We found empirical support for recommendations that young adult drinkers with insomnia prioritize a comfortable sleep environment, limit naps, and maintain a consistent wake time. Notably, these associations were found within persons (individuals experienced better sleep quality on nights that they slept in a comfortable environment) as opposed to between persons (if we had found that individuals who had comfortable sleep environments reported better sleep quality than individuals who had uncomfortable sleep environments). This extends the previous research on the importance of sleep hygiene recommendations,which has been conducted primarily at the between-person level. Understanding of the day-level behaviors associated with better nighttime sleep is especially important in this population because young adults are unlikely to seek professional help and their problems with sleep and alcohol use are likely to exacerbate one another. Specifically, moderate to heavy doses of alcohol may impact sleep physiology, and poor sleep health may compound the risk for alcohol-related harm.Thus, identifying behavioral strategies that break this bidirectional cycle of sleep and alcohol problems may reduce the burden of these problems among young adults.
Somewhat surprisingly, sleeping in a comfortable environment was the strongest correlate of better sleep quality in this sample, and it was also associated with better self-reported sleep efficiency. We are unaware of previous studies examining “quality of your sleep environment” broadly as a predictor of subsequent sleep patterns. However, a number of studies suggest that light and noise disturbances at bedtime contribute to poor sleep health, and a restful sleep environment is ranked among the 3 most important sleep hygiene practices by young adults in college.Although it may not always be possible for individuals to change their sleep environment, at least 1 study seems to indicate that rearranging the bedroom may be effective for socioeconomically disadvantaged women who are new parents. Thus, in clinical settings, a discussion of the sleep environment and what (if anything) individuals can do to make that environment more comfortable may be warranted.
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