How to Sleep When Drunk

Sometimes it’s hard to get a good night’s sleep after drinking too much, but you can take a few simple steps to increase your chances of waking up feeling relieved and refreshed. Eat a nutritious meal before drinking alcohol to help the body process all the alcohol that will pass through the body, and remember to drink plenty of water after each glass of wine. When you get home, prepare a dark and quiet bedroom for a peaceful, uninterrupted sleep. Most importantly, don’t forget to sleep on your side to prevent vomiting in the middle of the night.

Table of Contents

Getting ready for bed

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Take the pain reliever ibuprofen when you get home to prevent headaches. Take the lightest recommended dose with a large glass of water. Preventive pain relievers will help reduce the risk of being woken up by a pounding headache. ^{[1] X Research Source}

No dose of painkiller can save you from getting a headache from alcohol if you drink to the point of not knowing what the hell it is. It’s best not to drink too much in the first place.
Do not take ibuprofen with alcohol if you are allergic or have had a bad reaction to the medicine under normal conditions.

Warning: Stay away from acetaminophen-containing pain relievers like Tylenp. This medicine may cause liver damage when taken with alcohol. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Sip on junk food to further accelerate alcohol absorption. Eat something sweet, such as a piece of fruit, a cereal bar, or some peanut butter cookies. A quick bedtime snack can be your lifesaver, especially if you haven’t eaten much before drinking. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Apples, bananas and other convenient fruits make the perfect snack before you drift off to sleep, helping you stabilize blood sugar levels without feeling bloated.
Avoid foods that are too high in sugar, fat and processed foods. These can cause you to become dehydrated or have a hangover in your stomach while you’re trying to sleep. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

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Drink a few more glasses of water to make sure your body stays hydrated. Once you have some nutrients and pain reliever in your stomach, fill a glass of 240 ml– 350 ml of water and drink it down. Remember to drink to the last drop and drink more if needed until you quench your thirst after the party. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Chances are you’ll have to pee one or more times by the time the fun ends and you get home. A little water to drink will replace essential fluids and help the body not dry out.

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Keep water on the nightstand in case you’re thirsty. Thus, you will always have water available whenever you wake up and feel thirsty. Don’t forget, staying hydrated is one of the most important factors in recovering from a drunken night. The same is true when it’s time to go to bed, as it will probably take you a few more hours to drink more water.

Consider storing water in a sports water bottle to prevent splashes if you accidentally spill your water cup.

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Pee before sleeping. Remember to urinate one last time before you go to bed, even if you don’t feel the need to. Chances are you’ll have to leave soon too, so it’s best to reduce the number of times you have to get up during the night. ^{[6] X Cleveland Clinic Trusted Source Go to Source}

It is best to choose a place to sleep near the bathroom. You’re bound to pee at least once a night.
There is nothing to be ashamed of if there is an “incident” in the middle of the night. It’s not that you’re young, it’s just that your body has a hard time controlling your bladder while you’re drunk.

Sleep well

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Adjust the temperature in your home between 16-20 degrees Celsius. A large amount of alcohol will increase blood flow, make you hot and soon become uncomfortable. By lowering the room temperature by a few degrees, you can ensure that you stay cool and comfortable when your body temperature rises higher than normal. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

Trying to sleep in the heat is already hard, and when you drink a lot of alcohol it’s doubly difficult. ^{[8] X Research Sources}
Get an extra blanket in bed so you don’t freeze when your body temperature starts to cool down again.

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Pull down the curtains so the room is as dark as possible. The darker the bedroom, the easier it is to fall asleep. You’ll also be more sensitive to light when you’re drunk. Even a gentle ray of the sun turns into a bright light if it happens to hit your face. If the bedroom does not have a curtain, close the curtains to reduce the light coming in from outside. ^{[9] X Research Source}

If the light is still a problem, an eye patch can help solve the problem.
Close the curtains or have an eye patch on the bed before going out. You may not remember this when you are tired and disoriented.

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Silence phones and other entertainment devices. Put your phone on silent, turn off the TV, and put away all other devices that can suddenly make noises when you are trying to fall asleep. Similar to light, noise is also often amplified for drunk people. Just a very small beep, chirp or uu is enough to wake you up when you are asleep. ^{[10] X Research Source}

Double-check to make sure you’ve turned off the sound or power off all electronic devices that might be bothering you before you go to bed. You probably don’t want to be woken up from a good night’s sleep.
Be careful not to mistakenly turn off alarms on other devices, unless you don’t have to go to work or school the next morning (if that’s the case, you can sleep in a little longer).

