The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Dealing with a hangover
Trus
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
For reasons I don't want to go into I got pretty drunk last night. Thankfully I don't need advice on anything that happened while in that state of mind, but I do need help with dealing with the subsequent hangover. I have gotten "tipsy" before but never to the extent where I wake up with anything I would call a hangover. I could use some advice on dealing the headache and stomachache, etc...
Trus on
0
Posts
I do all the obvious stuff like eat and drink lots of water but nothing seems to help, in that instance I was still sick as hell the entire next day. My friends just say its what happens when you drink, but I think that is bullshit. I didn't drink that much, and if that is what happens every time I drink drinking isn't worth it. Infact I haven't had anything to drink since then.
if you're at the stage where you're actually struggling to stomach anything, yoghurt is quite good. i guess it's possible it settles your stomach and rebuilds the acids or something but it's also just a nice smooth nothing-food that won't come back up
tomato juice is good too, or anything with a lot of vitamin b
Yeah, that sounds pretty normal for excessive alcohol consumption. And if you can't remember how you got home, there's a good chance you can't remember how much you had to drink.
The trick is to figure out a sensible way to pace yourself, like 1 alcoholic drink, 1 softdrink etc. Or just know your limits.
Not remembering how you got back clearly shows that you did drink too much. Or someone slipped something in your drink(s).
The advice for the OP in this thread is solid. I could only add that the best hangover-cure is not getting one and you can accomplish that by drinking lots of water before going to bed. This obviously won't work if you are too drunk to remember it.
Does not compute.
Most of the symptoms of a hangover are down to dehydration (hence water) and irritation of the stomach lining (hence greasy foods).
If I've been drinking heavily, I tend to take half an hour or so when I get in to drink as much water as I can handle before going to bed. I also find it helps to drink a glass of water between every couple of drinks so I don't dehydrate as much in the first place.
In terms of dealing with a hangover you have right now, water, or anything that will rehydrate you quickly (sports drinks are really good for this, so gatorade as suggested above, or I used to use double-diluted Isostar). If your stomach's iffy, small sips.
Some kind of food, greasy is good, but not too heavy. Eggs are good, so is heavily buttered toast. Same advice as before, if your stomach's protesting, small bites, well-chewed.
Painkillers* if you have a pounding head, but preferably Paracetamol, not Ibuprofen or Aspirin as they can sometimes irritate the stomach. I tend to give the fluids a bit of time first to see if it clears up once I've rehydrated a bit.
*EDIT: It's been pointed out that Paracetamol will hammer your liver if you've been drinking heavily, so it's probably best to avoid painkillers altogether.
This.
Chug a bottle before bed, and then another when you wake up in the morning. A good hearty breakfast will fill in the rest, and you should be good to go.
Edit: Ideally drink one large Gatorade before bed and one in the morning.
Limed for accuracy
Also water...lots of water.
I seem to recall alka-seltzer making something specifically designed to counteract a hangover, or perhaps it's another company.
Drinking a glass of water before bed can also help, and of course, the gatoraid already mentioned.
I also want to note that drinking until you black out is insanely stupid. That's typically how you wake up with no friends and a court date.
What I do is have 1 to 2 glass of water for every 2 of alcohol I drink. This usually means that im going to the bathroom a lot while drinking, but it helps from nights with hangovers.
Also, I find forcing yourself to pray to the porcelain god helpful if your feeling really bad.
Generally, you will wake up with an upset stomach, but you need to have something really greasy to eat anyway. In my experience, nine times out of ten, you'll feel like you're going to throw up, but you'll actually be fine.
I've actually thrown up right before leaving the house for breakfast, had french fries and a burrito, and felt ten times better. Your body needs that fatty, greasy food.
Gatorade is good. Blueberry juice is even better.
Take naps. But don't overdo it, you'll want to get back to sleep tonight.
Pop a favorite not-too-intelligent movie in the DVD player and zone out.
There is no miracle cure for a hangover. You just have to suck it up and let it dissipate naturally.
These will make you better.
"Hair of the dog" will make you feel better, but isnt particulartly good for you. Also, avoid paracetamol... It will hammer your liver in its weakened state.
I'm not saying you should have a shitload, but one Bloody Mary is a good way to wake up the morning after.
I also second a Bloody Mary, but that can sometimes go either way.
What you're drinking can also be a big factor in hangover creation/prevention. It should go without saying, but mixing spirits / wine / beer is generally a bad idea. Even more so for drinks containing sugar, which will dehydrate you faster.
Also, and this is debatable, I feel that "top shelf" alcohol is generally lacking the amount of congeners found in cheaper alcohol. Plus, when it costs more, you'll generally drink less. But you know, you mileage may vary and all.
Hope you feel better soon!
It's generally quality and quantity of booze that determines the severity of the hangover.
You've just drunk yourself into a hangover, your liver is working overtime to rid your body from what is essentially a load of poison you've spent the night drinking. I think it's better not to add to that with paracetamol [it's also broken down by the liver].
I'd recommend Ibruporphen but, as said above, this pain killer has a bit of a habit of screwing up the stomach.
Alka-Seltzer is probably best because it dissolves in water, which means it'll hit your bloodstream nice and fast
Yeah, chemically you're most likely right. I think, in my experience anyway, it has more to do with thinking: "Well, I've had three beers, two gin and tonics, and a sidecar. Better call it a night," and saying "Lesh do sum shots of sambuca!" Which is stupid in any language.
But yeah, since the OP was more about treatment than prevention (though I sort of think they're very closely related), I'll also suggest that a hot bath with Epsom salts can do wonders for what ails you.
I noticed that no one else put coffee up, so I wonder why. Never heard the Gatorade thing.
dropped into a doubleshot of tequila.
Wine and really sugary drinks can also add a massive sugar crash on top of the regular hangover.
Cheaper booze tends to have more byproduct chemicals in it which contribute to hangovers. Cheap beer is especially bad. Dark liquors like whiskey also seem to give worse hangovers.
Also in my experience waiting till you are marginally sober to go to sleep seems to help too.
Also NEVER TAKE HEADACHE MEDICINE WHILE YOU'RE DRINKING. It can cause liver damage and stomach bleeding.
I think it's more just knowing how your body reacts to certain alcohols and doing that. Since I know that my body has trouble with Tequilla and darker beers, I rarely drink these when I'm going to be drinking heavily. Whiskey has very little effect on me in terms of a hangover, so I'm able to drink this a lot if I want, but I never do because the taste doesn't sit well with me.
I don't think there is a way to prevent a hangover. Some people say sober up, some say eat bread, some say drink water, and others say drink coffee. I think it's all just in the person.
That was me, based on experience. I'm going to go back and edit that because I didn't know about the liver thing.
In general I find that any headache I have dissipates once I'm properly rehydrated, so I tend not to use painkillers very often.
Advil and Tylenol I would avoid
Try eating some Ramen Noodles, loads of sodium, morning after or if your competent enough not to burn down your house the night of (very unhealthy) Waffle House and Huddle House are good alternatives if someone is sober. Gatorade, V-8 what have you is a definite to do after you come in from you night of inebreation (sp?)
Protip: Set one alarm extra early so that you can get up and drink more fluids and take the painkiller of your choice and go back to sleep to give it time to work and leave another clock at your normal wake up time. This can take a lot of the edge off.