You feel sicker at night due to your circadian rhythm making your immune system more active (causing inflammation), lower cortisol levels allowing symptoms to flare, mucus pooling when lying down, and fewer daytime distractions, all combining to intensify symptoms like coughing, congestion, and pain, while conditions like ulcers or GERD also often worsen at night.
Circadian Rhythm
When your body recognizes it's almost bedtime, it causes immune cells to become more active. These cells identify germs, causing inflammation to fight off infection, which in turn makes your symptoms feel more severe.
Whether you're dealing with the common cold, the flu or a stomach bug, you've probably noticed that your symptoms feel worse at night. You're not imagining things. Research suggests that your body's circadian rhythms—as well as some other factors—can exacerbate your symptoms after sundown.
Sleep with Your Head Elevated
For frequent nighttime congestion sufferers, a wedge pillow is an excellent investment. Also, side sleeping is more beneficial for keeping your airways clear than napping on your back.
More cortisol circulates in your blood during the day, which suppresses your immune system. This means that your white blood cells, which are responsible for fighting infections, are less active during the day. At night, there is less cortisol in your blood.
Sleeping More When You're Sick Is *Totally* Normal—And Evidence of Your Immune System in Action. The reason why being sick makes you tired (and why you sleep so much when you're sick) is because your immune system needs sleep to recover.
Avoid salty foods, alcohol, coffee and sugary drinks, which can be dehydrating. Ice chips are another simple way to stay hydrated and calm a scratchy throat. Gargle with salt water.
Temperatures range for many different reasons—some viruses cause higher fevers than others. It's also helpful to know that fevers usually spike at night because there is less cortisol in the blood which means the white blood cells are on “high alert” and detect infection more easily.
As a general rule, your child should not go to school if they have: A fever over 100.4° Fahrenheit (F) or 38° Celsius (C) – Your child can return to school after they've been fever-free for 24 hours without antipyretics. Antipyretics are medicines that treat or prevent fever.
A fever has three main fever stages: onset/invasion, steady, and decline.
The 10 Worst Things You Can Do During Cold and Flu Season
Although not fully proven, large doses of vitamin C may help reduce how long a cold lasts. Large doses of vitamin C do not protect against getting a cold. Vitamin C may also be helpful for those exposed to brief periods of severe or extreme physical activity.
"Exercise can exacerbate chest congestion and gastrointestinal symptoms," explains Dr. Brown. "And if you're experiencing fever, significant fatigue and difficulty breathing, it's best to rest and allow your immune system more time to do its job."
The 3-2-1 bedtime method is a simple sleep hygiene strategy: stop eating 3 hours before bed, stop working 2 hours before bed, and stop using screens (phones, tablets, TVs) 1 hour before sleep, helping your body transition to rest by reducing stimulants and digestive load for better sleep quality. A more detailed version adds 10 hours (no caffeine) and 0 (no snoozing) for a 10-3-2-1-0 rule.
Between elevated temperatures and increased sweating, dehydration is something to avoid when you have a fever. Caffeine and alcohol can make your symptoms worse (especially stomach-related symptoms), so I'd recommend sipping on water and other clear liquids throughout the day to stay hydrated.
It's important to get in at least basic motion while ill to avoid risk of complications, such as blood clots and pneumonia, but if you choose to do structured exercise while ill: Keep it mild (monitor breathing) Aim for shorter amounts of time.
Vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc, and other supplements may provide an edge against colds and the flu, but they should only serve to complement your main defensive arsenal: good hygiene, proper hydration, healthy diet, restful sleep, stress control, and exercise.
So taking Emergen-C or similar products isn't likely to prevent you from getting sick. But it is possible they may help you feel better a little faster. Low levels of some vitamins and minerals can weaken your immune system. But taking extra amounts won't necessarily treat or prevent infections like the common cold.
Oranges and other citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C, which is excellent. However, they cannot prevent or cure a cold. That said, including these and other fruits and vegetables in your diet is still a healthy practice.
Write a get well message that's brief
Avoid drinking coffee and other beverages high in caffeine when you're sick, as these drinks may cause dehydration. Alcohol can also lead to dehydration and may further increase inflammation to keep you sick for longer.
Gargle with Salt Water
Gargling warm salt water (about half a teaspoon in a cup of warm water) several times a day can reduce swelling, kill bacteria, and provide quick comfort.
Your temperature will return to normal once the infection subsides. However, an elevated temperature can make you feel hot and uncomfortable. During this time, your sweat glands become more active, and you start to sweat more to cool down, indicating that the fever is subsiding and you are recovering.
NyQuil Hot Remedy. Like the daytime formula, NyQuil Hot Remedy is a medicated hot drink with relief in every sip. It reduces your fever with acetaminophen and relieves other common cold and flu symptoms like runny nose.