How to Stop Apple Watch from Telling You to Stand Up at Night While Sleeping

I started wearing my Apple Watch to monitor my sleep, hoping to get insights into my sleep patterns and improve my rest. But instead of helping, it was doing the exact opposite—it kept waking me up with “Time to Stand” notifications throughout the night. Just as I was settling into deep sleep, my wrist would buzz, telling me to stand up, even though I was clearly in bed for the night.

These reminders are great during the day, encouraging movement and reducing sedentary time, but at night, they were completely ruining my sleep. It was frustrating because the whole reason I wore my Apple Watch to bed was to track my sleep and improve my rest—not disrupt it. I found myself waking up groggy and annoyed, which defeated the entire purpose of using my Apple Watch for sleep tracking.

If you’re facing the same issue, you’re not alone! The good news is that there’s a simple way to stop these notifications so you can still track your sleep without unnecessary interruptions. In this guide, I’ll show you how to fix it, so your Apple Watch works for you—not against you—while you sleep.

1. Enable Sleep Mode on Your Apple Watch

The simplest way to stop stand reminders at night is to use Sleep Mode, which automatically silences notifications when you’re supposed to be asleep.

Here’s how to set it up:

Open the Health app on your iPhone.
Tap Browse at the bottom right, then select Sleep.
Scroll down to Your Schedule and tap Full Schedule & Options.
Tap Edit next to your sleep schedule.
Set your bedtime and wake-up time, ensuring it matches when you want notifications to be silenced.
Toggle on Sleep Mode.

Alternatively, open the Sleep app (which looks like a bed) on your Apple Watch and follow the on-screen prompts to set up your sleep schedule and preferences.

If your Sleep Schedule is active, it should automatically enable Do Not Disturb (or Sleep Focus) during your scheduled sleep hours to prevent notifications. However, if you’re still receiving Stand Reminders at night, follow these extra steps to make sure your settings are correct:

Check Focus Settings:
- Open Settings on your iPhone.
- Tap Focus and select Sleep (or any other Focus mode you use at night).
- Scroll down to Allowed Apps and make sure Health is not allowed, as Stand Reminders come from the Health app.
Restart Your Devices:
- If the Health app isn’t allowed in Focus settings but you’re still getting notifications, restart both your iPhone and Apple Watch before your next night’s sleep.
- Restarting can resolve temporary issues that may be causing notifications to come through even when Sleep Mode is active.

Once these steps are complete, your Apple Watch should no longer wake you up with unnecessary alerts at night.

2. Manually Enable Do Not Disturb (DND) or Theater Mode

If you don’t use Sleep Mode, another quick fix is to manually enable Do Not Disturb or Theater Mode before bed.

Do Not Disturb:
- Swipe up on your Apple Watch to open Control Center.
- Tap the moon icon to enable Do Not Disturb.
- Select On until tomorrow morning or On until I turn it off.
Theater Mode:
- Swipe up to open Control Center.
- Tap the two masks icon to enable Theater Mode.
- This will silence notifications and prevent the screen from lighting up while you sleep.

Both options will stop unwanted notifications at night without affecting your daytime activity tracking.

3. Turn Off Stand Reminders Completely

If you don’t find stand reminders useful at all, you can disable them permanently:

Open the Settings app on your watch.
Scroll down and tap Activity.
Toggle off Stand Reminders.

This will stop the “Time to Stand” notifications entirely—both during the day and at night.

We previously explained you also have the option to adjust your stand goal.

If your Apple Watch has been waking you up with “Time to Stand” notifications at night, you’re not alone—I’ve been there too, and it was incredibly frustrating. Thankfully, using Sleep Mode, Do Not Disturb, or Theater Mode can easily prevent these interruptions while still allowing you to track your sleep.

Make sure your Sleep Focus settings are correct and that the Health app isn’t allowed in Focus mode, and if problems persist, try restarting both your iPhone and Apple Watch. These simple tweaks should ensure that your Apple Watch works as a sleep aid—not a sleep disruptor.

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