I always believed the anecdote that a shot of whiskey before bed helped you to sleep. You know? The good old trusty nightcap...Seems I could be wrong.
My Story of Woe:
Well, that's not entirely true. While alcohol may help you get to sleep it certainly doesn't help you after that. Case in point.
ME!
Here I am on Monday morning after a night of very broken, unsatisfying sleep...Why? My days of late night partying are long behind me as I am far more sensible nowadays. But, last night as it was the Singapore GP, I chose to watch it at my local sports bar. It started at 7pm, so I figured a couple of sociable beers and I could still be tucked into bed at home by 10:30..I planned to have 2-3 beers over the course of the race which would last a few hours, so I knew my tolerance would be fine. However, the race lasted a little longer and I got chatting to friends, so my 2-3 beers turned into 4. Still fine, I didn't feel drunk and made it home before turning into a pumpkin.
BUT, I slept Terrible!!!
I tossed and turned in bed all night, and found myself thinking about why I couldn't sleep, at first I didn't blame the alcohol, but after a little further reading this morning, it is my number 1 suspect. So, if you are anything like me and wonder why you sleep poorly after drinking, then here are the reasons.
1. Alcohol Interferes With the Sleep Process:
Recent studies have shown that drinking alcohol before sleep shortens your sleep latency. This means that the time it takes to to move from full wakefulness to sleep is decreased. Hence, the dropping off to sleep easily part. As a result, you will experience more slow-wave or deep sleep in the early part of the night. However, later on, as the alcohol begins to wear off, there is a rebound effect which sees an increase in wakefulness and disturbed REM sleep in the 2nd half of the night. Hence the lying in bed awake in the early hours of the morning. In a usual night you will go through about six to seven cycles of REM sleep, which should leave you feeling suitably refreshed. However, after drinking you will typically have only one to two, and this is why you will wake up feeling exhausted and as if you haven't slept at all.
2. Alcohol is a Diuretic:
This one is more obvious, but can be equally disruptive to a good night's sleep. Alcohol makes you pee. So even after a few evening drinks you may find yourself waking to go to the bathroom several times during the night. Compound that with the dehydrating effect of expelling the excess fluid and you may find yourself drinking more water during the night, and the cycle continues.
(image source: http://aoma.edu)
The Verdict:
It's now the middle of Monday afternoon and I have a much better understanding of why I feel so tired, irritable and lethargic today. Thankfully, I now feel confident that my sleep will return to usual tonight. I will avoid alcohol and consider this a learning and growth experience :)
