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It creeps in gradually. You used to sleep through until the alarm, and now you’re wide awake at 5am — sometimes earlier — with the room already turning grey and no real hope of getting back to sleep. It’s one of the most common sleep complaints during perimenopause and menopause, and it’s often dismissed as “just early waking,” as if there’s nothing to be done about it.
There’s usually more going on than the clock. Hormonal changes affect how deeply you sleep through the second half of the night, and that lighter sleep is far more easily disturbed — including by the small amounts of light that a normal curtain lets through at dawn. In the UK, that matters more than people realise: sunrise in June can be before 4:30am, and most curtains aren’t built to deal with that.
Why this happens
Sleep gets lighter and more fragmented in the second half of the night as oestrogen and progesterone decline — the same hormonal shifts behind night sweats also affect the parts of the sleep cycle that keep you asleep once you’re there. On top of that, your body’s internal clock relies on light to know when to start winding down toward waking. A more light-sensitive circadian rhythm plus less deep sleep to begin with is a fairly reliable recipe for waking at first light and staying awake.
If early waking is new, sudden, or paired with other changes — low mood that doesn’t lift, or waking gasping or anxious — it’s worth mentioning to your GP. Menopause is the most common explanation for this pattern, but it isn’t the only one.
What actually helps, before you spend any money
Before buying anything, it’s worth confirming light is actually the problem:
- Do a one-night test. Tape a bin bag or dark towel over the window and see if you sleep past your usual wake time. If you do, light is a genuine factor worth fixing properly.
- Check where the light actually gets in. It’s often not the curtain fabric itself but the gaps at the top, sides, and where two panels meet in the middle.
- Try a sleep mask for a few nights. It’s the cheapest way to test whether darkness alone makes a difference before committing to new curtains.
- Move the bed if you can. Even shifting it out of direct line with the window edge reduces how much early light reaches your eyes.
Where blackout curtains actually help
Most “curtains” sold for bedrooms are decorative first and light-blocking second — a single layer of fabric that looks dark but still lets a surprising amount of light through, especially once the sun is properly up. Genuine blackout curtains use a separate lining, usually a foam or triple-weave layer sewn behind the visible fabric, which is what actually stops light rather than just dimming it.
They won’t seal the gaps at the edges completely — no curtain does, unless it’s fitted into a track with side channels — but they cut out enough of the early light to make a real difference for most people, and they’re a lot less effort than blackout blinds or shutters.
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Our Pick
Deconovo Blackout Curtains
A genuinely popular, well-reviewed pick rather than a niche find — 2,000+ bought in the past month alone. Triple-weave polyester with a light-blocking back layer, available in enough sizes and colours to fit most standard UK windows.
- 47 size options, so it’s worth measuring your window properly first
- Also marketed as thermal — a genuine side benefit for energy bills, not just light
- Machine washable
Alternatives worth considering
If you already like your curtains and don’t want to replace them, a separate blackout lining that attaches behind your existing curtain does a similar job at a lower cost. It’s more fiddly to fit than buying ready-made blackout curtains outright, but it’s a sensible option if you’re not ready to change how the room looks.
A contoured sleep mask is the cheapest option of all, and genuinely effective — the main trade-off is comfort, since not everyone gets on with something touching their face all night.
Practical next steps
- Do the towel-over-the-window test for one night before spending anything, so you know light is actually the issue.
- Measure your window properly — width and drop — before choosing a curtain size; blackout curtains only work if they’re wide and long enough to actually cover the frame.
- If the towel test helps, buy properly, not as a stopgap. A well-fitted blackout curtain will do far more than the same fabric in the wrong size.
- Give it a full week. The first few nights your body may still wake from habit at the old time, even in a genuinely dark room.
FAQs
Will blackout curtains stop early waking completely?
Not on their own, if light isn’t the only cause. But for a lot of people it’s a genuine and underestimated factor, and it’s one of the cheaper, easier things to fix compared with the hormonal side of things.
Do blackout curtains actually block 100% of light?
No curtain does, realistically — there’s almost always some light around the edges. What they do reliably cut is the amount of light coming through the fabric itself, which is usually the bigger source.
Will thermal curtains actually save money on heating?
Thermal-lined curtains do add a genuine layer of insulation over a window, though how much difference it makes depends heavily on your existing windows and how well the curtains fit — treat it as a welcome bonus rather than the main reason to buy.
Related guides
Waking Up Drenched? Here’s How to Stop Night Sweats Wrecking Your Mattress — if it’s heat rather than light waking you, this is the place to start.