Letters to the Editor
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Brain Drano
As a person who nearly falls asleep after two drinks, I don't have much to contribute to the discussion of alcohol.
But I am familiar with the state of feeling purged, revitalized, just about born again after an 8 or 10 hour acid trip, so I find this letter intriguing.
There must be some type of chemical activity that goes on during the altered state of consciousness, with your mind discharging all kinds of clutter and stuff (even if it's beautiful stuff, like on acid) that just seems to get in the way of ordinary productiveness. Perhaps sweeping it all out during the period of intoxication, releasing all manner of thoughts, feelings and even aggression, renews psychic and physical energy for some people.
People who regularly fast report similar energizing experiences, with the added benefits of staying slim and cleaning out the old colon. Maybe that's the answer for those of us who are fond of that emptied-yet-fulfilled feeling.
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exercise?
As a medium-level, slowly (and partially) recovering drunk (I have never been as bad as Cary was, but I was definitely bad enough to need to quit), I totally identify with this. I haven't had a drink in 2 months and my house is a disaster area. Used to be, in the good old days, my hangover would wake me up by 6 in a guilt-fueled frenzy and there I'd be, scouring the stovetop, writing important letters that should have been written last month, etc, etc. It's amazing the stuff that does not get done, when you don't drink! But, I thought I quit drinking so I'd get something done?
Hmm. No, really, in the big picture, that feeling of finally being in control of your life -- for real -- is a great side effect of sobriety. I do feel magnificently stable.
But to replace the hangover? The only thing that comes close is a long, hard run. Of course, then I'm too tired to scour the stovetop. But emotionally, it's even better than a hangover. Guilt free.
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to cary
By the way. At some point, after you have enough material, I really think you should put together a book specifically on your alcohol-related columns... including even some of the letters. I have been going in circles with alcohol for years, to some extent, and I think the Salon letters following your Drinking Columns have provided me with some of the best insight on the problem of alcohol that I've seen anywhere. I love your approach. And I love the letters feedback.
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Reilly is a b**ch
Hopefully you'll forgive me if this ends up sounding like a 15 year old on his first mushroom trip, but...
I smoke a lot of cigarettes - sometimes, 1-4 packs a day. But I don't inhale, I just puff on them. And I've been rolling them lately. Why? Well, because it makes it (for lack of a better way to describe it) a little ritual. But I notice that since doing so, in general, I smoke less. And I was thinking earlier about how part of addiction is physical and the other part is psychological and sometimes kicking something is partially fooling oneself into not doing it anymore.
That being said, I'm not a drinking person - I'm a drug person. I quit having Major Habits years ago, but I still take the occasional "vacation." And I've felt the exact same way you do when you're hungover. Your body is probably just dependent on alcohol. You're feeding (and satisfying) your limbic system. Your limbic system gets scurvy. You feed it and you're good to go the next morning.
re: cure in a pill
Ativan, valium, etc. will do the same thing for you. If I remember correctly, its effect on a bio-chemical level is remarkably similar to that of alcohol. Get a prescription, take one before you go to bed, you'll be on your A-game the next day. Don't take too much - benzo hangovers are way less fun than alcohol hangovers.
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After booze productivity
This friend I have (wink wink) cleans her house when she is at the end of her drinking binge. She also takes care of all those mundane tasks that in her normal state she is too high energy to deal with. So perhaps this hungover feeling is slowing you enough to be productive. Kind of like caffeine assists the A.D.D. mind to focus.
A reverse positive effect sounds like it works in your case. Chemistry and intention.
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the cure is the same, whatever the cause
I'm not even slightly familiar with what it feels like to be hung over, but I am familiar with needing to get things done, not wanting to get things done, waiting until I feel like I want to do things. I have a feeling the cure is the same whatever the cause: just do it. Hate to sound like a Nike ad, but it's true. You have to teach yourself to do it whether you feel like doing it or not. Do it when your soul feels like a butterfly on a cold morning waiting for the first rays of sun to warm its wings enough for it to fly. The soul is not a cold-blooded animal. The soul generates its own heat. But only if it gets moving. Do it when you don't have the feeling and you'll get that feeling back someday.
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Too dazed and confused to worry
Yes, I have the same experience. For the most part , I am a thinker ; and a worrier. I always have a lot of things on my mind and cannot decide which task I should attempt to accomplish to set things straight in my life. But , when I'm hung over ; I'm too dazed and confused to have more than one thing on my mind. It simplifies things for me . Since I can think of only one thing to do at a time , I set out to do that thing and accomplish it . I also can't remember what it is I've been worrying about , so I'm stress free that day. I don't have a hangover every day , just on the occasion that I have felt the need to blow off steam the night before. So, I guess one could say it works ! It's a little mini vacation , that is ; as long as there were no arguments or foolishness the night before. And I certainly wouldn't want to "blow off steam" every night , because that would leave me dazed and confused every day ; which would lead to an empty life. But once in a while, maybe that's ok.