Waking up in the Middle of the Night

From Halachipedia

One who is not planning on going back to sleep

  1. If one wakes up in the middle of the night and does not plan on going back to sleep, according to Sephardim, one should wash Netilat Yadayim with a bracha and say Brachot HaTorah. [1] according to Ashkenazim, if after having gone to the bathroom one will still not be ready for davening and will have to go to the bathroom another time before davening (as is common when one wakes up a long time before davening), one should upon waking wash without a Bracha, after having gone to the bathroom the first time wash again without a bracha, and after having gone to the bathroom a second time and assuming one is then ready for davening wash with the Bracha of Al Netilat Yadayim. Some say that one should wash the first times without a cup. [2]

One plans to go back to sleep

  1. If one wakes up in the night to go to the bathroom, one should wash one's hands without a Bracha and should not make Brachot HaTorah. [3]
  2. If one woke up to say Tikkun Chatzot or to learn a little but plans on going back to sleep, one should wash one's hands with a Bracha and make Brachot HaTorah. [4]

Saying Asher Yatzar

  1. Asher Yatzar is recited at any time during the day [5]
  2. One recites Asher Yatzar when getting up at night, unless one does not expect to use the bathroom again in the morning, in which case one can wait until the morning to make the Beracha [6].

Sources

  1. Or Letzion (vol 2 chap 1 note 2) writes that if one is not going back to sleep one should make the Netilat Yadayim with a Bracha right away.
    • If one is not going to be ready for davening after having gone to the bathroom the first time, the Beiur Halacha (4:1 s.v. Afliu) presents two opinions about when it is preferable to wash one's hands with the Bracha of Al Netilat Yadayim. The Chaye Adam holds that it's preferable upon waking up to wash without a Bracha and when one is ready for davening to wash again with the bracha, while the Shaarei Teshuva holds that one should wash with the Bracha after going to the bathroom even if one isn't totally ready for davening. The Beiur Halacha rules like the Chaye Adam that upon waking up one should wash without a Bracha and when one is ready for davening to wash again with the bracha.
    • Rav Shlomo Zalman is quoted in Halichot Shlomo (Tefilla 2:23, pg 23) who rules like the Chaye Adam and states when one is washing one's hands after having gone to the bathroom in the morning if one knows that one will need to go to the bathroom again before davening the first time one should wash without a Bracha and after going to the bathroom the second time when one is ready for davening one should wash with the Bracha.
    • Rav Mordechai Willig in Am Mordechai (Brachot, Siman 11, pg 45-8) writes that one should go to the bathroom, wash without a cup, and then when one is ready for davening to wash again with a cup and make the Bracha of Al Netilat Yadayim.
  2. Or Letzion (vol 2 chap 1:2) writes that if one is going back to sleep and one only woke up temporarily to go to the bathroom, one should make the Netilat Yadayim without a bracha.
  3. Or Letzion (vol 2 chap 1:2) maintains that in this scenario one should make Netilat Yadayim with a Bracha prior to Brachot HaShachar.
  4. Shulchan Aruch O"C 7:1. Reference from http://www.yeshiva.co/ask/?id=1962.
  5. MB 4:3