Hangover question--why the "fuzzy" feeling?

August 26, 2007 12:48 PM

Hangover question--why the "fuzzy" feeling?

I am pretty susceptible to the effects of alcohol. A couple of times a month a night out on the town results in a hangover.

The day after I drink my thinking seems really "fuzzy." My reaction time is slow and I just feel really dense and out of it.

Is this typical of a hangover? I have heard about the sick feelings (headache, nausea, sensitivity to light, etc.), but I get the "dumb" feelings even when I'm not hungover enough to feel all that sick (i.e. I had 2 and a half or 3 drinks).

Secondly, while I know getting hangovers in the first place is not ideal, does my body's reaction indicate some sort of inability to handle alcohol? In other words, am I killing all manner of brain cells when I have 3 drinks in a night (which doesn't seem all that excessive to me and doesn't happen more than 3x/month)?

I should also mention that I take Wellbutrin. How would this influence my body's reaction to alcohol? I'm not so concerned about the day after, but would love reassurance that I'm not doing irreparable damage to the gray matter.

posted by mintchip to health & fitness (7 comments total)

Your reaction to alcohol sounds pretty normal. I feel the same way after a night out of booze, or, ahem, smoking.

It has been said that much (but not all) of a hangover is caused by simple dehydration, due to the diaretic effect of alcohol. I have found that a couple glasses of water before I leave the bar, or before I go to bed, helps me a lot the next day.
posted by Brian James at 12:56 PM on August 26, 2007

Alcohol is also known to disrupt your sleep, so it's not unreasonable that you may simply be not as well rested as when you don't drink.
posted by hungrysquirrels at 1:07 PM on August 26, 2007

from http://www.crazymeds.org/wellbutrin.html

Wellbutrin is really tough on your liver. With the triple metabolism your liver is going to be very busy with Wellbutrin . The ever-popular CYP450 enzymes are used for some of the metabolism, other enzymes, as yet unidentified, are used for the other metabolisms. The only warning about alcohol and Wellbutrin concerns seizures. In the real world you don't know what the combination is going to get you, you may be able to hold your liquor better or you may become a total lightweight. In either case expect your hangovers to be much worse than they were before Wellbutrin (bupropion hydrochloride) . I recommend greatly reducing your alcohol intake when taking Wellbutrin (bupropion hydrochloride) , just because of the amount of work your liver does already.

So YMMV but it sounds like YM is Ving more than some.
posted by xueexueg at 1:34 PM on August 26, 2007

I drink plenty, yet I've never had a headache, been nauseous or all the cliche hangover stereotypes. The only way I can describe a hangover is, well, being hungover. Just feel rough. And yeah, my thought-process can be slowed down quite a bit, like being very tired and unable to think straight.
posted by slimepuppy at 1:55 PM on August 26, 2007

I've rarely gotten the super all-out pukey hangover feeling, but my hangovers are generally more along the lines of the "fuzzy" feeling you describe. And that's when I abuse myself with drink the night before. I wouldn't worry about killing all your brain cells with a few drinks here and there.

The best way to avoid hangovers on nights of heavy drinking, I've found, is to have a glass of water after each alcoholic drink. It means, though, that you have to take a leak quite frequently.

Recovering from drinking has also become more difficult with age -- I've seen a decline in my ability to handle alcohol during my late twenties.
posted by puritycontrol at 4:17 PM on August 26, 2007

Wellbutrin, although it's usually considered an "activator" mentally, sometimes causes fuzzy head and slow thoughts all by itself.
posted by StickyCarpet at 1:00 AM on August 27, 2007

I drank half a fifth of Stoli last night, and boy is my thinking fuzzy today.

I prefer being sharp in the mornings, and this is ridiculous.

I should note I am only writing this because I searched for "brain fuzzy after I drink" and it was the first result.

Or maybe I am only writing it because I have no idea what I am doing.

I am a marshmallow.
posted by four panels at 8:47 AM on November 2, 2007