Waking up drenched at 3am is exhausting. But understanding why it's happening is the first step to fixing it. Night sweats aren't random — they have causes, and most of them are addressable.
What Are Night Sweats?
Night sweats are episodes of excessive sweating during sleep that soak your clothes or bedding. They're different from simply sleeping hot — night sweats are sudden, intense, and often wake you up. The sweating is followed by a chill as your body cools down, making it even harder to fall back asleep.
The Most Common Causes
Menopause and perimenopause — the leading cause in women between 35 and 58. Declining oestrogen levels make the hypothalamus — your body's thermostat — hypersensitive to small temperature changes. It triggers a cooling response when none is needed, causing sudden flushing, sweating, and rapid heat dissipation. This can happen multiple times a night for years.
Medications — antidepressants, hormone therapies, and some blood pressure medications commonly cause night sweats as a side effect. If your night sweats started around the same time as a new medication it's worth discussing with your doctor.
Alcohol — even moderate evening drinking raises skin temperature and triggers sweating during sleep. The effect is strongest in the first half of the night.
Anxiety and stress — elevated cortisol keeps your nervous system activated and raises body temperature. People going through stressful periods often experience night sweats even with no underlying medical cause.
Infections and illness — the body raises temperature to fight infection. Night sweats can be a sign your immune system is active. If accompanied by fever, unexplained weight loss, or other symptoms see a doctor.
Hyperthyroidism — an overactive thyroid raises your baseline metabolism and body temperature, causing excessive sweating day and night.
Common Triggers That Make It Worse
Even if you have an underlying cause, certain things reliably make night sweats worse:
- Alcohol within 3 hours of bed
- Spicy food in the evening
- A bedroom above 68°F
- Heavy or heat-trapping bedding
- High stress before sleep
- Caffeine after midday
Removing triggers won't cure the underlying cause but can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of episodes.
What Actually Helps
Address the root cause. If menopause is the driver speak to your doctor about options — HRT, lifestyle changes, and other interventions can reduce frequency significantly.
Cool your sleep environment. Keep your bedroom below 68°F and remove heat-trapping bedding. A cooling blanket made from nylon fiber draws heat away from your skin during and after a flash — shortening recovery time and helping you fall back asleep faster.
Cut evening alcohol and spicy food. Two of the most controllable triggers and among the highest impact changes most people can make.
Manage stress before bed. A short wind-down routine that lowers cortisol before sleep reduces both the frequency and intensity of stress-related night sweats.
The Bottom Line
Night sweats have causes — they don't just happen. Menopause and perimenopause are the most common driver in women but medications, alcohol, stress and other factors all play a role. Identifying and addressing your specific triggers alongside cooling your sleep environment makes a meaningful difference to how often they disrupt your night.
The Stillwell Cloud was built specifically for people dealing with night sweats — cooling on both sides all night, so recovery after a flash is faster and falling back asleep is easier. See The Cloud →