How to Ease Withdrawal Insomnia During Recovery

How to Ease Withdrawal Insomnia During Recovery Addiction Coping and Recovery Overcoming Addiction Print How to Ease Withdrawal Insomnia During Recovery Improving Your Sleep Is Important in Overcoming Addiction By Elizabeth Hartney, BSc., MSc., MA, PhD Elizabeth Hartney, BSc, MSc, MA, PhD is a psychologist, professor, and Director of the Centre for Health Leadership and Research at Royal Roads University, Canada. Learn about our editorial policy Elizabeth Hartney, BSc., MSc., MA, PhD Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD on August 01, 2016 Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Learn about our Medical Review Board Steven Gans, MD Updated on August 17, 2019 Vladimir Godnik / Getty Images More in Addiction Coping and Recovery Overcoming Addiction Methods and Support Personal Stories Alcohol Use Addictive Behaviors Drug Use Nicotine Use Trouble sleeping is a common withdrawal symptom for people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. This can be troubling and lead to increased anxiety. While withdrawal insomnia is common, there are ways that you can deal with it and try to get a better nights sleep. How Addiction and Recovery Affects Sleep Sleep problems can occur with any type of addiction and is a common withdrawal symptom for people who are recovering from overuse of alcohol, cannabis, opioids, sedatives, anxiety medications and stimulants.?? Because every person and every addiction are different, the degree that you may have problems getting to sleep or staying asleep will vary. People recovering from addictions may not return to normal sleep patterns for six months or longer. However, the initial few days of withdrawal can be particularly troubling. Also, sleep deprivation only makes the experience more uncomfortable.?? This is because your body is out of its normal rhythm. The time you spent using drugs or drinking excessively has changed the way your body works and sleeping patterns are commonly affected. During recovery, your body is changing once again and trying to get used to being free of the substance. It is only natural that your sleep patterns will be disrupted again. Ways to Ease Withdrawal Insomnia The good news is that for most people, withdrawal insomnia is only temporary. It is one of the side effects of cleaning out your body and returning to a normal life.   The more disciplined you are in following  guidelines for good sleep hygiene, the quicker your withdrawal insomnia will disappear. Over time, your sleep patterns will return to normal and, quite often, the simplest things you can do are the best. Establish sleep rituals. Much of recovery is about replacing bad habits with healthy ones. When it comes to sleep, you can try to go to bed and wake up at the same times or wind down with quiet activities like reading before bed. Anything that will calm and relax you before trying to sleep will help.??Re-establish your circadian rhythms.  Addiction can be difficult on your natural sleep cycle and your body may have become accustomed to staying up most of the night. One way to counteract that is to expose  your eyesâ€"without sunglassesâ€"to the outdoor daylight early in the day.??  Do not look directly at the sun.  Try the natural approach first.  Drink a warm cup of soothing, caffeine-free tea before bed, try meditation, and stay active during the day.?? These are just a few natural approaches you can take to improving your sleep. As someone with an addiction, its advised to try these strategies first. Stick with it and combine methods if needed. Its likely youll find better sleep soon. The Precautions of Sleep Medications Addictions can lead to other addictive behavior. It is most important that you try and avoid things that have the potential to become a substitute for your drug of choice. This is particularly true in the early stages when youre going through withdrawal and youre most tempted to find fast relief. Try to avoid self-medicating with other drugs while you are going through withdrawal. This includes  over-the-counter (OTC) sleep aids, marijuana, and alcohol. Talk to your physician about whether short-term use of prescribed medications may help you sleep for the first few days. Some medications are also helpful in easing other withdrawal symptoms. These are very specific to the drug you are withdrawing from as well as the drug you are prescribed.?? Follow your physicians instructions to the letter. Under no circumstances should you take more than prescribed, or for longer than prescribed. You may become ill or simply develop a substitute addiction. Why Good Sleep Is Key to Recovery Establishing good sleep habitsâ€"as difficult as that may beâ€"early in your recovery can increase your chances of avoiding a relapse.?? You will hear this advice from former addicts, recovering alcoholics, and, most likely, your doctors and counselors as well. A study of cocaine-addicted rats published in 2015 showed that sleep abnormalities increased the chances of relapse. Those animals that were able to have fewer interruptions and sleep longer were less likely to exhibit cravings for cocaine. While findings from animal studies often dont correspond with possible human findings, the researchers speculate that the same association, even long after the withdrawal period, supports sleep-based therapies for people with cocaine addiction.?? This is a very reasonable hypothesis because sleep is one of the keys to a healthy body. That is, after all, one of the goals for overcoming addiction. While it may seem impossible at the moment, whatever you can do to get a decent amount of sleep can help in your long-term recovery.?