Are you an introverted night owl? Maybe you love to stay up late working on your art, reading, or simply thinking. If so, you’re not alone.
Many introverts find peace in the solitude of nighttime. After all, introverts tend to be easily overstimulated by noise, crowds, and socializing—all the things that are ever present during the day.
At night, much of that stimulation is removed. What remains is a sense of quiet connection to our inner self.
We can hear our thoughts at night
Many introverts love staying up late, because it’s the only time we can truly hear our own thoughts and make sense of them.
For introverted overthinkers, having a stretch of solitude to untangle some of our biggest thought knots is a great relief.
Many introverted creatives love staying up late, because we come up with our best ideas at night. It feels easier to tune into our creativity when the world is asleep.
As an author, I love reading about the routines of famous writers. I’ve noticed that a lot of writers, many of whom are also introverts, prefer to write late at night or early in the morning, because it’s easier to get into a creative flow at those times.
I know that for me, when the noise and the busyness of the day sets in I find it a lot more difficult to focus and get in the zone creatively. But when the world sleeps my mind can run free.
There is another reason introverts might stay up late and sleep during the day.
Staying up late to avoid people
If you’re looking to avoid contact with other people, being a night owl may help you maintain your bubble.
With fewer people awake, you can roam free, without having to make small talk, or even eye contact, with other human beings.
Of course, not all introverts want that level of isolation, but for those who do the cloak of night is especially enticing.
The other day I was interviewed by a reporter for The Atlantic magazine named Faith Hill. She’s working on a piece about people who sleep during the day and live/work at night.
She had come across my blog post An Introvert’s Strange Sleeping Disorder, where I wrote:
“We introverts crave the absolute solitude that only the cloak of night can offer. While others are snoozing soundly, dreaming of showing up to school naked, we are wide awake. And enjoying every minute.”
During our conversation, she asked if I thought there were many “extreme introverts” who are night owls, because they want zero contact with other human beings.
I said that most of the introverts I encounter want at least some human contact, preferably in the form of one or two trusted companions.
I said that I believed that recluses, such as the North Pond Hermit who hid from people for 27 years are likely very rare.
Of course, if you do happen to be an extreme introvert who doesn’t want any human contact there’s nothing wrong with that.
As I’ve said before, most things in our lives aren’t ‘good’ or ‘bad’, they simply work for us or they don’t.
So, if being a hermit works for you, in the sense that it’s not negatively impacting your goals and mental health, then hermit to your heart’s content.
If you happen to be an introvert night owl who uses the cloak of night to avoid all human contact, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
If you’re simply an introvert who likes to stay up late to think and create, I’d love to hear from you, too!
Love,
Michaela
P.S. If you’re new to the blog, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Michaela Chung, author of The Irresistible Introvert and The Year of The Introvert, and creator of this amazing innie community we have here. For several years, I’ve been building up a labyrinth of introvert resources that will take you on a magical journey toward more confidence, connection, and self-love. Start with this free Introvert Connection Guide.
Well said. Introversion is not inherently good or bad, but if one has never fully understood the appeal of crowded concerts, bars, spring breaks, casinos, the desire to be noticed, or the charge some get from being within the churning mass they might enjoy the nocturnal life far more than others. Personally those human saturated environments trigger a miserable mental state that is symptomatically equivalent to sleep deprivation. Maybe there is a connection to your nocturnal observations?
In the first two decades on my own, I lived in densely populated urban areas, the tendency was to be far more nocturnal; mostly because social situations and crowds and noise were extremely taxing. Why bounce off crowds when you have the urban luxury of acquiring provisions conveniently at any hour? Why deal with crowds when you can accomplish more while the bulk of humanity was asleep? Cooler air all summer. No lines. Walk in the park without constant exhausting distractions. It was a mental stillness consideration, I certainly never felt safer though, nocturnal and safe rarely go together. Funny to risk getting mugged rather than risk a canned conversation, or be crowded into a subway, or feel overstimulated.
Conversely, when I was recently granted the good fortune of finding a quiet place deep in some woods an hour from the city I found I became more of a morning person. Up early and on the road while most are just waking, at work before most are out the door. On the way home before the rush. Spend dusk and early night outside gardening or reading by the lamp or kitchen cooking or dog walking or chatting with rare individuals who comprehend ‘still’ and understand what comfortable silence is.
Nice article. Thank you.
I’m one of those introverts who likes night time for thinking and contemplating. When I was I college, I rarely started homework before dark. I found that night had less stimulation and distraction, and I could focus easier. I like grocery shopping at night because there’s little traffic on the road, and there’s few people in the store. I am, also, the type of introvert that likes some interaction. I’m definitely not a hermit. But my preference is for meaningful interaction. Small talk is a drag. The late night is definitely the best part of the day for me. I do work a “normal” schedule in the day, and that’s fine. I’m able to work well in the day. But for me to be in bed before midnight is pretty much not likely.
