How to Feel Normal After Drinking the Night Before

Everyone's capability for holding alcohol varies, based on a variety of factors. Almost inevitably, though, imbibing too freely in the evening results in an unpleasant feeling in the morning. Intensive, heavy, and binge-drinking hangovers are impossible to prevent, but you can use a variety of methods to combat morning-after headaches and nausea, particularly those resulting from light drinking. You can also use some hangover cures to help dull pain resulting from truly excessive drinking.

Instructions

• 1

  Begin the night before. A few easy steps can lessen the blow of alcohol on your system, helping you feel much more normal in the morning. Begin with a meal heavy in carbohydrates; these will absorb the alcohol as you drink, minimizing its effect. Throughout the evening, stay hydrated. Alcohol is a diuretic, and hangovers are typically the result of dehydration. Drink water before your evening begins, a glass of water after each alcoholic beverage, and a pint before going to bed. Avoid carbonated drinks, which increase the speed at which alcohol is absorbed into your system.

• 2

  Choose your drinks wisely. Most people have particular drinks which affect them more strongly than others. For some it may be wine, for others tequila. Some people are particularly reactive to dark-colored liquors, which feature heavy concentrations of chemicals called "congeners." People who are sensitive to these drinks experience irritation of the blood vessels and tissue in the brain, resulting in a pounding hangover headache. Clear alcohols, like gin and vodka, have low cogener levels; brandy, rum, and scotch have significantly more, and bourbon has some of the highest cogener levels -- 30 times that of vodka. Red wine has more than white, dark rum more than light.

• 3

  Get a good night's sleep. After drinking, sleeping it off is often the simplest, most painless way to feel normal in the morning.

• 4

  Take painkillers the next morning. Ideally, choose acetaminophen-based drugs. Aspirin can be harsh on the stomach and increase nausea if you are feeling sick. Because acetaminophen can be harsh on the liver, which may already be struggling under the effects of your previous night's partying, stick to one or two pills.

• 5

  Choose your foods wisely. While your level of nausea will affect what you are able to consume, heavy food will actually help absorb the remaining alcohol; try fatty bacon or sweet, high-carbohydrate pancakes. The potassium in bananas helps replace nutrients caused by frequent, alcohol-fueled bathroom trips. If your stomach is feeling tricky, a bouillon broth is a good choice.