The average adult gets two to three colds a year, and each can last about a week.Cold symptoms, likerunny noseandcough, generally tend to be mild. So, why do those same cold symptoms suddenly feel miserable when you’re trying to sleep?

“Most people experience worsening cold symptoms at night,” said.John W. Seibert, MD, an otolaryngologist at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center for Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences.

There are a few reasons why this happens, according to experts.

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Your Circadian Rhythm May Influence Your Symptoms

Yourcircadian rhythmis your body’s 24-hour internal clock. It regulates many bodily functions, including your sleep-wake cycle.

While yourimmune systemis already hyperactive when you have an illness, including the common cold, your circadian rhythm may cause it to ramp up even more at night, Seibert said. That triggersinflammationin the body, which can make your symptoms worse.

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Your Cortisol Levels Drop

Cortisolis a hormone that the body makes in response to stress, but it also helps to regulate immune function and inflammation in the body.

Cortisol levels tend to rise naturally in the morning, which can help to reduce inflammation and your cold symptoms along with it, Seibert explained. “But cortisol levels drop at night, which can make you start to feel worse,” he said.

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You’re Horizontal

Most people sit or stand upright during the day, which can helppost-nasal dripto drain down the back of the throat,Thomas Russo, MD, a professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York, told Verywell Health. “When you lie down, that drainage is harder to clear,” he said. “It can be very disruptive in terms of falling asleep and sleep patterns.”

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You’re More Aware of Your Symptoms

“You lock in and it magnifies those symptoms.” Seibert added. “You notice that you feel bad, and that can make you feel worse,” he said.

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Tips To Manage Your Cold Symptoms

Doctors recommend doing a few different things to feel better while dealing with a cold at night.

Two reasons to talk with your doctor? If you have a cold and you’re struggling to get rest, or if you were feeling better and now are feeling worse, Seibert said.

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What This Means For YouIt’s common for cold symptoms to get worse at night, and there are a few mechanisms behind this. Luckily, there are several steps you can take to try to feel better while dealing with a cold at bedtime.

What This Means For You

It’s common for cold symptoms to get worse at night, and there are a few mechanisms behind this. Luckily, there are several steps you can take to try to feel better while dealing with a cold at bedtime.

3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About common cold.National Institute of General Medical Sciences.Circadian rhythms.Cleveland Clinic.Cortisol.

3 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About common cold.National Institute of General Medical Sciences.Circadian rhythms.Cleveland Clinic.Cortisol.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About common cold.National Institute of General Medical Sciences.Circadian rhythms.Cleveland Clinic.Cortisol.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About common cold.

National Institute of General Medical Sciences.Circadian rhythms.

Cleveland Clinic.Cortisol.

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