enabling people to stay up past sunset. Prior to that, many people across different continents and cultures followed a biphasic sleep schedule. They went to bed in the evening and slept for a few hours, waking up around midnight. Then, they would stay up for a few hours to eat, tend to their children, or add wood to the fire, before finally falling back asleep for their second sleep phase. So, if you're waking up around 1:00 a.m., say, just roll with it. Maybe read for an hour. And then see if you can just go back to sleep.

I woke up at 2.11am and watching this at 2.40.AU.

I'm 71 and have been keto, now carnivore (last 6 months) for 3 1/2 years overall. I've noticed on carnivore that I have also been waking at 3 a.m., can't get back to sleep so I just stay up. I also now end up going to bed at 7 or 8 p.m. I didn't have this problem when on keto. I take walks early in the morning when it's still dark so I'm not getting any sunlight then but hopefully that will improve as summer approaches and dawn comes earlier.

I am sure people have already have suggested magnesium threonate and also glycine near bedtime, but you never know what will work for you. Good luck and thank you for sharing.

Ooh, I'm going to try to balance collagen with tryptophan strategies. This is genius putting this out on a Monday, got the major blahs.

On occasion I will wake up at 1:00 AM. I go to bed pretty early though. I assume it's hunger waking me up, so I will eat some meat and then go back to sleep. This is a great topic and I appreciate the video.

I think you summed it up perfectly Holly! “There are so many factors that go into this”. I wish there was a one cure fits all, but the cause of sleep issues is different for everyone, so we have to take a personalised approach to work out all the possible factors...I know from experience this can be difficult! :) I hope you find a solution soon.

My diet consists of approximately 85% meat and 15% vegetables for about 3 years now and I find that I don’t sleep good like I use to. I came across a KZfaq video where this man said that going carnivore made him biphasic. I don’t know much more than that. This is the first video I’ve ever seen from this channel, I really liked it! Subscribed!

Had same symptoms a month into low carb … first assumed blood sugar drop during the night as I have dinner around 5pm … then swapped out my Magnesium supplement for Magnesium-Glycinate … also have a fruit (still low carb for the day) with dinner … now sleep through … from around 9pm to 5am.

I added B3 to the mix of potassium and B1 which has improved my sleep to the point where I can now function during the day.

my sleep issues started during the months i stopped long walks a year ago. i had cut down nearly completely on vegetables and fruits and also noticed that it depends on sufficient hours of mental work mostly reading. i have been tweaking these three things which help with falling back to sleep . so i run for 20 minutes twice a week and a long walk with daily one hour yoga, have 1/2 a bowl of veggies alternating with a fruit like banana, read for a few hours at least, have tea only in the morning after my first meal at 10am and last meal at 3 pm,

I wake up anywhere from 1 am to 3 am and have for a long time. I've been Carnivore since 1-1-23 until now.(435 days). It doesn't seem to be bothering me because I no longer need naps and I can read for a little while and then go back to sleep and wake feeling very rested. The great thing is that I get so much done early and then I'm tackling cleaning, etc. I've got an amazing amount of energy, both physically and mentally.

One thing that recently happened to me on keto was that my sodium levels got too low (hyponatremia) and one symptom was waking up at 2 or 3 AM and not being able to sleep more. Keto diet acts as a diuretic and can lower sodium levels. My sweat also started to smell like ammonia and I was feeling very weak. I got scared that maybe I’ve caused some damage to my kidneys, so I went to get my bloodwork done. Turns out my kidneys are fine, but sodium was at 129 which explained all the symptoms.

I changed my diet heavily a little over a year ago and I can relate to this 100%. I'm not really full on Keto or Carnivore as I do eat Fruits, Veggies, Meats and once a week I do still have my pizza. This has been a problem for me for the entire time I've been doing this. I thought maybe it was coffee but I only drank that in the morning and went I stopped for weeks, nothing changed. It gets awkward because while I will get thru work pretty well.. I'm in tired mode after I get home from work when everyone wants to do something. And being up at 2-4am limits what I can do. I'll have to check up on this and see if this is a potential issue for me. Thank you for this information.

HA! It's 4 am and I have been up for an hour! This has been my normal for 2 years! I am an old lady so I don't have a problem going to bed at 6, but it DID take some getting used to!

I can't tell you where I heard this, but I believe appropriately vigorous exercise helps with the competitive amino-acid transport issue by directing the non-tryptophan amino acids towards muscle protein synthesis.

