Staff Perspective: Caught in the Loop - Self-Treating Your Way to Worse Sleep
Although drinking alcohol can serve many purposes in everyday life, from social and to traditions, its connection with sleep often stems from underlying motivations: are we trying to cope to escape negative emotions, or are we directly seeking a shortcut to slumber? Unpacking these "whys" is essential for understanding risk-related usage patterns and their relationship with sleep health.
Not getting enough sleep affects much more than just feeling tired. Over time, poor sleep can increase stress, anxiety, and even symptoms of depression (Basta et al; 2007; Watling et al., 2017). When people worry about another restless night, those feelings of frustration and fear can make things worse. It’s common for someone struggling to fall asleep to look for a quick solution, whether that’s an over-the-counter sleep aid, prescription medication, or even alcohol (Khantzian, 2003). The grind of daily life, whether it’s intense work deadlines or personal setbacks can directly contribute to sleep issues and the temptation to use alcohol as a quick fix. Drinking alcohol can make you feel sleepy (Roehrs & Roth, 2001), so it might seem like a fast way to fall asleep. But the reasons people turn to these substances are often more complicated than just wanting to rest. It’s usually a mix of trying to finally get some sleep and managing the stress or difficult emotions that are keeping them awake in the first place.
No matter the motivation, it’s no secret that the use of alcohol often interferes with a good night's rest. Even though a drink might seem like it helps you fall asleep faster, research shows that if you’ve had any alcohol during the day, you’re likely to sleep longer but also have more restless, interrupted sleep that night (Roehrs & Roth, 2001; Thompson et al., 2024). On a deeper level, drinking alcohol can disrupt rapid eye movement sleep, which is a stage critical for emotional regulation and restoration (Ebrahim et al., 2013). As a result, you may wake up feeling more fatigued and irritable the next day. Keep in mind that alcohol’s effects also vary depending on the type and amount of alcohol you drink and may look different for different people. The problem is, that the short-term feeling of relief these substances provide can easily turn into a habit, making it harder to address the root causes of sleep problems. This cycle can quietly undermine sleep health over time, even if it feels like a helpful solution at the moment.
Although current research has helped clarify the relationship between alcohol use and sleep, there’s still so much to learn especially when it comes to real world use and individual motivations such as how and why people use substances like alcohol to manage sleep and distress. These dynamics are important to consider, especially because the short-term effects of alcohol use can mask underlying issues that contribute to long-term difficulties. These consequences are amplified for anyone with existing sleep disorders. Drinking alcohol to manage insomnia, for example, often leads to unintended negative outcomes which not only derail treatment efforts, but may also worsen the condition over time. Recognizing these patterns when alcohol is used as a coping mechanism and a sleep aid can provide valuable context for understanding these difficulties. This knowledge allows for a more targeted approach, helping to identify the root emotional or behavioral factors, rather than focusing solely on the sleep symptoms. It encourages a broader perspective that considers how daily habits and coping strategies impact sleep health, which can ultimately inform more effective support and resources.
The opinions in CDP Staff Perspective blogs are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Science or the Department of Defense.
Linda Thompson, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Center for Deployment Psychology. Dr. Thompson earned her doctorate in Behavioral Science, Psychology from the University of North Texas and a master’s degree in Psychology from San Diego State University.
References
Basta, M., Chrousos, G. P., Vela-Bueno, A., & Vgontzas, A. N. (2007). Chronic insomnia and the
stress system. Sleep medicine clinics, 2(2), 279-291.
Ebrahim, I. O., Shapiro, C. M., Williams, A. J., & Fenwick, P. B. (2013). Alcohol and sleep I: effects
on normal sleep. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 37(4), 539-549.
Khantzian, E. J. (2003). The self-medication hypothesis revisited: The dually diagnosed patient.
Primary psychiatry, 10(9), 47-54.
Roehrs, T., & Roth, T. (2001). Sleep, sleepiness, and alcohol use. Alcohol Research & Health,
25(2), 101.
Thompson, L. M., Slavish, D. C., Messman, B. A., Dietch, J. R., Kelly, K., Ruggero, C., ... &
Blumenthal, H. (2024). Alcohol Use Predicts Longer But More Fragmented Sleep: A Daily Diary
Study of Alcohol, Sleep, and PTSD in Nurses. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 1-12.
Watling, J., Pawlik, B., Scott, K., Booth, S., & Short, M. A. (2017). Sleep loss and affective
functioning: more than just mood. Behavioral sleep medicine, 15(5), 394-409.
