Hey there!
You finally get to lie down. The day is over, the lights are off, and your body is supposed to be winding down. And then, there it is. 👀 That dull throb in your jaw. The pressure behind your eyes that somehow gets louder the quieter everything else gets. You were not even thinking about it an hour ago. Now it is all you can think about.
Yeah… welcome to the night shift. Where pain thrives before we get to sleep. 🌙
So why does everything hurt more at night?
There is actual science behind this, and it is not just you being dramatic (I have wondered this about myself too 😅). During the day, cortisol levels are naturally higher, giving your body a built-in buffer against pain signals. At night, cortisol drops, that buffer goes with it, and inflammation perception goes up. Your body becomes more sensitive to discomfort that was quietly there all along.
The other thing working against you? Silence. 🔇 During the day, our brains are busy, errands, screens, deadlines. Pain has to compete for attention. But the moment you lie down and everything goes quiet, your brain has nothing else to process and zeroes in on the one thing still sending signals. Congratulations, your toothache is now the main event. 🦷 Your 2 A.M. spiral of googling "is this tooth going to fall out" is physiologically justified.
What do we actually do about it?
Having something calming and physical to reach for makes a real difference. Something that can give your nervous system a different signal to focus on.
Oleia Lavender Oil is the one I keep on the nightstand for exactly this. 🪻 When applied to the temples and the back of the neck, it gives the brain something soothing to pay attention to instead. Studies suggest lavender supports relaxation and may help ease pain perception, which on a sleepless night is more than enough reason to reach for it.
For when the ache is sharper, maybe a stubborn headache pulling into the shoulders, or a jaw that will not quit: Oleia Peppermint Oil's cooling sensation works as a counter-stimulus. 🍃 Nerves register it, the brain shifts channels, and everything feels like it loosens a bit.
Nighttime pain is worse because the body is doing less to suppress it, not because something is suddenly more wrong. Reassuring and frustrating in equal measure. 😤 Either way, you are not imagining it, and you are not alone in it. 💟
Show me your bottle and I will show you mine? 'Til next time!
xo, L.
References:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31207606/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1526590025008193
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/do-we-feel-pain-more-at-night-202301182877