Before you go out
Eat a real meal with fat and protein. Drink a full glass of water. Put a liter of water and a packet of electrolytes next to your bed now, while you are sober.
While you are out
One glass of water for every drink. Clear spirits are lower in congeners than dark ones. Skip the shots after midnight; the drinks you remember least do the most damage.
Before bed
The water and electrolytes by the bed, all of it. A light snack. Phone face down, blinds closed. Do not take acetaminophen (Tylenol) with alcohol in your system; it is hard on the liver.
The morning after: what a hangover actually is
Three things: dehydration, an inflamed gut and brain, and the leftover acetaldehyde your liver is still clearing. Coffee fixes none of them. Greasy food fixes none of them. Fluids, electrolytes, anti-nausea and anti-inflammatory support fix the first two, and time fixes the third.
The three things that actually help
1. A liter of fluid with electrolytes, by mouth if you can keep it down, by IV if you cannot. 2. Something for the nausea so the fluid stays in. 3. An anti-inflammatory for the headache that is not Tylenol. That is exactly what the Hangover IV is: $299, a nurse at your couch, usually within 1 to 3 hours in the city.
When it is not a hangover
Vomiting that will not stop after 12 hours, confusion, chest pain, trouble breathing, or a headache unlike any you have had: that is urgent care or 911, not a drip.
All treatments are medical services provided under the clearance of a licensed medical provider. Nothing here is a diagnosis. For an emergency, call 911.
