hey everyone,
i am wondering if anyone has any ideas about nal hangovers. i suffered all day today after a totally brutal early morning. i have had a couple of these since starting, the last in july, i am wondering why now? i didn't drink more than normal. i am asking in case there are theories of why they happen. next week i am going to a music festival where my normal behavior is drinking beer from mid afternoon til bedtime. now i'm afraid that unless i dramatically reduce my intake i could lose a whole day due to a hangover. that would be awful, but it's hard to imagine having a great time without beer... grrr.
if there are no great theories on how to prevent them, then how about ideas for relief once you already have one?
thanks all
path

Hi Path,

I too have suffered from some hellish hangovers since starting TSM. I can't say for sure if they are worse than before, but I do think I get worse hangovers from less alcohol. White wine in particular has been a killer on TSM, vodka is not nearly as bad.

A friend of mine swears by tomato juice with the juice of one lemon and cayenne pepper as a hangover remedy. That along with Alka Seltzer. And vigorous exercise, which IMHO is nearly impossible with a hangover! I tried these and I must admit, they didn't help ME. But as I said, my friend swears by this.

Good luck!

YG

HI PAth,

Yes, this is VERY common. Nal hangovers are brutal. Its discussed often on the board. I actually had one the other day that had me sick all day. And I think I had my normal 6-8 units.

A bit Clockwork Orangey if you ask me.......

My Best, jim

I had one of those hangovers all day yesterday, and it is quite a deterrent, especially now that my alcohol obsession is diminished. I think my rational brain is starting to overtake my addicted brain. I'm with Jim, definintely Clockwork Orange-y!

I had two this week where I drank my normal but felt pretty knarly the day after. I'm not used to that at all. Both times I also stayed up too late to finish off the wine, so the lack of sleep probably contributed, but even then, it was different than it has been.

so I think like Jim says it may be typical.

yoga, i am with you, intense exercise??? when turning over in bed hurts? not possible. jim, i think you nailed it, totally clockwork orange, aversion therapy at work. i never got hungover pre tsm, i now fear drinking too much. if only i knew where that too much line was...
path

Ugh yes. I tried nal for the first time two nights ago. 50mg and three large glasses of white wine. 1. Woke up at 3a and never fell back asleep. 2. Felt like a zombie. 3. Very dehydrated - my contacts felt like tape in my eyes.

While I did maintain control, the reaction to nal makes me nervous. I'm going to try again at 25mg and see if that helps. A lot of people say side effects go away with time, but I'm using nal episodically....

Yep horrible hangovers here too. A big night on Friday, though not insane compared to pre-TSM standards, and I was vomiting until 5pm the next day. EEEEP. I think that maybe the nal is also processed by the liver, so there's less room for the alcohol to be processed at the same time, so you're going to sleep with all this alcohol sloshing around and you only start to process it the next day (when awake and able to feel the pain). That's my pseudo-scientific theory
I find that LOADS of seltzer water helps, and sticking to light and hydration-heavy foods is good too - yoghurt helps the tummy. Basically avoid the temptation (if you have it) of heavy hangover bacon and eggs and pancakes and what not. But really nothing gets rid of the horror *

Dang! I almost never got hangovers in the past. Now, it seems not to matter what I drink or how little/much, I wake up in the middle of the night with massive headaches. I've been fairly successful in kicking them by taking acetaminophen and drinking lots of water, but not always. I felt okay today after the mid sleep headache, but before I even had my first drink, after taking Nal, I was starting to get a headache. It's gotten significantly worse as I've consumed my first drink.

Aversion therapy! That's not what I signed up for. I was expecting a reduction in craving, which has not happened in 16 weeks of tracking. Does this pass? I'm going to start taking my liver support supplements again, as this has helped with the hangover type headaches in the past. But, this is ridiculous.

It would be very helpful to hear from someone who has had success with TSM and also dealt with these horrible hangovers. What were some tricks you learned? Did it just go away with time? It's a major deterrent and not sure how long I will have to endure it for..