Can a hangover have a role in regulating our emotions? Most of the time, it is manifested by physiological symptoms such as headache, nausea, feeling thirsty or increased fatigue.
But it happens that anxiety, nicknamed “hangxiety”, manifests itself the day after a drunken evening and takes a toll on our morale. According to one study of the Journal Clinical of Medicine published in 2019, 12% of people are affected by this anxiety associated with a hangover.
What is “hangxiety”?
The term “hangxiety” results from the contraction of “hangover” (hangover in English) and “anxiety” (anxiety).
In a hangover, the body is under pressure, like when it is sick. In response to this pressure, he will create a state of physiological stress. The level of cortisol – the stress hormone – increases, as well as blood pressure and heart rate.
But the body isn’t the only one responding with all these hangover-induced changes. For its part, the brain is slowed down by the ingestion of alcohol the day before. Brain activity involving dopamine is lower than normal. However, the dopamine is the neurotransmitter responsible for regulating anxiety.
Stress then skyrockets and a negative shift in emotions takes place, as explained another study. Combined with lack of sleep, stress leads to a significant drop in mood and cognitive functions. Thus, in a hangover, it will be more difficult to control our emotions, but also to perform simple daily tasks. This impacts executive functions (working memory, self-control), which usually help cope with anxiety and inhibit anxious thoughts.
So it’s a vicious circle. The management of daily tasks is made complicated, so the person finds it difficult to get up and feels bad for not being more active and falls into anxiety.
Why are some people more affected than others?
Rare are the people who have not suffered any physiological pain the day after a drunken evening. But not everyone experiences anxiety the same way.
First, people who “catastrophize pain” or who constantly expect the worst tend to experience more anxiety. Likewise, people who experience anxiety in general or shy people will feel the “hangxiety” more.
Finally, external elements can be at the origin of these mood changes, in particular negative life events, depression, anger, guilt about drinking or even personality traits.
What solutions to deal with “hangxiety”?
As in classic anxiety situations, some tips can be beneficial to get through this unpleasant moment. At first, the meditation or mindfulness practice can act.
And when excessive alcohol consumption is planned, it is important to organize yourself in advance, in order to be sure that the next day is free to be able to rest, and thus not miss your daily tasks, such as work for example. It is also important not to expose yourself to an additional stress factor, with professional or family problems: the body is already undergoing enough external stimulation.
But ultimately, the best solution to hangovers and “hangxiety” is to consume alcohol in moderationor even not to consume it at all!
Sources:
- Does Alcohol Hangover Affect Emotion Regulation Capacity? Evidence From a Naturalistic Cross-Over Study DesignMedical Council on Alcohol, November 2020
- The Association between Alcohol Hangover Frequency and Severity: Evidence for Reverse Tolerance?Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2019
- Alcohol hangover impacts learning and reward processing within the medial-frontal cortexWiley Online Library, 2018
Read also:
- AT what age should you really avoid alcohol?
- Testimonial: “Freed from alcohol, I am a happy abstainer”
- Alcohol addiction: numbers, symptoms and treatment
