Overview
Insomnia is a disorder that disrupts sleep, either by making it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep. Short-term insomnia can be caused by stress, travel, substance use, or significant life events that lead to a lot of thoughts at night. Long-term insomnia can be related to chronic pain, mental health disorders like anxiety and depression, and the side effects of some medications.
Insomnia and substance use disorders have a bidirectional relationship, meaning that insomnia can be a result of using substances, but insomnia can also be a target of self-medicating with substances. It’s pretty common to hear alcohol described as a sleep aid for troubled nights, although it actually disrupts deep REM sleep and can easily lead to a cycle of drinking more to overcome persistent sleep issues. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is typically the recommended first-line intervention to address negative thought patterns about sleep and improve sleep hygiene, like restricting the time spent in bed to the periods you actually feel sleepy so that your brain associates the bed with sleep rather than problem-solving.