# Why don't I get hangovers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 22, 2002, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341 "2002-05-22T17:33:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2002, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/21 "2002-05-23T16:40:59Z")
I think I might be one of the lucky people, genetically-speaking. I used to drink like a fish and only rarely got hang-overs. Of course, I used to do a lot of other drugs as well, so perhaps sometimes I was just “medicating” myself. I also tend to drink a lot of liquid in general, so perhaps I never got as dehydrated as many people. Also, usually whenever I got extremely drunk, I’d end up sleeping most of the next day, so maybe my hang-over was just gone by the time I woke up. Sixteen or seventeen hours of sleep will cure a lot. ---
**Author:** ![EchoKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@EchoKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EchoKitty)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2002, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/22 "2002-05-23T20:27:27Z")
Champagne is a killer hangover. As is gin. Guaranteed to hurt ya, in the right quantities. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2002, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/23 "2002-05-24T01:11:37Z")
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**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2002, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/24 "2002-05-24T01:12:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by peepthis \* > \*\*My understanding is that the ability to drink to excess without getting hangovers is one of many possible genetic predispositions to alcoholism. In other words, you can drink without (outwardly) having physical repercussions, so you are not disinclined to keep doing it. > > I believe the same is true for those who get “black outs” when they drink. \*\* I’ve thought there might be something to that. If you don’t pay for it, you’re more inclined to do it again. Can’t say I’ve ever had a blackout though. I have had trouble remembering just what happened the night before occasionally. but I had a friend who drank himself into blackouts and I can say I’ve never experienced that. He’d hit a whole different personality & disappear for hours at a time, return & not know where he was or what he’d done. Me (most of the time), I hit a point where I’m feeling whoosy & cut myself off, or I hit a point where it’s like, “I have to sleep now. No, I mean NOW.” Doesn’t matter if it’s in a booth, the bartop, or your shoulder or lap. It’s like, \. But I wake up feeling fine. ---
**Author:** ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2002, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/25 "2002-05-24T01:36:55Z")
I expect you’re just young. I’m in my mid-40’s (which I suspect is ancient for this board) and I find it harder and harder to wake up perky after a night drinking. Drink wine and tequila, in quantity, during the same evening and see how you do… ---
**Author:** ![Aceospades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Aceospades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aceospades)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2002, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/26 "2002-05-24T03:37:21Z")
Just start mixing things. Go to a bar and try all those bottles that you have no idea what they are. Things like drambuie or Tia Maria, or arminac(sp). Spend more money then you can afford on these types of achole (tipping the bartender well), and what ever you do, don’t drink water. Go home and set your alarm clock real early. Now here’s the thing, you have to get up when the alarm goes off. Lying there real still and trying to go back to sleep doesn’t count. Get up and go out into the bright morning sun. It also helps if you have to go to work the next morning. In my experience the worst hangovers are the ones you have to work through. Have fun ---
**Author:** ![domesticatedjunglefowl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b38774/32.png) [@domesticatedjunglefowl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/domesticatedjunglefowl)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2002, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/27 "2002-05-24T15:25:18Z")
from what i understand, it is the drinks with higher levels of sugar that cause the hangovers, i.e. pina coladas and daquiris. im recovering right now from one from drinking a mix of triple sec and vodka. my good friend cruzan 120 hasnt ever given me a hangover, but i almost always wake up tipsy (heh heh) ---
**Author:** ![chigirl87](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/fbc32d/32.png) [@chigirl87](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chigirl87)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/28 "2011-05-20T03:43:16Z")
I have been wondering the same thing. I have always been able to out drink most of my friends, and we do not drink low quality. We also always mix up what we are drinking between beer, mixed drinks, shots, and blended drinks. They always wake up with awful hangovers or at least a headache. On normal nights, I can usually sleep from around 10-12 hours per night. When I drink, however, I wake up around 6 or 7 in the morning completely full of energy. I am unable to fall back asleep so I usually end up cleaning the mess and a variety of other things. I have “blacked out” numerous times and in the morning, still nothing short of shooting out of bed and being hyper. ---
