Sleep and Wakefulness Tropes

16 Following

Tropes about falling asleep *yawn*, being asleep *yawn*, waking...waking up, and staying awa-awa-*snore*.

Compare Rest and Relaxation Tropes. Not to be confused with hypnosis (despite the etymology of that term).

Tropes:

• Adult Sleeps with Stuffed Toy: An adult character still likes to sleep with a stuffed toy usually meant for young kids.
• Adventures in Comaland: Dreaming while unconscious as opposed to regular sleep.
• Angst Coma: An extremely stressful or traumatic event results in someone falling into a deep state of sleep or unconsciousness.
• Asleep for Days: Someone falls asleep for days after a bad experience.
• Asleep in Class: A student falling asleep in class.
• Asleep, Not Meditating: A seemingly meditating person is actually asleep.
• Awakening at the End: The story ends when a character wakes up.
• Awkward First Sleepover: A character is nervous because it's their first slumber party.
• Beautiful Dreamer: A person thinks their partner looks beautiful when they're asleep.
• Bedmate Reveal: A person wakes up surprised to see that someone else is in their bed.
• Bedtime Brainwashing: Someone tries to manipulate someone else's dreams or thoughts when that person is asleep.
• Bizarre Dream Rationalization: Character believes they're dreaming.
• Blanket Tug O' War: Two people in the same bed fight over the blankets.
• Breakfast in Bed: Waking up to being served the first meal of the day.
• Catapult Nightmare: Someone wakes from a nightmare by falling out of bed or sitting up abruptly.
• Catching Some Z's: "Z"s fly out of a snoring character's mouth.
• Chaste Separating Sword: A sword lain between bedmates to signify chaste bedsharing.
• Clingy Sleepers: Two characters who are usually not in a relationship have to share the bed, and end up cuddling.
• Comforting Comforter: Someone puts a blanket on a sleeping person to warm them up.
• Comical Nap Drool: Someone drooling in their sleep is Played for Laughs.
• Converse with the Unconscious: A person talks to someone who is asleep, usually their Love Interest.
• Counting Sheep: Someone imagines sheep jumping over a fence and counts them in order to fall asleep.
• Dangerous Drowsiness: Feeling tired is a very bad sign.
• Deep Sleep: Someone in a very deep sleep.
• Don't Wake the Sleeper: Waking a sleeping person is a bad idea.
• The Dreaded Bottom Bunk: Sleeping on the bottom bunk is undesirable.
• Dream Emergency Exit: If the type of "exit" involves waking up or being forced to wake up.
• Dreary Half-Lidded Eyes: The half-mast eyes of someone who desperately needs sleep.
• Dude, She's Like in a Coma: Kissing or having sex with someone who's unconscious.
• Dying to Wake Up: Dying in a dream instantly wakes you up.
• Embarrassing Damp Sheets: Having a Potty Failure, a wet dream, or leaking menstrual blood in one's sleep.
• Embarrassing Pyjamas: Someone is embarrassed by or teased for their pyjamas.
• Evil Takes a Nap: When a monster or some sort of evil creature is dormant because they are in a deep sleep.
• Exhausted Eye Bags: A character who didn't get enough sleep has bags under their eyes.
• Exhaustion-Induced Idiocy: A lack of sleep takes a toll on a character's mental capacity.
• Extremely Rude Awakening: Someone is woken up by another in the most obnoxious way possible.
• Eye Awaken: Extreme Close-Up of someone's eyes opening as they wake up.
• Face Doodling: Drawing on a sleeping or unconscious person's face.
• Faceplanting into Food: A character falls asleep into their food.
• Faked Rip Van Winkle: Convincing someone they have been asleep for a long time.
• Fell Asleep Crying: A character cries for long enough to fall asleep.
• Fell Asleep Driving: A sleepy character falls asleep behind the wheel of a vehicle (car, boat, plane, etc.)
• Fell Asleep Standing Up: An exhausted character falls asleep standing up, yet doesn't fall down.
• Food Coma: Getting sleepy from eating too much.
• Forced Sleep: A spell or power that makes its victims fall asleep.
• Fright-Induced Bunkmate: Someone is scared due to nightmares or fear of the dark and wants to sleep in someone else's bedroom.
• Gender-Invading Sleepovers: Boys try to get into a girls-only sleepover or vice-versa.
• Getting the Baby to Sleep: Someone does something ridiculous in order to make a baby be quiet or fall asleep.
• "Getting Ready for Bed" Plot: A story where the whole plot is about getting ready for bed.
