Sensation of lightheadedness, fainting, vertigo, imbalance, and/or unsteadiness is referred to as dizziness. It is an unspecific symptom which can occur as a sign of different underlying conditions. This is one of the reasons why patients need to seek medical attention if they wake up dizzy, particularly if no medicines were taken before going to bed.

Waking up dizzy that occurs with other abnormalities like vision problems, high fever, hearing issues, speech issues, fainting/unconsciousness, weakness in upper and lower limbs, movement problems, abnormal pulse, stiff neck, and/or pain in chest, then emergency medical assistance is needed.

Causes of waking up dizzy

Waking up dizzy may occur due to the below listed common causes:

1. Abnormal blood glucose levels

• Patients may wake up dizzy if they have underlying health issues marked by blood sugar problems. A few known conditions that are characterized by blood sugar issues include:
  • Hypoglycemia: This condition of low blood sugar levels occurs due to inability of body to maintain normal levels of blood glucose. We do not eat food at night when we are sleeping. Due to this, blood sugar levels in the body can dip and cause varied symptoms later on, including waking up dizzy. Intake of food typically resolves the adverse symptoms in most instances. However, in cases of reactive hypoglycemia, the abnormal signs may occur sometime after breakfast.
  • Diabetes: Blood sugar issues in the mornings tend to be common in diabetes mellitus Type 1 & Type 2 patients. This is because the body of diabetics naturally experience hormonal changes and/or due to poor control/management of the ailment. Cyclical changes in the hormone levels in the body usually happen between 3 am and 8 in the morning. This event is known as ‘dawn phenomenon’ and is linked to abnormal elevation in blood glucose levels. Bad management of diabetes may be marked by extremely low blood sugar levels followed by elevation in the levels of blood sugar.

2. Reduced oxygen in body

• Conditions of the lungs, heart, blood, or other organs of the respiratory system may cause low levels of oxygen in blood in the mornings, leading to waking up dizzy. A few common illnesses marked by deficient oxygen levels include:
  • Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): It is a chronic respiratory condition characterized by lung blockages/dysfunction, or constricted airways that trigger irregular air flow. It is usually associated to prolonged, excessive, and continuous cigarette smoking for several years. Affected people tend to elicit low levels of oxygen and abnormally high carbon dioxide in their body after waking and through the day.
  • Anemia: This condition is marked by low levels of oxygen-carrying hemoglobin cells in the blood, thus adversely affecting the flow of oxygen across the body. Anemia that occurs with problems of the respiratory rate and depth and decreased blood pressure and heart rate, when asleep, can result in extremely low oxygen levels in the body in the morning and cause symptoms like waking up dizzy, etc. Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common type of anemia.
  • Sleep apnea: The condition of abnormal temporary ceasing of respiration when sleeping is termed as sleep apnea. The most common type is obstructive sleep apnea; it is caused due to collage of the throat tissue and subsequent airway obstructions, when asleep. Studies have indicated that oxygen levels in patients with obstructive sleep apnea are lower in the mornings as compared to evenings.

3. Cardiovascular conditions

• People with different cardiovascular diseases may also suffer from instances of waking up dizzy. A few common ones include:
  • Cardiac ailments: Cardiac diseases are often marked by blood (oxygen) flow problems and this is what triggers dizziness in people with different types of heart problems. Dizziness can occur anytime; in mornings, etc. However, it is often really bad when abruptly standing up or waking from sleep. A few heart problems that can cause blood flow problems and symptoms like waking up dizzy include heart valve disease, arrhythmia, heart attack, pulmonary hypertension, cardiac failure, and supraventicular tachycardia.
  • Hypertension: People with very high blood pressure may experience dizziness and other symptoms. Waking up dizzy may occur in patients if they haven’t taken their medications; the symptoms vanish after the medications are taken.
  • Hypotension: Low blood pressure is also marked by waking up dizzy. However, dizziness in the mornings is worse because of low heart rate and blood pressure when sleeping. Hypotension may occur due to conditions like hormonal problems, heart failure, anemia, blood loss, and pregnancy dehydration, etc. The condition of body’s inability to maintain adequate pressure when abruptly standing up or lying flat is known as orthostatic hypotension.

4. Conditions of the inner ear

• The inner ear has organs that assist in maintenance of balance. Hence, inner ear ailments can cause symptoms like waking up dizzy, unsteadiness, etc. Two common types of inner ear conditions that cause dizziness are Meniere’s disease and labyrinthitis (otitis interna).