After being carnivore one year I figured out it's better to go sleep earlier so after some week or two my sleeping time was solid 8.30 and I wake up between 3am-4am. After fasting I wake up more or less after 1 am but I still get some not so deep sleep after that. I figured out we are not meant to sleep throughout the night but sleep between 10pm-1am and it's enough. I did read that's a time line you get a sleep which your brains need and rest of the sleep you can have any time of day if you need it. I don't really need it. I'm active whole day and I fall to sleep very easy.

Holly I would consider that while it could be a combination of things , consider that it could also be too much or excess adrenaline that is keeping you up or not allowing you to sleep consistently . Add organic soluble psyllium husk daily to your life to get rid of excess hormones . K aren H urd talks about how excess hormones wreak havoc and can cause all kinds of issues from minor to major . I wrote her name like that because it seems some of my comments get deleted for no obvious reason . Also , maybe slightly weighed blankets and eye coverings to block out light .

How much protein are you eating and what is the fat to protein ratio? If the protein is too high it can deplete calcium and biotin which are needed for sleep too. Are you eating any liver for the added vitamins? Another thing you could try is eating one meal per day a few hours before you go to sleep and see if that gives a big insulin spike to get you into a longer sleep. You could also try adding calcium to your food, and if the vitamin D is low the calcium won't absorb and if the calcium is low the biotin can't activate. A hack to look into is Threonine for sleep. Also, some videos suggest eating some carbs. You can also add potassium citrate to the food to make up past deficiency, but you have to be very careful with potassium powder per chris masterjohn instructions. Potatoes have good potassium source though and is very safe. I think protein too high depletes calcium and potassium. To much protein will make you use gluconeogenesis which depletes calcium. So, that is why some liver, biotin or carbs can help.

Started Magnesium suppliant & rotated off melatonin & sleeping longer & happier.

you can try eating berries once or twice per week if u on carnivore. or eat turkey if on carnivore. this helped me.

Ugh! This is exactly me these days 🤤😴🤣 I had been enjoying getting up and being active at 3am but I am quite tired lately: I have been going through some of Tony Pantalleresco's notes as I was reminded of a recipe where he broke open a few B vitamin capsules and mixed them in to some Kefir and let it sit out over night. Have it the next day before going to bed. I tried it before, slept like a baby, had amazing dreams and jumped out of bed the next day brand new. I will try this again soon. Next I want to try St.John's Wort which has a high level of Melatonin.... and then the following; "Acetylcholine helps to maintain Sleep. It controls the amount of sensory input that reaches the Brain during Sleep and increases the stimulus barrier (increasing the threshold of sensory inputs before waking occurs) during Sleep. Optimal Acetylcholine allows sleepers to remain asleep through minor noises and other disturbances. Light sleepers are likely to have sub-optimal Acetylcholine. Choline improves the quality of Sleep. It helps to keep an individual asleep after they have fallen asleep (via its role as a precursor for Acetylcholine, the Neurotransmitter that helps to prevent unnecessary interruptions to Sleep from non-threatening stimuli)."

I keep wondering why I stay asleep longer when eating carbs. When I was carnivore, my sleep was horrific. I am hoping I can correct this as carnivore cleared up SOOOO many health issues in a short amount of time, and I would like to go back on it as soon as possible. I thought Dr. Berg said to never take a Tryptophan supplement. I can't remember the reason behind him saying that, though.

Circadian Rhythms. I’ve also been waking up full of energy and ready to start my day at early hours. Between 1:30 and 3:30 am. Lately ,I’m falling back to sleep. I was excited to find others who are doing this maybe we can find a solution together. I read a lot of the comments and some comments about biphasic sleep, circadian rhythm, taping mouth shut, and more. What I can add is my past experience with using arevedic circadian rhythm approach several years ago when on carnivore at that time. Not just about when we go to sleep but how we approach or “wind down” before bed. I don’t have that book I used anymore but I recall not using electronic devices after 8:00pm, especially the ones that hit our eyes. Not eating before bed etc. my question here is weather or not most of us are having normal rhythms. Maybe we are not used to normal. Like waking up with the sun and winding down when the sun starts to set. What if we didn’t fight it and let our bodies find homeostasis. I’m still drinking decaffeinated coffee and watching KZfaq video even as I’m falling asleep. I’m going to change those two things and see how that works. I think that usually, all we have to do is take away the poison like sugar, blue light and chemicals and our bodies can heal.