Although drinking alcohol can serve many purposes in everyday life, from social and to traditions, its connection with sleep often stems from underlying motivations: are we trying to cope to escape negative emotions, or are we directly seeking a shortcut to slumber? Unpacking these "whys" is essential for understanding risk-related usage patterns and their relationship with sleep health.
Not getting enough sleep affects much more than just feeling tired. Over time, poor sleep can increase stress, anxiety, and even symptoms of depression (Basta et al; 2007; Watling et al., 2017). When people worry about another restless night, those feelings of frustration and fear can make things worse. It’s common for someone struggling to fall asleep to look for a quick solution, whether that’s an over-the-counter sleep aid, prescription medication, or even alcohol (Khantzian, 2003). The grind of daily life, whether it’s intense work deadlines or personal setbacks can directly contribute to sleep issues and the temptation to use alcohol as a quick fix. Drinking alcohol can make you feel sleepy (Roehrs & Roth, 2001), so it might seem like a fast way to fall asleep. But the reasons people turn to these substances are often more complicated than just wanting to rest. It’s usually a mix of trying to finally get some sleep and managing the stress or difficult emotions that are keeping them awake in the first place.
No matter the motivation, it’s no secret that the use of alcohol often interferes with a good night's rest. Even though a drink might seem like it helps you fall asleep faster, research shows that if you’ve had any alcohol during the day, you’re likely to sleep longer but also have more restless, interrupted sleep that night (Roehrs & Roth, 2001; Thompson et al., 2024). On a deeper level, drinking alcohol can disrupt rapid eye movement sleep, which is a stage critical for emotional regulation and restoration (Ebrahim et al., 2013). As a result, you may wake up feeling more fatigued and irritable the next day. Keep in mind that alcohol’s effects also vary depending on the type and amount of alcohol you drink and may look different for different people. The problem is, that the short-term feeling of relief these substances provide can easily turn into a habit, making it harder to address the root causes of sleep problems. This cycle can quietly undermine sleep health over time, even if it feels like a helpful solution at the moment.
Although current research has helped clarify the relationship between alcohol use and sleep, there’s still so much to learn especially when it comes to real world use and individual motivations such as how and why people use substances like alcohol to manage sleep and distress. These dynamics are important to consider, especially because the short-term effects of alcohol use can mask underlying issues that contribute to long-term difficulties. These consequences are amplified for anyone with existing sleep disorders. Drinking alcohol to manage insomnia, for example, often leads to unintended negative outcomes which not only derail treatment efforts, but may also worsen the condition over time. Recognizing these patterns when alcohol is used as a coping mechanism and a sleep aid can provide valuable context for understanding these difficulties. This knowledge allows for a more targeted approach, helping to identify the root emotional or behavioral factors, rather than focusing solely on the sleep symptoms. It encourages a broader perspective that considers how daily habits and coping strategies impact sleep health, which can ultimately inform more effective support and resources.
The opinions in CDP Staff Perspective blogs are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Science or the Department of Defense.
Linda Thompson, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Center for Deployment Psychology. Dr. Thompson earned her doctorate in Behavioral Science, Psychology from the University of North Texas and a master’s degree in Psychology from San Diego State University.
References
Basta, M., Chrousos, G. P., Vela-Bueno, A., & Vgontzas, A. N. (2007). Chronic insomnia and the
stress system. Sleep medicine clinics, 2(2), 279-291.
Ebrahim, I. O., Shapiro, C. M., Williams, A. J., & Fenwick, P. B. (2013). Alcohol and sleep I: effects
on normal sleep. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 37(4), 539-549.
Khantzian, E. J. (2003). The self-medication hypothesis revisited: The dually diagnosed patient.
Primary psychiatry, 10(9), 47-54.
Roehrs, T., & Roth, T. (2001). Sleep, sleepiness, and alcohol use. Alcohol Research & Health,
25(2), 101.
Thompson, L. M., Slavish, D. C., Messman, B. A., Dietch, J. R., Kelly, K., Ruggero, C., ... &
Blumenthal, H. (2024). Alcohol Use Predicts Longer But More Fragmented Sleep: A Daily Diary
Study of Alcohol, Sleep, and PTSD in Nurses. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 1-12.
Watling, J., Pawlik, B., Scott, K., Booth, S., & Short, M. A. (2017). Sleep loss and affective
functioning: more than just mood. Behavioral sleep medicine, 15(5), 394-409.