That morning after feeling

Ever woken up the morning after the night before, asking yourself why you had to have that one last drink? If so, you're far from being alone.

Waking up on a morning, feeling like death with chores to do or a job to go to is a feeling most people have had at least once.

Sometimes it makes me wish I was young again, when Friday nights were all about hanging out with your mates, down the local park, with no cares in the world.

Now we're drinking in the local pubs - still hanging out with friends - life seems more grown up and fun.

It started being that when the minute I finally graduated from the zoo (other people call it high school).

I was finally free to let my hair down, go out every weekend and have the time of my life.

I worked through the day on Saturday, at a rubbish job - which gave me my beer money - then stayed in bed on a Sunday, curing the rough, banging feeling you get after drinking alcohol.

I'm sure that alcohol should be illegal, but I wasn't complaining when it was two for one in the pub down town!

Why do we do it to ourselves? It's the famous question everyone asks after one of the heavy nights out, when we wake up groggy, with last night's make-up smudged all over and a strange smell in the room, which you cant quite put your finger on.

Then there's the random texts from someone called Tom, who says he enjoyed last night.

Plus loads of missed calls from your mates, wondering if you made it home.

In the glossy magazines, they tell you to drink plenty of water and gives you lots of stupid ways to get over the hangover.

Things like standing on you head to get the water and blood pumping round. Apparently, you'll feel great.

But in reality, you drink a pint of water get a funny taste inside your mouth and wait for that sick feeling to happen.

Then you lament the waste of all those pretty multi-coloured shot drinks, which were only four for £5!

For me, the typical night out starts with drinks at the local, downing the weird foreign bottles.

Then on to a few bars and into the club.

After all this, parts of your mind can be a blank. Probably you're brain's way of protecting you from the embarrassment of what you got up to.

That is until your `friends' politely fill you in on every minute detail.

Apparently you got off with the weird kid you used to sit next to in maths, who used to scare you by muttering words under his breath. Your standards certainly dropped as the slow songs came on!

The only thing to do is put it down to feeling lonely at the end of a very long night, plus being slightly gutted that your best mate went off with the fittie you've fancied for ages!

Although after a few days, you can look back and have a good giggle, while covering your bright red face.

There's worse news....you find your summer holiday fund has been drained considerably and there's a cigarette burn in your favourite top.

But you know the whole thing is going to be repeated again this weekend.

You're gearing up for another excellent night out - same place, same time, same faces, but you wouldn't change a thing.

So why do we do it to ourselves, when we are older - and allegedly wiser? It's because now we can stay up and party all night if we want to.

We don't need to be young again to have that feeling of excitement.

Instead of having no cares at all, we've settled for having none until the morning comes.

WHY DOES DRINK MAKE YOU FEEL SO BAD?

Dehydration: Alcohol is a diuretic, making you get rid of water. Dehydration causes the brain to shrink away from the skull slightly, triggering pain sensors on the surface of your brain.

Vital electrolytes - like magnesium and potassium - leave the body when you drink.

Tiredness: Alcohol lowers your blood sugar levels. Along with the late night, this contributes to extensive yawning the following day.

Free radicals: These harmful molecules are formed in the liver as it struggles to break down alcohol. Usually, they are seen off by an anti-oxidant called glutathione - but its reserves can run low after a drinking session.

FOOLPROOF HANGOVER CURES?

Sadly, there aren't any. Prevention is better than a cure. Try and drink plenty of water or fruit juice - both during the night and the next day.

Avoid fizzy drinks, they speed up alcohol absorption and get you drunk quickly.

Eat a good meal, with fat and protein, before you go out. It will stop alcohol being absorbed so fast, giving your liver time to cope.

If you still suffer the next day, only going back to bed will really help!

DANGERS OF DRINK:

Dodgy sex: Being drunk makes people more likely to indulge in more careless sexual behaviour - exposing them to risks such as STDs.

Drink driving: Although we all know it's wrong to drive after drinking, many still get behind the wheel. The legal limit for alcohol while driving is 35microgrammes in 100ml of breath. Anything over a pint of beer will probably push you over the limit. But as alcohol affects everyone differently at different times, it's safer to stay off the booze full stop.

Remember you can still be over the limit the morning after a heavy drinking session.

Organ damage: Especially to the liver, which has to process all the alcohol.

A major session can affect the brain-stem, which controls the basic functions of the body. This can lead to lack of consciousness and even death.

Beer goggles: can help you pull on a night out. But boys be warned...beer can be bad news in the bedroom as it causes problems such as 'brewer's droop'.

HOW MANY UNITS ARE YOU DRINKING?

Doctors recommend that women only drink 14 units of alcohol per week and men should limit themselves to 21 units.

A unit is 10ml - or 8 grammes - of pure alcohol.

It takes an hour for one unit of alcohol to be broken down and leave the body.

It's not advisable to drink all your units in one go - as long-term binge drinking can do serious damage.

The amount of units in a drink varies according to its size and strength. But here is a rough guide:

*Pint of normal strength beer, lager or cider - two units.

*One small (125 ml) glass of wine - one unit. However, most glasses in pubs and at home are larger than this.

*25ml pub measure of spirits - one unit. Be careful though, some pubs serve double measures as standard.

The Huddersfield Daily Examiner