Interesting video and the nutrients competing for delivery sounds very likely. I too wake between 2 and 3am but as I don't go to bed before 11pm, I've had only 3 or 4 hours solid sleep by then. I'm in the cycle now where because I don't sleep well I'm convinced I'm not going to sleep well that night either so I tend to stay up as late as possible. In reality I do fall asleep quickly. Waking at 2 or 3am I often get up and do something (usually involving a computer though so that light isn't helpful) but sometimes I train a bit (HIIT calisthenics) and tire myself that way. In any event, I always go back to sleep for another 3 or so hours afterwards.. So I may get enough hours overall but not exactly quality sleep. I usually rise for the day around 8-9am but I have that luxury as I'm retired. As an animal-based carnivore, I stop eating around 7pm so it shouldn't be a digestion issue although meat does take longer to clear from the stomach, it could be something to do with my protein (130g) : fat (150g) ratio so I'm experimenting with less protein at the moment although I'm concerned it may affect my muscle maintenance as I'm pretty active. It's a real problem as when I do get a rested sleep, I can train so much harder/longer and when I don't sleep, my performance is cut in half. I'll be following this channel and reading the comments cos I have to get this sorted.

I started sleep well only when i started carnivore. Before i had been having sleep problems for 15 years. Now i think the problem was oxalates. I used to eat lots of veggies and woke up to go to the bathroom 2-3 times a night. I want to add that I'm having a glucose monitor, and i eat just OMAD ( 600-700 g of beef), but my glucose level is stable 24/7 between 4,2 through 6. So there are no night sugar drops at all!

I have had nothing but improvements with my sleep but my friend says he's now fallen under a Biphasic sleep pattern. He also seems to think it's totally normal and says its how his ancestors slept. I'm not sure I agree with that but I have always had issues falling asleep until going carnivore.

I'm full carnivore, I wake up every day between 0300 and 0400. I usually fall asleep around 2200 (10pm). Funny thing is that I feel totally energized and ready for the day. I am good with it. I suppose if I was tired mid-day I would feel different, but I seem to be getting enough sleep. Before carnivore I would sleep 8-10 hours every night and feel exhausted all day.

Ive been living with this for 21 yrs. I just dont worry about it. I just go to bed by 9 pm and dont stress about it. If I wake up I listen to a podcast with ear buds. Use the time to learn. Often I fall back to sleep. I get up at the same time every morning. I dont obcess ir count hours. Just live my day.

No trouble falling asleep but also wake consistently at 3am. I tried melatonin at bedtime but it did not help. I have found that waiting and taking the melatonin when I wake at 3 gives me some success falling back to sleep after 20 or 30 minutes.

I was in doubt whether I should stop eating a handful of nuts every day. But I will stick to my nuts (walnuts, pecans and Brazil nuts). The few carbs they give me shouldn't harm. Also my whisky-collection has come to an end (almost)....

My profession is in IT. Electromagnetic fields, including radio frequency and electric fields, significantly affect sleep quality. These waves keep your body in a constant state of "fight or flight". The fight-or-flight response primarily affects the sympathetic nervous system. This system activates the body’s resources to prepare for a rapid, energetic response to perceived threats. In contrast, the parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for promoting rest, relaxation, and digestion, effectively calming the body down after a fight-or-flight response. To support natural melatonin production, and to activate the parasympathetic nervous system.... ALL artificial lights should be turned off after sunset, except for red lights that fall within the appropriate spectrum. Sunset naturally cues our pineal gland to start releasing melatonin, but exposure to blue light can immediately stop this process. If you are able to... turn of ALL electrical currents in your home. Electrical currents running through out your walls, that are not properly shielded (99% are not), can leech out 8ft from each wall, ceiling and floor. These currents keep your body in that "fight or flight" state. The same goes for turning off all access points (routers/wifi).

I've been strict carnivore for 9 months. It has been an absolute miracle for me. But, I do suffer from the sleep issues. They definitely can be described as biphasic. In bed at 10pm, awake at 2am, asleep at 3 or 4am, awake at 7am. I find that if I don't exercise at least every second day, I'll have the sleep issues. If I'm getting a decent workout often enough, I sleep all the way through. I also like to eat dinner at around 7:00 or 8:00 at night. That has always made me feel comfortable when trying to sleep. These issues come and go for me but, the diet has changed so many things for the better that I don't think I'll ever give it up.

This was very interesting. I transformed over the last 2 years using intermittent fasting and Ketovore diet and have done well however, I wake up every 2 hours. I need to look into this.

I’m in the same boat. Would taking 5-HTP help extend sleep time?