• Glass Jaw Referee: A referee getting easily knocked out in a wrestling match.
• Good Morning, Crono: A Kid Hero in a video game starts their adventure waking up in bed.
• Go-to-Sleep Ending: The story ends with one or more characters asleep.
• Heavy Sleeper: Someone who has Deep Sleep whenever they're asleep.
• Hospital Epilogue: The story ends with a character waking up in a hospital bed.
• Hunger Causes Lethargy: Someone is hungry and it makes them tired, even though it clearly isn't malnutrition or low blood sugar.
• Hypnosis-Induced Slumber: You fall asleep when you are being hypnotized.
• The Insomniac: Someone who cannot sleep.
• Insomnia Episode: An episode of a series that focuses on a character being unable to sleep.
• Instant Sedation: Someone instantly conks out after being sedated — how convenient!
• Instant Waking Skills: The opposite of Not a Morning Person — someone who doesn't feel groggy upon waking.
• Insulted Awake: Waking someone up by insulting them.
• Kidnapped While Sleeping: A character is stolen right from their bed.
• King in the Mountain: A legendary figure thought to be dead is really in a long sleep.
• Knockout Fakeout: A character pretends to be knocked out to get the drop on the opponent or escape danger.
• Lap Pillow: Someone sleeps in their lover's or best friend's lap.
• Lazy Dragon: Dragons spend a great deal of time sleeping, and many act lazy and sleepy even when awake.
• Lazy Reptile: Reptiles are tired and sluggish when they're awake and sleeping when they aren't.
• Loud Sleeper Gag: A character begins to make loud noises while asleep, which disturbs other characters.
• Lulled Themselves to Sleep: Someone attempts to put a person (usually a child) to sleep only to put themselves to sleep.
• Mattress Stash: Someone hides an object in or under their mattress.
• Morning Routine: Story begins with the hero waking up to start their day.
• Murphy's Bed: A bed that traps the person on it in the middle like a bear trap.
• Nap-Inducing Speak: Someone falls asleep when someone else is doing a speech because they find the speech boring.
• Never Sleep Again: Someone gets killed in their sleep. Don't sleep to avoid being next.
• Never Wake Up a Sleepwalker: Waking up a sleepwalker is bad.
• The Night Owl: A person who prefers to be awake at night, rather than during the day.
• Nocturnal Emission: Ejaculating in one's sleep.
• Not a Morning Person: Someone is groggy when they first wake up.
• Not Dead, Just Asleep: A sleeping (or unconscious) character is mistaken for dead.
• Not Staying for Breakfast: Two characters have sex and one stays the night, but doesn't stay for breakfast.
• Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep: A child says the "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep" prayer before going to bed.
• An Odd Place to Sleep: Someone sleeps in a weird place.
• Overworked Sleep: Someone falls asleep during work.
• Pajama-Clad Hero: The hero is in their pyjamas for all or most of the plot.
• Passed in Their Sleep: Someone dies in their sleep.
• Percussive Prevention: A person knocks someone out to prevent them doing something dangerous.
• Pillow Pistol: Someone hides a weapon under their pillow.
• Pillow Silencer: Someone uses a pillow as an improvised silencer.
• Pivotal Wake-up: A supernatural character levitates themselves awake.
• Plot-Powered Stamina: Someone doesn't get tired even if they don't get enough sleep by human standards.
• Poppies of Sleep: The poppy flower is associated with slumber.
• Post-Nightmare Comfort: A character wakes up from a terrifying nightmare and receives comfort from a friend or loved one.
• Post Tantrum Sleep: Falling asleep after a fit of rage.
• Post–Wake-Up Realization: Someone half-awake becomes fully awake after realizing something is amiss.
• Prefers Rocks to Pillows: Someone used to sleeping in poor conditions finds it hard to sleep in a normal bed.
• Really Fond of Sleeping: Someone who really likes sleeping and taking naps to the point that it's their favourite pastime.
• Resting Recovery: A video game character's health meter regenerates if they're asleep.
• Reveille: Someone plays a military tune to wake someone up.
• Rip Van Tinkle: Needing to pee after being asleep for a long time.
• Rip Van Winkle: A character sleeps for several decades.
• Rousing Lullaby: A lullaby that is anything but soothing.
