Awakeness is tied to an arousal thermostat that directly senses the degree of stress in your environment. If you are under high stress or ongoing stress then this system may have its volume knob turned up so that you are more vigilant and prepared to deal with issues. Obviously, this is a survival mechanism.

Problems come about when the extra vigilance disturbs your sleep, in turn making you more tired and more susceptible to a poor stress response on the following day. 

Many individuals have experienced stress-related fetal programming or early childhood programming. This means that the stress felt while in the womb and/or ...