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Ask someone to sleep with you. It’s good to have someone by your side after you’ve had too much to drink. “Sleep well” is advice people often hear, but it can be dangerous to fall asleep after drinking more alcohol than is safe. ^{[11] X Research Source}

If any of your friends are awake, try asking if they can stay at your house or let you sleep over at theirs. ^{[12] X Research Source}

Tip: Make sure the person staying with you knows to call 911 in case you lose consciousness (not your normal sleep stages), start vomiting uncontrollably, have a seizure, or develop other symptoms other worrisome.

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Lie on your side to prevent sudden vomiting. This is the only position to sleep safely while you are still groggy. When lying on the bed or sofa, block a pillow behind your back to prevent you from rolling over and lying on your back. Now you can try to sleep peacefully until morning. ^{[13] X Research Source}

Lying on your back or face down puts you at risk of choking if you accidentally vomit while sleeping. If this happened, it would not only be horrible, but also dangerous.

Prepare in advance for a good night’s sleep

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Make sure to get a good night’s sleep the night before drinking. If you’re going down the street drinking or planning a big weekend party, try to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep the night before. If that’s the case, a restless night of sleep will not greatly affect your daily sleep routine. ^{[14] X Research Source}

If you’ve had a lack of sleep the day before, you’ll probably have more trouble sleeping after you’ve had a few drinks.
For that reason, my advice is not to put yourself in a situation where you have to sacrifice a night of sleep more than once a week.

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Eat a nutritionally balanced meal so your stomach doesn’t get empty. Choose foods that are high in protein, carbohydrates, and fats like meat and other nutritious foods. A little food in your stomach will help you not hit the threshold too quickly, and help the body absorb and process alcohol more easily. ^{[15] X Research Source}

A handful of cookies at the bar won’t do much, but a greasy cheeseburger or chicken bun can limit the damage you do to yourself after a night of drugs. ^{[16] X Research Source}
If you don’t have time to sit down for a decent meal, you can grab a nutritious snack like nuts, cheese, and fruit to boost your blood sugar.

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Don’t forget to drink water to stay hydrated. For every cocktail or wine you drink, drink at least 240 ml of water to balance your fluid intake. Alcohol is a diuretic, which means the more you drink, the more you have to urinate. Constantly rehydrating the cells in your body will keep you from becoming dehydrated. ^{[17] X Research Source}

Bring a bottle of water with you so you don’t have to constantly disturb the bartender.
Dehydration is the main culprit causing the dull pain and discomfort the next day. ^{[18] X Research Sources}

Tip: Filtered water is the best friend to hydrate the body, not sugary drinks like soda or juice, which need water to digest well.

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Avoid beverages that contain caffeine. Choose cocktails that don’t contain coke, coffee or energy drinks. It’s easy to understand – caffeine is a stimulant, so it’s one of the worst things you can do when you’re about to take a quick nap. Vodka and Red Bull mix well, but caffeine and sleep definitely don’t. ^{[19] X Research Source}

High-caffeine drinks to avoid include rum and Coke, Long Island iced tea, SoCo 7s, Irish coffees and car bombs, and Four Loko. ^{[20] X Research Source}
If you must add some soda to your drink, choose a 7 and 7 glass, as it only mixes with caffeine-free lemon soda.

Advice

If you’re going out drinking, make sure you have a safe way to get home. You can take a Grab taxi or a Grabbike motorbike taxi.
Taking a multivitamin or a supplement like thiamine (vitamin B1), fpic acid, and magnesium after a night of binge drinking can help ease the nasty effects of alcohol. ^{[21] X Research Source}
The best way to keep alcohol from getting in the way of a good night’s sleep is, of course, in moderation.

Warning

Avoid sleeping in dangerous or unauthorized places. Seriously, no one can sleep well in a cell.
Never take sleeping pills to fall asleep faster while intoxicated. When combined with alcohol as a psychoactive substance, it can significantly disturb normal breathing and sleep cycles.

Steps

Getting ready for bed

Sleep well

Prepare in advance for a good night’s sleep

Advice

Warning

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