Anti-nausea medicine for a hangover

Some nausea medicines cause drowsiness or dizziness, which alcohol can intensify. Do not combine a product with more alcohol, and check the active ingredient with a pharmacist if you take regular medicines or have liver, heart, stomach, or kidney problems.

Alcohol can irritate the stomach lining, disturb sleep, alter fluid balance, and affect blood glucose regulation. Headache, thirst, dizziness, sensitivity to light, and vomiting may accompany the nausea. Treating only the sick feeling can therefore leave the main contributors unchanged.

Nausea after drinking is not always a routine hangover. Repeated vomiting, severe upper abdominal pain, unusual sleepiness, confusion, or symptoms after a small amount of alcohol point to a need for medical assessment.

Stop drinking alcohol. Take slow, frequent sips of water or an oral rehydration drink rather than swallowing a large volume at once. When tolerated, choose bland food and rest in a safe place; do not drive, swim alone, or operate machinery while impaired or drowsy.

Before using any remedy, read the ingredient list and avoid doubling up products with the same medicine. A pharmacist can identify sedating ingredients and check interactions. Do not use someone else's prescription anti-nausea medicine or take extra doses because vomiting continues.

Call emergency services for slow or irregular breathing, blue or very pale skin, a seizure, collapse, severe confusion, or inability to wake the person. Keep them on their side if they are breathing and do not leave them alone or try to make them vomit.

Seek prompt care for blood or coffee-ground material in vomit, black stools, intense abdominal or chest pain, persistent vomiting, very little urine, fainting, or worsening symptoms. Mention any possible drink tampering, injury, or use of recreational drugs or medicines.

If hangovers or vomiting recur, ask whether alcohol is aggravating reflux or gastritis, whether your medicines interact with alcohol, and what support is available to reduce drinking. Be specific about what and when you drank so the advice fits the exposure.