Sober Synthesis

Saad, Our Garden, Aug 21 2026

Our bodies follow predictable rhythms over hours, days, months and years. These body rhythms affect our alertness and attentiveness, our ability to sleep and carry out wakeful biological and social functions.

Much has been written about how addiction follows patterns and rhythms. Being mindful of body rhythms and the patterns of addiction, we can utilise both to help ourselves in recovery.

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Addiction unfolds across a wide span of timescales:

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Rhythms of the body

Any body rhythm that lasts more than 24 hours is known as an Infradian rhythm.

Year long rhythms show in conditions like Seasonal Affective Disorder, month long rhythms include the menstrual cycle.

Examples of infradian rhythms are mentrsual cycles, which span roughly 28 days. Growth of enamel in human teeth spans about 10 days, and annual patterns of sunlight effect mood and wakefulness in seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

A study from 2025 found a positive relationship between binge drinking and the follicular stage of the menstrual cycle, and increased cravings and drinking during the luteal stage.

Seasonal affective disorder is also strongly associated with increased consumption of alcohol, as a way of self medicating the depressive symptoms associated with it.

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Ultradian rhythms are shorter than circadian rhythms, and typically last between 90 minutes to 6 hours.

From research on sleep, it was found that the brain alternates between Non-REM sleep and REM sleep in 90 minute cycles, and this cycle was found to continue throughout the day.

Studies of brain chemistry involved in sleep indicate an alternating pattern of brain activity involving acetylcholine and a group of neurotransmitters known as monoamines. The monoamines, such as serotonin and GABA are able to suppress the dreaming associated phase of sleep, while acetylcholine spikes happening during the REM phases of sleep.

Basic Rest and Activity Cycle (BRAC)
This ultradian rhythm alternates between periods of excitement and rest that last between 80 – 120 minutes. Oscillations in dopamine and acetylcholine over this period are associated with peaks and troughs in motivation and focus.

Dopamine, the key neurotransmitter involved in motivation and behaviour causes neurons to fire much more rapidly. This rapid firing consumes energy, which is generated by the breakdown of ATP into adenosine and inorganic phosphate. The build up of adenosine is like an hour glass filling up with sand. The concentration of adenosine inhibits and supresses dopamine.

This alternating action converges with other neurotransmitter levels to create an ‘ultradian trough’, a period where neuronal activity naturally hits a low point. These highs and lows also correspond to highs and lows in temperature as a result of the changes in metabolic activity.

How to tell an Ultradian Peak from a Trough

When the brain and body are approaching an ultradian peak, you may notice things like:

• Sudden clarity and focus – where something was difficult to understand, it will suddenly make sense
• Increased visual focus – a feeling that things appear sharper, objects on the periphery are easier to filter out
• Increased intrinsic drive – Something that felt daunting earlier might seem suddenly doable
• Straighter posture – eg sitting upright, square shoulders, shifting closer to the desk
• Thermal comfort – feeling warm and comfortable with ambient temperature
  

When the brain and body are going through an ultradian trough, you may notice things like:

• Drop in clarity and focus: Reading and re- reading the same paragraph without ‘getting anything’
• Mind wandering : Losing track of the task, daydreaming, cravings etc
• Mistakes and errors creep in: you may notice errors in typing and tasks take much longer to complete
• Frustration and irritability : out of nowhere, frustration, irritability or mild anxiety starts to hit
• Restlessnes and fidgeting
• Yawning

Energy and focus naturally drop every 90 to 120 minutes as part of the BRAC

• Ultradian troughs might mimic withdrawal symptoms, anxiety, or substance cravings ( relapse triggers are typically more intense )
• Try not to force concentration during an ultradian trough, this releases stress hormones like cortisol.
• Irritability and anxiety naturally spike when the biological clock demands rest.

Coping Strategies

Researcher Ernest Rossi encourages an approach to work that is mindful of the body’s biological call to rest. If we ignore this signal to rest, it causes a stress response to be mounted in the form of a cortisol spike which can lead to emotional distress.

Activities that are condusive to rest during an ultradian trough include non stimulating activities like

• gentle movement

• short outdoor walk

• guided meditations

Cognitively demanding activities like

• Browsing social media

• Checking messages or emails or

• Watching the news

are likely to maintain activation and will interfere with the reset process.

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Every cell follows a 24 hour cycle that is run by genetically coded proteins. This cycle is automatic, and unfolds over the course of the day. It is coordinated by a master clock in the brain region called the Supra Chiasmatic Nucleus.

Genetic clockwork : BMAL1 and CLOCK proteins create PER and CRY proteins over the course of the day. As PER and CRY builds up, it suppresses the production of BMAL1 and CLOCK. PER and CRY naturally break down and that allows BMAL1 and CLOCK to be produced again. The whole cycle takes 24 hours.