• Safe Under Blankets: Being under your blankets means you're automatically safe.
• Senior Sleep-Cycle: An old person sleeps a lot.
• Slain in Their Sleep: Someone is murdered in their sleep.
• Slap Yourself Awake: Someone hurts themselves to keep themselves awake.
• Sleep Aesop: An Aesop that teaches the importance of sleep.
• Sleep Cute: Some people sleeping close to one another in a cute way.
• Sleep Deprivation: Characters can't fall asleep, either by choice or because of external factors.
• Sleep Deprivation Punishment: Someone is deprived of sleep as punishment, abuse or torture.
• Sleeping Dummy: Someone puts a dummy of themselves in bed to escape.
• Sleep Learning: Someone tries to learn information in their sleep.
• The Sleepless: Someone doesn't need to sleep.
• Sleepless Alarm Clock: Someone finally gets to sleep after being up all night only for their alarm clock to go off.
• Sleep Mask: Someone wearing a sleep mask that says something about their personality.
• Sleep-Mode Size: Someone shrinks when they're sleeping.
• Sleep Paralysis Creature: People who suffer from the nightmarish hallucinations associated with sleep paralysis often imagine seeing some sort of creepy monster.
• Sleeps in the Nude: Someone wears nothing to bed.
• Sleep Squashing: Someone squashes someone else in their sleep.
• Sleeps with Both Eyes Open: Someone sleeps with both eyes open.
• Sleepwalking: Walking in one's sleep.
• Sleepy Depressive: A mentally unsound person who sleeps a lot (or spends a lot of time in bed).
• Sleepy Enemy: Enemies that prefer to sleep, only fighting when disturbed.
• Sleepyhead: Someone who keeps falling asleep randomly or always seems tired.
• Slept Through the Apocalypse: Someone sleeps through an apocalypse.
• Slumber Party: A party where the people invited sleep the night (usually women or girls).
• Snoring Beauty: A beautiful or cute girl who snores in her sleep.
• Snot Bubble: Someone's nose runs in their sleep.
• Soundtrack Lullaby: As someone is sleeping/falling asleep, the soundtrack plays a lullaby-like tune.
• Space Is Sleepy: Outer space is associated with sleep.
• Super-Effective Lullaby: Music that will put anyone in earshot to sleep.
• Supering in Your Sleep: Someone uses their superpowers in their sleep.
• Synchronized Morning Routine: Two or more characters' morning routines are shown mirrored in the same scene.
• Talking in Your Sleep: Someone speaks aloud in their sleep.
• Tap on the Head: Someone is knocked unconscious by being hit on the head without suffering any permanent injury.
• Taunting the Unconscious: Someone taunts someone who's unconscious.
• There Are No Bedsheets: Sleeping without covering themselves with bedsheets, in video games.
• There Is Only One Bed: Two people who are not together must share a bed as there is only one available.
• Tired After the Song: A song makes a character sleepy.
• Triple Shifter: Someone doesn't get enough sleep because they're too busy with multiple jobs.
• Tummy Cushion: One character sleeps on a larger one's tummy.
• Undressing the Unconscious: A character awakes to find their clothes have been changed or removed while they were sleeping.
• Vampires Sleep in Coffins: Vampires prefer coffins as resting places.
• Vorpal Pillow: Someone suffocates someone else with a pillow.
• Wacky Wake Up Gadget: An unusual mechanism to wake somebody.
• Wacky Waterbed: Someone bounces and/or ruptures a waterbed.
• Wake Up Fighting: Someone wakes up holding a weapon or trying to fight.
• Wake Up Make Up: Someone wakes up with makeup on.
• Waking Non Sequitur: Someone says a nonsensical sentence upon waking up from a dream.
• Waking Up at the Morgue: A character awakens in a place where the dead are kept.
• Waking Up Elsewhere: Someone wakes up in a place that's not the place they fell asleep.
• Warm Milk Helps You Sleep: Trouble sleeping? Drink some warm milk.
• Warm Water Whiz: Putting a character’s hand in warm water makes them wet the bed.
• Water Wake-up: Someone wakes up an unconscious or sleeping character with water.
• What Did I Do Last Night?: Somebody wakes up in a strange situation, unsure of how they got there.
• Woken Up at an Ungodly Hour: A character is annoyed at being woken too late or too early.
• You Wake Up in a Room: A character wakes up in an unfamiliar place at the beginning of the story.
• You Wake Up on a Beach: Someone wakes up on the beach with no recollection of how they got there.