How do alcohol and drugs affect sleep?
Obviously, stimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines make it difficult to sleep. More surprising is the finding that most of the CNS depressants that facilitate sleep (such as alcohol, analgesics, sedatives, and tranquilizers) disrupt the normal sleep cycle. The principal problem is that they reduce the time spent in REM sleep and slow-wave sleep. Unfortunately, these are the sleep stages that appear to be most important to a refreshing night’s sleep.