**Author:** ![GameHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ed655f/32.png) [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/29 "2011-05-20T04:03:27Z")
> [@My\_Darn\_Snake\_Legs](#): > > I personally hear that wine is the worst hangover ever Not quite. Cheap red wine - bad hangover. Cheap tequila - worse hangover Cheap whiskey - Oh God, death seems like mercy ---
**Author:** ![The\_Conqueror\_Worm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@The\_Conqueror\_Worm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Conqueror_Worm)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/30 "2011-05-20T04:48:46Z")
Do zombies get hangovers? More to the point, I would have liked to have asked the responders in this thread their age and whether or not there was a history of alcoholism in their family. My experience says those are two huge determining factors. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/31 "2011-05-20T04:48:59Z")
zombies because of their sweetness can lead to over consumption of that high quantity rum drink and produce a bad hangover. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/32 "2011-05-20T05:05:16Z")
In college I never got hangovers, no matter how much I had to drink. Those of you who remember my earlier days on the board know how much that was… Anyway, when I hit 25, that changed. I think something broke in my liver ☹ I also get blackouts, but that’s been an issue since forever. I don’t mind hangovers, but blackouts kinda frighten me. Most people don’t even know I’m out like a light, because by all outward appearances I’m usually fine. Ah, sorry for the hijack. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/33 "2011-05-20T12:22:57Z")
I’ve never had a hangover, no matter how much I drank. At worst, I’d wake up still drunk. But then I rarely drink a lot, even in my college days. For me, I seem to metabolize alcohol quickly; I can feel the effects within a half hour, and start feeling sober within an hour of stopping. In addition, most of the hangover is dehydration: if you drink water before going to sleep, it should help. ---
**Author:** ![komolono](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/komolono/32/532_2.png) [@komolono](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/komolono)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/34 "2011-05-20T16:50:47Z")
Don’t try this at home: Lose all yor money and friends. cut some parts of your body, drink for it and voila… ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/35 "2011-05-20T17:35:34Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Go for several $2 bottles of Mad dog 20-20 Where are you getting Mad Dog for only 2 bucks? That shit has gotten pricey around here. For a good old fashioned “I swear, I will never drink again…!” hangover, slam (and I mean SLAM) down 3 cans of [THIS](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fMhEiq7kE5A/TZob9SgKMEI/AAAAAAAAGi0/4LTs0PdbLgU/s1600/colt+45+blast.jpg) stuff. The next day you’ll feel like you soaked your skull in gasoline and lit your head on fire. While you’re slamming that stuff, down some shots of [THIS](http://www.missionliquor.com/Store/Qstore/uploads/fireball_orig.jpg) stuff. Not only will it add to your next day nauseous headache, your asshole will burn like a motherlover, too! Now **THAT’S** a hangover!!!:eek: If none of this works, we’ll introduce you to an alcohol enema! First invented in Stevens Point by some college students with very little spending money. Can’t get a hangover!:rolleyes: Honestly! This may not be something to brag about, but some of you folks need to take a vacation to Wisconsin. We’ll show you how to freaking drink!😃 ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/36 "2011-05-20T18:19:20Z")
Wow, new record zombie for me. > [@pkbites](#): > > Can’t get a hangover!:rolleyes: Honestly! This may not be something to brag about, but some of you folks need to take a vacation to Wisconsin. We’ll show you how to freaking drink!😃 Wisconsin is where I grew up, and learned to drink. There’s nothing else to frakkin’ do there. Quit drinking a few years back. It wasn’t a big deal with counseling and AA or anything. I’m not aware of any alcoholism in the family. I am/was the biggest drinker in the bunch. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/37 "2011-05-20T19:55:31Z")
The only cure for not getting a hangover is drinking more. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/38 "2011-05-20T20:04:53Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Where are you getting Mad Dog for only 2 bucks? That shit has gotten pricey around here. 2002 zombie dollars. ---
**Author:** ![Daylate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9dc877/32.png) [@Daylate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daylate)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/39 "2011-05-20T23:30:12Z")
I am blessed in several ways, boozewise. One is that I _ **never** _ ever get a hangover, a headache, or an upset stomach. And this is after beer then martinis then wine. Frustrates the heck out of my friends. The second is that I have a total inability to detect the slighest difference between the most expensive gin or vodka and the cheapest. This has saved me a lot of money over the years. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341/40 "2011-05-20T23:40:40Z")
> [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](#): > > I expect you’re just young. I’m in my mid-40’s (which I suspect is ancient for this board) and I find it harder and harder to wake up perky after a night drinking. Yep. Nine years after my initial post in this thread, I’m definitely not as impervious to hangovers as I used to be. (I’m turning 36 this year.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-i-get-hangovers/110341.md?page=3)