Since both of my parents died and I never had siblings, so I live alone, and live very contentedly. I have only two friends. One is Male, same as me. And the other is Female. But she is Not a girlfriend. Instead she is a Platonic companion. The reason I like her that way is because my previous relationship which was romantic, turned out disastrously Incompatible. It’s because I don’t like intimacy, partly because of my Buddhism which teaches Non-attachment.
Oddly, I see the Platonic Lady much more often than my male-buddy, as I meet her every week whereas I meet my male buddy just once a month, if that. That’s because the male buddy is introvert too, so he does not like too many visits.
Another reason I prefer the lady being platonic is because I never had any brothers or sisters, so, in my mind, that lady is the sister I never had.
Which brings up the question–have you written any book on Platonic companions? The way I see it, Platonic companionship seems to be linked to Introverts–well, at least in my case. I’m trying to find any site devoted to the Platonic. So I’m a Platonic-Introvert then. Feel free to ask me any questions.
When I have the freedom to sleep when I want that’s exactly what I do. I know how much sleep I need when, where, and how much sleep while being aware of all benefits and consequences. My sleeping habits can be anything I choose them to be it’s never the same. I am fully aware of all my choices. Any negative effects that I encounter I learn from adjusting accordingly depending on how I feel about any situation and my experiences. Is this a bad thing?
I’m a nocturnal introvert ??
I get more done late night and early morning. I do cleaning and laundry while most of my neighbors are sleeping. I stay up doing chores until I put my kid on the bus at around 6:30.
There’s something about the silence that calms peace and quiet when all is still.
My thoughts are clearer and I don’t feel rushed or panic. I don’t know if being an introvert is good or bad.
I just know it works for me.
I am most definitely nocturnal and I enjoy my own company and roaming the house alone at night and writing or reading. Something I have been since a very young age. When I am awake, I am an extrovert! I love people and family but I love my alone time with my books at night. It is like two different worlds but it gives me great balance.
As much as I dislike labels (like, uh, “introvert”), “if the shoe fits…”
I am an “extreme introvert”, and also a “night owl”.
I’m not sure if those follow from being a “creative type”, as well, or if it’s the other way ’round.
I write poetry/philosophy, and those types are often introverted and night owlish :-p
I’m not a youngster (I’m becoming an old guy), so that’s probably part of it, too.
Yeah, i’m comfortable being alone. I seek out solitude, a lot.
I don’t like or dislike people; they just don’t interest me much. And except for artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers, etc., it’s always been that way.
Introverts get a reputation for disliking people, but even extreme ones like me like like-minded people. I don’t think I could ever be a “hermit”, for that reason. Couldn’t retreat to the country, because I like city things like museums (I work in an art museum), art galleries, music, libraries/bookstores, and need grocery stores and the like, because I’m no gardener or farmer.
At least I stopped thinking there was something wrong with me many years ago. The young introverts have that problem. We live in extroverted cultures that condition us to be social, outgoing, engaged, connected. No surprise, then, that those who aren’t those things are ridiculed or looked upon as “broken”.
Not sure if ever-changing cultural values will tip the scales in favor of introverted perspectives one day, but awareness is key (as with other cultural values)., Reading other comments kind of assures me that awareness is already out there.
Well Said 👍 an introvert here..
Appreciated 👍 an introvert here..
When I was in the military, working at night help me prepare for attending night classes so working at night didn’t bother me at all.
I’ve always been a night owl. When I was able to work, it was night shift. Sometimes I don’t go to bed until three or four in the morning and I sleep until eleven or twelve. When my social battery is drained and I’ll go to bed at nine or ten and sleep ten# hours. It just depends but I’m definitely a night owl
Thank you for this article. I am a creative INTJ female. As a young person I had the tendency to wake up early in the morning with no alarm. 30 years later… It seems like my body clock has turned upside down. If I don’t force my self to go to bed at 10 I end up going to bed at 1 or 2 am. I started to research About the topic because I noticed while working from home, that I don’t became REALLY productive before 2 pm. And I normally feel guilty about it. During the pandemic I found my self waking up at 11 am and going to sleep at 2/3. The only think I found uncomfortable was the lack of sun light. And the lack of colors. Beside that I loved the calm and the peace, the roads and sidewalks empty, the supermarkets also empty and that immense sense of calm. I loved walking around London thinking that everyone was at asleep and that night was a special time for me to enjoy the city in complete freedom.
For all my secondary school years, I woke up at 2/3 am to study. I could not focus during the day.