If you’re going through menopause or perimenopause and finding that alcohol affects you differently than it used to, you’re not imagining it. Many women start asking quietly: does alcohol affect your menopause, and if so, why does it suddenly feel so much harder to cope?

As hormone levels change during perimenopause and menopause, the body processes alcohol differently — which is why drinking alcohol during menopause can start to feel far more disruptive than before. What once felt like a relaxing glass of wine can now trigger night sweats, anxiety, broken sleep, heart palpitations or low mood.

Understanding the link between alcohol, menopause and hormones can help you feel more in control and less alone.

Alcohol and menopause: what’s actually happening?

During perimenopause and menopause, levels of oestrogen and progesterone fluctuate and gradually decline. These menopause hormones play a key role in regulating mood, temperature, sleep and the stress response.

Alcohol interferes with this delicate hormonal balance.

For many women, drinking alcohol during menopause or perimenopause can:

  • Increase hot flushes and night sweats
  • Disrupt sleep and worsen insomnia
  • Heighten anxiety and low mood
  • Trigger heart palpitations
  • Increase fatigue and brain fog
  • Make weight gain more likely

Fluctuating hormone levels also affect how the nervous system responds to alcohol, making many women more sensitive to its effects. This is why alcohol tolerance often drops during menopause — even when drinking habits haven’t changed.

Why wine feels harder to stop during menopause

One of the most confusing aspects of menopause is that while alcohol can make symptoms worse, it can also feel harder to cut back.

Many women drink during menopause to:

  • Calm anxiety or racing thoughts
  • Switch off after a long day
  • Cope with poor sleep
  • Manage emotional overwhelm
  • Deal with changing confidence, identity or relationships

At this stage of life, many women are also navigating major emotional shifts — children becoming more independent, caring for ageing parents, career changes, body-image concerns, or simply questioning who they are now. Alcohol can quietly become a familiar comfort or “pause button” during this transition.

So while alcohol may offer short-term relief, it often feeds the very symptoms women are trying to escape — creating a cycle that feels difficult to break with willpower alone.

Alcohol, perimenopause and sleep disruption

Sleep problems are one of the most common reasons women start questioning their drinking during menopause.

Alcohol can help you fall asleep faster, but it interferes with deep, restorative sleep later in the night. It disrupts REM sleep, causes blood sugar drops, and increases cortisol in the early hours — which is why many women wake around 2–4am feeling alert, anxious or overheated.

During perimenopause, when the nervous system is already more sensitive, this effect is amplified. Even small amounts of alcohol can lead to:

  • Waking in the night with racing thoughts
  • Feeling “wired but exhausted” the next day
  • Increased anxiety or low mood
  • A stronger urge to drink again the following evening

Many women blame menopause alone for insomnia, not realising that alcohol is often intensifying the problem.

Why cutting back feels harder than it should

By midlife, drinking habits are often deeply ingrained. Alcohol may have been part of socialising, relaxing, celebrating or coping for decades.

During menopause, when energy is lower and emotions feel closer to the surface, the brain clings even more tightly to familiar coping strategies — even when they’re no longer helpful.

This is why many women say:

  • “I know alcohol makes my menopause worse, but I still crave it.”
  • “I don’t drink loads, but I can’t seem to stop.”
  • “I feel worse when I drink, yet I miss it when I don’t.”

This isn’t a lack of willpower. It’s the subconscious mind doing what it has learned to do.

Why “just drink less” advice often backfires

Many women are told to simply “cut back”, “be mindful”, or “have alcohol-free days”. While well-intentioned, this advice often ignores what’s really happening beneath the surface.

During menopause and perimenopause, hormonal changes can dysregulate the nervous system, making stress feel stronger and emotional resilience lower. In this state, relying on logic alone can feel exhausting — and when willpower fails, shame often follows.

This is why many women feel frustrated with themselves, even though the issue isn’t motivation. It’s that habits live in the subconscious, not the logical part of the brain.

Support beyond willpower

For many women, asking does alcohol affect your menopause isn’t just a health question — it’s about feeling stuck between wanting relief and wanting control.

This is where the work of Ailsa Frank, British hypnotherapist and Feel Amazing app founder, can be particularly supportive. Ailsa has helped thousands of women who find that menopause is the point where alcohol quietly stops helping and starts holding them back.

Her approach focuses on changing the subconscious habits behind drinking — without judgement, labels or pressure — helping women feel calmer, more balanced and more in control during this life transition.

How hypnotherapy can help during menopause

Hypnotherapy works with the subconscious part of the brain — where habits, emotional responses and cravings are formed.

Within the Feel Amazing app, Ailsa offers hypnotherapy recordings designed to support women through menopause and help reduce alcohol naturally. Many women choose to combine alcohol-focused sessions with recordings that support emotional balance and hormonal change, such as:

  • Take Control of Alcohol – to loosen alcohol’s grip without pressure
  • Inner Calm – to reduce anxiety, stress and emotional overwhelm
  • Amazing Menopause – to support the mind and body through hormonal change

Rather than forcing yourself to “be strong”, hypnotherapy helps change how alcohol feels on a subconscious level — making cutting back feel calmer and more natural.

Ailsa says:

“Menopause is often the moment women realise alcohol is no longer their friend. When you work with the subconscious mind, you don’t have to fight yourself — change can feel gentle and empowering.”

A real experience

“I kept asking myself, does alcohol affect my menopause or am I just struggling? I was waking at 3am anxious after a couple of glasses of wine and blaming my hormones. Hypnotherapy helped me cut back without effort, and my sleep and anxiety improved far more than I expected.” - Abby, 51.

What medical guidance says

Health organisations recognise that alcohol can worsen menopause symptoms, particularly sleep disturbance, anxiety and hot flushes.

According to Women’s Health Concern, the patient arm of the British Menopause Society, many women notice that alcohol tolerance reduces during perimenopause and menopause, and that drinking can intensify symptoms such as poor sleep, anxiety and hot flushes.

General guidance encourages moderation and highlights that women going through menopause or perimenopause may experience stronger physical and emotional effects from alcohol than earlier in life.

If you’re unsure how alcohol is affecting you during menopause, speaking to your GP can help rule out other causes and provide personalised advice.

Frequently asked questions

Does alcohol affect your menopause?

For many women, yes. Alcohol can worsen hot flushes, anxiety, sleep problems and mood changes during menopause.

Why does alcohol affect me more during menopause and perimenopause?

Hormonal changes make the nervous system more sensitive, reducing alcohol tolerance and increasing side effects.

Does wine increase hot flushes?

Alcohol can trigger or intensify hot flushes and night sweats, especially later in the evening.

Can cutting back on alcohol help menopause symptoms?

Many women notice improvements in sleep, anxiety, energy and mood when they reduce alcohol.

Can hypnotherapy help with alcohol during menopause?

Yes. Hypnotherapy works with subconscious habits, helping reduce alcohol without relying on willpower alone.

Taking back control during menopause

If you’re questioning does alcohol affect your menopause, it doesn’t mean you’re failing — it means you’re listening to your body.

You don’t need to quit overnight.
You don’t need to be perfect.
And you don’t need to rely on willpower alone.

For many women, the hardest part isn’t understanding the risks — it’s changing long-standing habits around drinking, especially when alcohol has become part of winding down or coping with stress.

Within the Feel Amazing app, Ailsa’s hypnotherapy recordings are designed to help you reduce alcohol gently and naturally. Many women start with Take Control of Alcohol, and use Inner Calm or Amazing Menopause to support sleep, anxiety and emotional balance during this transition.

Change doesn’t have to be dramatic. It can start quietly — with a decision to take better care of yourself.