Individual cells receive hormonal signals from the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) which will reset the individual cell’s clocks throughout the body. The SCN gets it’s reset signal from receptors in the eye which detect light. The rest of the body receives the reset signal through hormones and changes to body temperature.

Suprachiasmatic Nucleus in the human brain, shown in green. (Source : Wikipedia / 黄雨伞 )

The circadian rhythm is not fixed to a certain timing, rather it adjusts continually around received signals. The circadian rhythm has a significant influence on metabolism, hormone balance, memory consolidiation and disruptions to the circadian rhythm can lead to lasting health issues.

Phases of the Circadian Rhythm

6:00 AM – 10:00 AM (The Morning Ramp): Alertness increases sharply upon waking. The SCN prompts the adrenal glands to release a surge of cortisol (the primary hormone responsible for wakefulness), while core body temperature steadily climbs.

10:00 AM – 1:00 PM (The Cognitive Peak): Cognitive function, logical reasoning, and short-term memory capacity reach their highest daily values. Research suggests this is the optimal window for complex analytical tasks.

1:00 PM – 3:00 PM (The Post-Lunch Dip): Energy levels naturally drop. This transient phase of sleepiness occurs independently of eating lunch; it is driven by a natural afternoon decline in the circadian alerting signal combined with a slight drop in core body temperature.

4:00 PM – 7:00 PM (The Physical and Reaction Peak): A second, distinct wave of alertness occurs. During this late afternoon phase, muscle strength, cardiovascular efficiency, and motor reaction times reach their daily maximums.

9:00 PM – 11:00 PM (The Melatonin Window): As ambient light fades, the SCN signals the release of melatonin, the hormone that signals sleep readiness to the body. Concurrently, core body temperature drops, lowering physiological alertness.

11:00 PM – 5:00 AM (The Metabolic Trough): Physiological alertness drops to its lowest point. Physical healing and memory consolidation peak during the deepest phases of sleep within this window.

Consumption of alcohol is known to suppress the production of melatonin required for sleep. It also flattens the natural variation of body temperature. Although alcohol boosts GABA after initial consumption, as it later metabolises, a rebound effect occurs where wakefulness is increased and REM sleep is disrupted.

Lessons for recovery:

• To set the circadian rhythm, go to bed and wake up at the exact same time every day.
• View bright natural light within an hour of waking to anchor your internal clock.
• Avoid screens and bright lights two hours before bedtime to protect melatonin production.

Daily Behavioral Habits

• Eat meals at regular intervals during the daytime to support peripheral metabolic clocks.
• Tackle difficult or triggering activities during peak daytime alertness hours.
• Create a dark, quiet, and cool environment to signal your body for sleep.

Recognize that evening and night hours often bring higher vulnerability to cravings due to depleted dopamine control.

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Patterns of Drinking over several months

In a longtidunal study by Harringron et al. in 2013, patterns of drinking across 180 days were studied, and 8 different forms of drinking behaviour was identified from the data.

Type 1 (N = 19) Set Point and Highly Cyclic with Moderate Consumption. This profile of alcohol users characterizes individuals who reported drinking on average 3 to 4 drinks per occasion, two to three times a week, with strong weekly cyclical pattern.

Type 2 (N = 20)  Set Point and Highly Cyclical with High Consumption; this profile of alcohol users characterizes individuals who reported drinking on average 7 drinks per occasion four times a week, with a strong weekly cyclical pattern, who are not married, mostly men (70.00%), and 45% are in the Contemplation stage of readiness to change alcohol use.

Type 3 (N = 39) Set Point with Low Consumption; this profile is the most prevalent group and characterizes alcohol users who reported drinking on average 4 to 5 drinks per occasion, once to twice a week, with no distinct daily or cyclical pattern of alcohol use. Over 50% of individuals identified by this profile reported having a father who was a problem drinker.

Type 4 (N = 15) was labeled Multiple Regulation with High Consumption; this profile characterizes individuals who reported drinking on average 9 to 10 drinks per occasion, three to four times a week with a distinct daily pattern of use indicative of a decrease in alcohol consumption below average daily levels after a heavy drinking episode. 70 % of participants reported lifetime alcohol dependency, highest alcohol related problems, and high frequency of attendance to alcohol related treatment services, and over 90% of individuals identified by this profile placed themselves either in the Contemplation or the Action stage of readiness to change alcohol use.

Type 5 (N = 28) was labeled Fixed Effect with Moderate Consumption; this profile of alcohol users characterizes individuals who reported drinking on average 4 to 5 drinks per occasion once to twice a week, with moderate to strong daily pattern of use indicative of increase of alcohol use above average after a day of alcohol use. Participants identified by this profile are mostly women (78.57%), and over 42% are placed in the Precontemplation stage of readiness to change alcohol use.

