How alcohol can affect your sleep routine

Alcohol and Sleep: The effects

Alcohol can have both short-term and long-term effects on our sleep. In the short-term, alcohol acts as a sedative and can make you feel drowsy. This means that drinking can actually assist you in getting to sleep faster. Up to 30% of those surveyed in America admitted to using alcohol to help them fall asleep.

Despite this, the quality of alcohol induced sleep is compromised. Alcohol disrupts the normal sleep cycle by reducing time spent in rapid eye movement sleep (REM), the stage where dreams occur. This stage is also very important for emotional processing, meaning this is when you deal with things that happened to you during the day, or traumas from the past. It is also when your brain takes information you learned during the day and stores it long-term. Therefore, REM sleep is vital for our normal functioning and is essential for a good night’s sleep. 

As alcohol wears off during the night, the sedative effects are reduced, which can lead to a lighter sleep. This can cause disruptions in sleep patterns and can result in fragmented and restless sleep. Although you may find it easier to sleep after an alcoholic drink, you will be less rested than when falling asleep naturally.

In the longer term, alcohol can create more issues with sleep. Where someone has developed a dependency to alcohol, they are much more likely to have a sleep disorder such as insomnia. While some may believe alcohol consumption is worth the short term impact, it’s hard to argue that insomnia and other serious sleep issues are worth the drink.

What is happening when you can’t sleep after drinking?

Although alcohol can act as a sedative, some people experience an inability to fall asleep after drinking. This is because as alcohol is metabolised by the body, its sedative effects wear off, leading to a state of alertness. This could impact a person’s ability to sleep, leaving them fatigued in the morning. This problem can actually become worse when someone is aware of the issue and begins overthinking about trying to sleep.

How do I reduce the negative effects of alcohol on sleep?

The solution to alcohol induced sleeplessness or poor quality sleep is to drink less. Hydrating with water between alcoholic drinks can also help reduce the negative effects.

If you’ll definitely be drinking but still want the best possible sleep, it is recommended that you have your last alcoholic drink three hours before going to bed. Although by this time the sedative effects of the drinks are likely to have worn off, this should give enough time for your body to metabolise the alcohol before falling asleep.

Getting drunk can also be associated with other actions, such as smoking or even combining drinks with caffeine. Both of these behaviours can seriously impact sleep and should be avoided by those who are looking for better quality sleep.

The best thing to do for our health and our sleep is to go completely sober. Although drinking is something many people are unwilling to cut out, the benefits for our mental well being and sleep quality make it something worth considering. 

Mixing alcohol and sleeping pills

Combining sleeping pills with alcohol is extremely dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. Although reaching for the sleeping pills may seem like an appealing option at the time, it can have serious consequences. Both alcohol and sleeping pills are central nervous system depressants, meaning they slow down activity in the brain and body.

Mixing the substances can amplify their effects. This can lead to excessive drowsiness, dizziness and in some cases respiratory depression. A healthcare professional should be consulted before these are combined. 

Make healthier choices

With Alcohol Awareness Week coming up, it’s a good time to take stock and assess our drinking habits. While many of us enjoy a drink with friends, those using alcohol to get to sleep may actually be making it worse.

It’s not just sleep that can be impacted by our alcohol intake. There are many other situations where our alcohol consumption may be impacting our lives. Anyone looking for more information can find it on the Alcohol Change UK website.