Why do I get stomach cramps at night?

Night cramps are usually about what and when you ate, plus the fact that lying down changes the plumbing. A large, fatty, or late dinner is still being processed when you lie down; gas that would vent upright gets trapped; and reflux gets a gravity-free path upward. Constipation cramps often peak at night too, as the day catches up with a sluggish bowel. Ongoing evening cramps with bloating and a changed bowel habit fit the IBS pattern the NHS describes: ongoing cramps, bloating, diarrhea, or constipation. For women, cramps that track the cycle are more likely period pain than dinner, and the NHS lists period pain as a common cause of cramps. Work the levers: eat dinner earlier and lighter, cut late-night snacking, keep a food-and-symptom note for two weeks to spot the trigger foods, and stay hydrated and moving through the day so the bowel keeps pace. The patterns that skip the self-help phase: pain that wakes you and keeps you awake, pain localizing to one spot, especially the lower right side, cramps with vomiting, blood in stool or vomit, fever, a hard swollen belly, or unexplained weight loss. Those need a doctor, urgently for the localized, feverish, or bloody versions.