Is Being Wakeful in the Middle of the Night Part of Our Caveman-evolved Genetic Predisposition?

I found myself wakeful in the middle of the other night, restless and unable to relax.  I had too much energy to stay in bed, but the bed was warm, the house was cold, and I reminded myself that it was the middle of the night and I should be sleeping.

Then I started using the pair of statements I’d just learned from Dr. Dain Heer.  (www.drdainheer.com)  What an interesting opinion.  I hold that opinion.  It’s a great way to investigate what you think and ultimately why you think it:

It’s late.  I should be asleep.  What an interesting opinion.  I hold that opinion.  I thought back to where I acquired that opinion.  After all, babies – us in our most natural, uneducated state – do not sleep through the night.  One of the first things parents try to teach babies is "to sleep through the night!"  One of the questions most often asked of new parents is “Is the baby sleeping through the night yet?”  We justify it by saying that babies wake in the night because their stomachs are too small to hold enough food to keep them “full” for 5 or 6 or 8 hours.

But what if that’s not true?  During caveman times, keeping a fire stoked all night protected the tribe against predators and kept them all warm.  Even now in perilous times and locations, a group will post lookouts who take turns watching so the others can sleep.

So, what if babies were the caveman’s alarm system to remind someone:  “Get up here.  The fire’s dwindling and I’m getting cold!”  Those clans whose members were sound sleepers probably died out earlier than those with wakeful members where there was always someone willing to get up, add wood to the fire, check the perimeters, and, incidentally feed the baby.

So, next time you can’t sleep, thank your caveman ancestors and note:  What an interesting opinion.  I hold that opinion.  See where it takes you.