Alcohol & Medication

Many people claim that having a glass of wine before bed helps them feel calm, but it actually ends up harming the quality of your sleep. This is because alcohol affects the REM part of your sleep cycle – the time when you experience the deepest sleep (and have vivid dreams).

Similarly, you might be tempted to just pop a pill to help you fall asleep, but many sleep prescriptive medication such as Xanax, Valium and Stilnox also have a similar impact. These may seem like they are helping in the short term, but pretty soon, you’ll be finding it almost impossible to sleep without them.

Dr. Rosemary Clancy says, “Anything in the hypnotic type of drug — which includes alcohol and sleep medication — suppresses your sleep and in the end, over time, will have a negative effect on you.”