Like many of us can say on this topic “I know from experience” and it’s true in this case as well. I, like many others had numerous good nights in college and have continued to have a few from time to time. I have done some experimentation on the best ways to avoid and get rid of hangovers. I’m sure you’ve all tried some of these but I wanted to give some of my experiences to maybe help some people out.
The first thing to do is be conscious of what you are drinking. I know it can be fun to have shots with your buddies and take a whole slew of different liquors, but this is truly a bad idea. It doesn’t really matter what you are drinking, the same result will ensue eventually. Stick with one drink, trust me it helps a lot. Different liquors affect people differently so you need to figure out what makes you sick and what doesn’t. Sticking with one type of drink may eliminate a lot of pain the next day. This next step is talked about all the time but rarely used. If you drink excessive amounts of water before you start drinking and a little while you are drinking it will go a long way. I know it sounds stupid and may even be a pain in the butt to drink a glass of water between drinks, but it truly does help. This may not cure the actual hangover symptoms but it will make the headache go away. Liquor dehydrates you and the headache is a symptom of dehydration, not the liquor. Also a massive amount of water before you go to bed after a night of drinking will help as well.
Now, there are a lot of over the counter meds you can get that claim to help you avoid hangovers, I have never had success with these, but I have heard a few people say that some of them help. All these pills do is prepare your body for what is about to happen, you can do this without the meds by drinking water and maybe taking a vitamin before the fun starts. One thing that really helps me is to take a couple of those Emergen C packets before and after drinking.
The best way to get rid of a hangover if by chance you wake up feeling like crap, do something. Get out and do a quick run or go to the gym, get your body moving and start to sweat it out of you. I played football in college and we would have practice on Sunday morning. Of course we were all hung over but by the time practice was over we all felt great.
And finally, the best thing to ever be used for hangovers. I do this all the time now and have not had a hangover yet. We recently had a baby and my wife has jars and jars of prenatal vitamins, one day I was feeling quite bad so I took one, it was amazing. I don’t know what brand they are but I’m assuming they are all the same. I take one before I start drinking and then when I get up in the morning. It sounds a little weird but it really does work. It’s worth a try anyway.
