How Long Do Hangovers Last?

Hangovers

A hangover is a price to pay for binge-drinking alcohol. It’s like writing a cheque that your body can’t cash. Worse, your ordeal with hangovers can stretch for several hours. But how long do hangovers last exactly?

In this post, we will discuss more about hangovers, their symptoms, and how you can speed up recovery. Read more to know how you can combat the consequences of your heavy drinking.

Symptoms of a hangover

Hangovers are the unpleasant side effects of alcohol consumption. It usually kicks in a few hours after you ingested the alcohol.

Once the alcoholic substance enters your bloodstream, it will start to wreak havoc on your body. Blood pressure drops, electrolytes get depleted, and nutrients are flushed out. And since alcohol is a strong diuretic, it will also cause dehydration.

Research shows that hangovers vary per person. It all depends on your alcohol tolerance and how your body reacts to the alcoholic substance.

In general, the more alcohol you drink, the more intense the hangover will be. It’s because your body has to work overtime to flush out the

In general, the following are the symptoms of a hangover:

• Intense headaches
• Excessive thirst
• Nausea
• Stomach ache
• Muscle pain
• Weakness
• Fatigue
• Sensitivity to sound and light
• Decreased/increased blood pressure

However, those with alcohol use disorder will suffer from more intense and lingering symptoms. Meanwhile, some drinkers report stronger symptoms on their first time drinking heavy alcoholic beverages.

Causes of hangover

In general, it’s easy to understand that alcohol itself causes hangovers. Still, there’s so much that happens inside your body after consuming this substance.

Here are the physiological effects of alcohol that leads to a hangover:

Dehydration. Alcohol speeds up the depletion of fluids in your body, which will lead to dehydration. It explains why you feel thirsty the morning after. This is also the major culprit why you experience massive headaches.

Nutrient depletion. As fluids get flushed out of your body, the nutrients are reduced as well. It will also lead to electrolyte loss, which will throw your system out of balance. This is the reason why you feel weak the next day.

Low blood sugar. If you don’t eat properly before drinking, your blood sugar will dwindle. This will also make your hangover worse, not to mention that you’ll be overcome by fatigue.

Disrupted sleep. When you consume large amounts of alcohol, you tend to sleep faster. However, this sleep is often fragmented and not as well-rested as when you’re sober. This makes headaches and fatigue worse in the morning after you drink alcohol.

Duration of a hangover

Most hangovers last for around 8 to 24 hours. This is called an ‘all-day’ hangover, which will impact your productivity. Nevertheless, the symptoms often fade away and won’t result in long-term effects.

However, research suggests that some people could experience the symptoms for as long as 72 hours. The prolonged effects of alcohol can have long-term repercussions, especially for those who drink often.

Moreover, this can be a warning from your body that you’re at risk for liver disease. If the symptoms linger after 3 days, you should consider going to a doctor.

In general, there are some factors that may affect how long your hangovers will be. Here are some of them:

Amount of alcohol you took. The more you chug, the longer your hangovers will be. If you only sip a glass of red wine, you’ll be fine. But if you down tall mugs of beer, expect to have the worse hangover.

Medications you have. If you’re taking anti-depressants, your body will have a harder time breaking down alcohol. It’s best to consult your physician first before going on a wild night out.

Current health conditions. Most healthy individuals can ride out of severe hangovers unscathed. However, if you have conditions like diabetes, kidney disease, or liver disease, you will suffer from intense symptoms.

How to speed up hangover recovery

Also, some people make the mistake of taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) combined with alcohol. While this seems like a good way to ease your symptoms, it’s actually highly dangerous for your body. It will tax your liver and lead to serious illnesses if done regularly.

Aside from that, there’s the so-called ‘hair of the dog’. The context is that the person should take a shot of alcohol in the morning to combat hangover symptoms. This is purely anecdotal and scientifically impossible to stop alcohol side effects. In fact, it will only make you feel much worse.

Instead, you should drink water, eat carbs, and sip some warm broth. This will help reset your stomach and supply your body with nutrients slowly.

If you want to speed up your recovery, you can try hangover IV therapy. This intravenous treatment delivers nutrients straight into your bloodstream for fast results. It will curb dehydration and restore lost nutrients. Right after the treatment, you’ll feel refreshed and with little to no symptoms.

Here at IV Concierge, we have specialized hangover IV drips. Whether you’re dealing with mild symptoms or the worst hangover of your life, we have the infusion to get you back up.