This Common Wind-Down Aid Has the Opposite Effect
Peter was becoming a beast with his wife; moody and difficult to be around.
He hadn't been sleeping well for months, now.
This wasn't him. What was happening?
He had always enjoyed a beer or a glass of wine in the evening. This was his way to wind down, relax, and treat himself after a hard day's work.
On reflection, he realized that slowly he had been drinking more of late.
Work had been particularly stressful. One glass had turned into two and sometimes even three over the course of the evening.
Alcohol is a ritual we have invented to tell ourselves that we are relaxing.
The problem is, it doesn't actually do that.
And it messes with our sleep.
Alcohol is a sedative, which means it slows down brain activity. In slowing down the thinking part of our brain, we perceive the effect as calming.
In actual fact, it's just that we are thinking less clearly.
On going to bed, the effect of alcohol is to fragment sleep.
This means that sleep is lighter, causing frequent awakenings. The brain isn't able to get as much deep sleep as it needs. This leads to a feeling of being under-rested.
Alcohol interferes with dreaming.
When alcohol is broken down (metabolized), the by-products block the ability of the brain to generate REM sleep. Studies show that even with moderate alcohol consumption, there is a reduction in REM sleep.
REM sleep is when we dream. And dreaming is like overnight therapy. When you dream, you process the emotional content of the day, easing the mind from built-up tension.
No wonder Peter was becoming so grumpy and difficult to get along with!