Type 6 (N = 14) was labeled Fixed Effect with High Consumption; this group of alcohol users is characterized by individuals who reported drinking on average 5 to 6 drinks per occasion, three to four times per week, with moderate to strong daily pattern of use indicative of increase of alcohol use above average after a day of alcohol use. This profile characterizes individuals who have, relative to other profiles, the lowest rate of personality disorders, a high rate of lifetime alcohol dependence (64.29%), the highest frequency of attendance to alcohol related treatment services (57.14%) and the highest rate (50.00%) of the Action stage of readiness to change alcohol use.

Type 7 (N = 25) was labeled Set Point and Moderately Cyclic with Moderate Consumption; this group of alcohol users is characterized by individuals who reported drinking an average of 3 to 4 drinks per occasion twice a week, with moderate weekly cyclical pattern of alcohol use. This is the youngest group of alcohol users among all the profiles, mostly White (72.00%), with over 60% reporting at least some college level education.

Type 8 (N = 17) was labeled Set Point and Cyclic with High Consumption; this group is characterized by individuals who reported drinking on average 6 to 7 drinks per occasion, four times per week, with moderate weekly cyclical pattern of alcohol use. This profile characterizes participants who reported the highest rate of lifetime alcohol dependence (76.47%) and with over 50.00 % reporting the Contemplation stage of readiness to change alcohol use.

Patterns of Cravings Throughout the Day

In a study from France, 250 individuals in alchohol treatment units were asked about their drinking. Asked if their first urge to drink happened at a certain time of day, 83% said yes. Asked when they had their first drink, 87% said it was at a specific hour.

This study indicated a pattern of cravings in the morning, with a second cluster of participants reporting in the evening, showing that there is a rhythmic pattern to both cravings to drink and the occurance of the first drink of the day.

Analysis of various studies reveals that when alcohol dependent drinkers experience cravings, these relate to withdrawals and can peak in the mid morning. In the study from 2003, all participants were sampled from a treatment facility serving people with AUD.

A heightened sensitivity to dopamine releasing activities in the evening was put forwards as the reason for why non dependent drinkers would experience the most cravings in the evening.

People in the 2023 study were found by fliers, craigslist ads and a study of ADHD. In this case the bulk of participants were not trying to ameliorate the effects of withdrawals, their cravings were reported primarily in the evenings.

The information here is available freely on the world wide web. This is meant for educational purposes only, and should not be seen as a substitute for medical advice from a licensed professional.

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References:

Cross-talk between the HPA axis and addiction-related regions in stressful situations( https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10161713

Ultradian calcium rhythms in the paraventricular nucleus and subparaventricular zone in the hypothalamus (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6176559/)

Basic rest–activity cycle (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_rest%E2%80%93activity_cycle )

Adenosine–Dopamine Interactions in the Pathophysiology and Treatment of CNS Disorders (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6493824/)

Role of adenosine in the pathophysiology and treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
( https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12454791/ )

Episodic Ultradian Events—Ultradian Rhythms
(https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6466064/)

Understanding Ultradian Rhythms: Your Brain’s 90-Minute Cycles Explained (https://www.cannelevate.com.au/article/understanding-ultradian-rhythms-brains-90-minute-cycles-explained/)

A highly tunable dopaminergic oscillator generates ultradian rhythms of behavioral arousal (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4337656/)

Overview of Circadian Rhythms
(https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6707128/)

Circadian Clocks and Metabolism
(https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4089089/)

Circadian rhythms, sleep, and substance abuse (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1087079211000335)

The 24-hour rhythm in alcohol craving and individual differences in sleep characteristics and alcohol use frequency (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9246905/)

Circadian Rhythms and Addiction: Mechanistic Insights and
Future Directions (https://wickedneuro.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/logan2014.pdf)

Stress, Dysregulation of Drug Reward Pathways, and the Transition to Drug Dependence (https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.2007.05030503)

Typology of Alcohol Users Based on Longitudinal Patterns of Drinking
(https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3899787)

Temporal Pattern in Consumption of the First Drink of the Day in Alcohol-Dependent Persons (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/8955707_Temporal_Pattern_in_Consumption_of_the_First_Drink_of_the_Day_in_Alcohol-Dependent_Persons)

Differing patterns of stress and craving across the day in moderate-heavy alcohol consumers during their typical drinking routine and an imposed period of alcohol abstinence ( https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0195063 )

Times to drink: cross-cultural variations in drinking in the rhythm of the week (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3272154/#S4)

Night owl students drink and smoke more (https://www.brunel.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/articles/Night-owl-students-drink-and-smoke-more)

Disruption of circadian rhythms promotes alcohol use: a systematic review (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38123479/)