I'm 64 and have been carnivore for 7 years. I just recently started waking up consistently in the middle of the night. I think the change might be due a sudden reduction in exercise following a hockey injury. Just started running again and things seem to be improving.

It's 4-5 a.m. for me. It'd be fine except my mind is often tired even though the body is rested. 30 seconds of cold shower help fall asleep usually. But I'm considering trying polyphasic sleep lately.

I think the Polyphasic sleep community mentioned observing in their members, that extending a dark period longer than 10 hours can cause some to have segmented sleep - being awake 3 hours in the middle of the night and essentially sleeping in two rounds. Similar thing with +20 hours light period, people would begin having siesta type sleep schedules like Spain used to have. Some carnivores around youtube also mention becoming biphasic from the diet change. I have found eating one big meal as late as possible helps me fall and stay asleep when carnivore. This was inspired by a story from an interview on zerocarbzen who fixed DSPS with the same strategy. I have no idea why this works, but it does for me. May everyone have wonderful, restorative sleep every night.

Been having this problem for a long time been keto ish for 8 years. Recently started taking magnesium taurate for this problem and I get a much better nights sleep. I usually get to bed by 8:30-9:00 so I'm up early anyway

Thank you for sharing this information. Have you looked up nto inositol (the more bio available form is myo-inositol). It may help with sleep. I am givingit a go as I wake at about three am. I tried it last night for the first time and I did not wake...I slept straight through. This may he a one off but I will keep going and see....all the best.

I have had the exact same problem now for 5 years with waking up between 2 and 4AM. I’ve tried everything. The only thing that has help me is taking 50mg of CBD Delta 8 right before I go to sleep at night. Since I started doing this, I go to bed at 8PM and I don’t wake up until my alarm goes off at 5AM. Sooooo nice to get a full nights sleep!

Good call with the collagen protein-connection. Along with serotonin, have you experimented with natural GABA-receptor agonists? GABA is equally involved in sleep. So, for instance, do you feel drowsy if you take Taurine? Taurine can potentially bind to the GABA-a receptor and cause drowsiness. It doesn't work for me but some people swear by it, usually mixed with their glycine. There are other GABA receptor agonists too. I wouldn't advise phenibut, though, because it generally leads to dependency and the withdrawal symptoms are awful. I've been down that road.

I’ve taken melatonin for years and magnesium for that exact reason even before I was carnivore, it’s also anti-cancer.

I’m going to try incorporating carbs at breakfast. If it helps my sleep problem I’m going to send you flowers! 😊

Girl, I have the same "problem" but absolutely love it. Finally, I have enough time to read, listen, or watch. No problem falling back, asleep. The last meal is late lunch. Super hungry in the morning. Diet mostly hunter/gatherer. Practice afternoon nap after meal. Going to sleep 8-9pm. Always fresh, full of energy. Food expensive: wild caught, fresh, grass fed, organic, raw, etc. Sex drive at 60? Better than 18! With plenty of 30-50 singles, live is like a charm. The key is to stay independent.

Interesting, I have actually good sleep on carnivore, what can disrupt it sometimes is if I undereat. I often do not feel hunger on carnivore and when I could not fall asleep I relised that I barely ate that day. Having soon or two of butter usually helps. I stipped doing IF because of it as well, as it could increase stress hormones

I had thr exact same issue. I stipped carnivore and my sleep was fixed. I just try to go for a balanced carb to protein meal now.

This is related to electrolyte depletion and cortisol spikes around 3am. You can add salt and eat smaller meals more regularly or just before sleeping. I’ve been on carnivore for years and have amazing sleep, better than ever. I also eat turkey, which has tryptophan.

Could be histamine dumping, that usually occurs during the night; might be worth looking into that

IMO The Chinese organ clock for the liver runs from 1:00am to 3:00 am. I stay away from easily oxidized seed oils especially soy based. Mold exposure is very yin it makes systems clogged and effects hormones. You may find histamine effects many reactions in the body. When Mast cells degranulate, the can release almost 1000 different cytokines. How many health conditions can be triggered by histamines? It's not just rashes or anaphylaxis. Most Dr.s are not aware of this....

People seem to want to try to explain things away as normal when they don’t cooperate with their diet. Count on it: if things change after changing your diet, it’s most likely the diet.

Looking good! I wake up at 10pm or moghtnight or 1 am every night

I don't drink alcohol, but usually have a couple diet soda during day. Always wake up 2 hours before alarm clock, going to add back small amounts carbs and stop soda to see what happens,