Why Alcohol Makes Insomnia Worse and How to Sleep Better Naturally

You’re exhausted after a long day. You follow your usual bedtime routine: turn on the fan, get into bed, and switch off the lights. You take a few deep breaths, close your eyes… but sleep doesn’t come. You try meditation, breathing exercises, or counting sheep, yet 20, 30, or even 60 minutes later, you’re still wide awake. For many, this frustrating experience has become a nightly struggle.

Insomnia is relentless, taking a toll on cognitive, emotional, and physical health. Adding alcohol into the mix often worsens sleepless nights. Below, we explore how alcohol affects sleep and insomnia—and how you can achieve more restful nights.

What Is Insomnia?

Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, waking too early without being able to return to sleep, or experiencing poor sleep quality. It affects 10–30% or more of people worldwide. Unlike simply having a busy schedule or choosing to stay up late, insomnia means being unable to sleep despite having the time and intention to do so.

Common signs and symptoms include:

• Daytime drowsiness
• Difficulty focusing
• Frustration or anxiety about not sleeping
• Feeling unrested despite trying to sleep
• Fitful, nonrestorative sleep
• Frequent nighttime waking or trouble falling back asleep
• Waking too early and being unable to return to sleep

There are two main types:

• Acute insomnia: Short-term, lasting from a night to a few months, often triggered by stressful events like job loss, grief, or health issues.
• Chronic insomnia: Long-term difficulty sleeping, occurring at least three nights per week for three months or more.

What Causes Insomnia?

Insomnia arises from a mix of mind-body interactions, medical history, environment, and external factors like stress. Common causes include:

• Chronic pain
• Depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other mental health conditions
• Dementia
• Emotional issues such as grief, anger, or worry
• Excessive nighttime electronic device use
• Irregular sleep habits or schedule
• Health problems like obesity, diabetes, asthma, sleep apnea, or heart disease
• Stress
• Use of alcohol, caffeine, or nicotine

Risk factors include older age, being female (especially during pregnancy, postpartum, or menopause), and a family history of insomnia.

How Alcohol Worsens Insomnia

Alcohol disrupts the natural sleep-wake cycle, or circadian rhythm, which regulates sleep. Initially, alcohol acts as a stimulant, increasing dopamine and causing alertness. As the body metabolizes it, alcohol becomes a depressant, inducing drowsiness and helping you fall asleep. However, as metabolism continues overnight, stimulatory effects can rebound, causing awakenings and difficulty returning to sleep. This “rebound effect” affects 35–70% of people who use alcohol.

Alcohol also increases adenosine, a chemical that promotes sleep. After a few drinks, elevated adenosine leads to deep sleep initially, but the body compensates by reducing deep sleep later in the night, leading to tossing and turning.

Does Alcohol Help You Fall Asleep?

Yes, alcohol can help you fall asleep faster because it’s a central nervous system depressant and sedative. However, it often results in fragmented, non-restorative sleep. Higher doses worsen this disruption, especially in the second half of the night. While small amounts may increase sleep time and deep sleep initially, tolerance develops quickly—often within a week—leading some to increase consumption, which further harms sleep quality.

How Alcohol Affects REM Sleep

Alcohol suppresses rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, a crucial stage for memory consolidation, emotional processing, learning, and creativity. Lack of REM sleep impairs memory, mood, focus, and immune function. Even moderate drinking—fewer than two servings daily for men or one for women—can reduce sleep quality by nearly 10%. Exceeding these amounts may decrease sleep quality by almost 40%.

Why Is Sleep Important?

Quality sleep regulates metabolism, energy, mood, and immune function. Good sleep patterns can add years to your life, while sleep deprivation accelerates cellular aging and contributes to depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, and cardiovascular disease over time. Chronic sleep loss also promotes negative emotions like aggression, anger, and hopelessness, and impairs focus, decision-making, work performance, and stress management.

How Is Insomnia Treated?

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Treatment often involves identifying and addressing root causes, such as stress, alcohol use, work schedules, or underlying health conditions. A doctor can create a personalized plan. While sleep medications exist, experts advise against them due to side effects, dependence, and masking underlying issues. Many find success with stress management, relaxation techniques, cognitive behavioral therapy, consistent evening routines, and good sleep hygiene.

Tips for Better Sleep Without Alcohol

Restful sleep without alcohol is achievable with these strategies:

• Stick to a regular sleep schedule: Go to bed and wake up at the same times daily, even on weekends, to align with your circadian rhythm.
• Create a sleep-friendly environment: Keep your bedroom quiet, dark, and cool (around 65°F or 18.5°C). Invest in a comfortable mattress and pillows.
• Develop a relaxing evening routine: Follow a consistent pre-bed pattern, such as taking a bath, reading, journaling, meditating, or drinking decaf tea.
• Practice relaxation techniques: Use deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, or mindfulness meditation to activate your body’s relaxation response.
• Limit screen time before bed: Turn off TVs, phones, and computers at least 30–60 minutes before sleep to avoid blue light disrupting melatonin production.

If self-help strategies aren’t working, consult a healthcare professional. Up to 80% of insomnia cases go undiagnosed—don’t hesitate to seek help.

If you’re using alcohol to sleep but your sleep quality is poor, consider trying Quitemate. This research-backed app has helped millions reduce alcohol consumption and improve their health and well-being, including sleep.