Alcohol and sleep
Alcohol speeds falling asleep and fragments the sleep itself — so you fall asleep sooner and sleep worse.
What we know
In the first half of the night it acts as a sedative; in the second it causes shallower sleep, more waking and less REM. As a sleeping aid it therefore works precisely the wrong way round.
What this means
With insomnia, the evening glass is often part of the maintaining cycle rather than the solution. It is one of the first questions when we work with sleep.
See also
Generalised anxiety
Worry that moves from topic to topic and rarely stops, even when there is no occasion for it.
Supervision
A therapist's regular professional consultation with a more experienced colleague — without any details by which a client could be identified.
Dopamine
A substance tied more to the anticipation of reward than to pleasure itself.
