Of course we know about the first one — the physical hangover, with headaches and fatigue that follow an evening of too much alcohol. But the Depression After Drinking, which extends beyond these physical symptoms .
The following day you may be feeling an increase in worry or paranoia, sadness, hopelessness, and additionally mental depression as you question yourself why the alcohol level makes your mood low.
This little-discussed side effect is commonly known as hangxiety or the ‘depression after drinking’, and can be just as difficult, if not more so than a physical hangover.
In the case of an emotional crash, it is imperative that we understand why drinking them can lead to feelings of depression and even more so, how to curb this.
But in this post we are going to look at how alcohol can combine with mood and why you might feel depressed after drinking, as well as coping mechanisms for coming back from the depths of your DRA (Depressed Rip-Roaring Alcoholic) days.
Why Does Drinking Lead to Depression?
Imbibing alcohol often serves as a social lubricant, reducing both inhibition and restraint. Nonetheless, alcohol is a fickle thing; the happiness that comes from it is temporal and is usually followed by even greater sadness. There are a number of elements that factor into why you may experience depression after drinking:
The Effects of Alcohol on Brain Chemistry:
Alcohol is a depressant that acts upon the central nervous system. It also alters the balance of neurotransmitters in the brain. Most notably, alcohol suppresses serotonin—which is the “feel good” hormone that modulates your mood. When serotonin levels decrease after drinking, it can make you more vulnerable to sad or depressive feelings.
Dehydration and the Nutrition Deficit:
Alcohol is a diuretic, it drains your body of water and essential nutrition. Low level dehydration and a needed vitamin deficiency may stop you from feeling mentally sharp, energetic or emotionally balanced leading to feelings of depression.
Poor Sleep Quality:
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While alcohol might make you drowsy, it does not get you into those deep, REM cycles of sleep necessary for good emotional regulation and mental health. Bad sleep feeds bad emotions the next day due to increased despondency or stress.
Guilt or Shame:
We all know alcohol can make you do stupid, impetuous or embarrassing things when your inhibitions are down. However, when faced with the light of day, it can lead to guilt or shame and worsen an already dismal mood.
Existing Mental Health Conditions:
If you have anxiety, depression or any other mental health difficulties alcohol can exacerbate these symptoms leading to an even worse emotional crash.
Signs of Depression After Drinking
The depression caused by drinking shows up in many forms. Here are some common signs:
Hopelessness: When everything feels insurmountable or pointless.
Lack of Energy or Fatigue: Feeling tired, physically exhausted and sluggish or mentally fatigued, despite sleeping well.
More anxiety means you may find yourself more anxious — nervous, fearful or wracked by worry about things that typically wouldn’t have bothered you before.
Frustration/irritability (you find yourself getting angry more easily, or more frustrated than normal)
Regret or Guilt: You can’t quite remember the night before, but you have an inherent sense of regret/embarrassment/guilt.
Negative Thoughts: replaying negative thoughts or being overly critical of yourself.
The body can clear the alcohol out again and albeit it mostly takes 24–48 hours, they will end up resolving spontaneously. Nevertheless, in case depression is something you experience often post-drinking then maybe look into getting a hold of your alcohol consumpti
Coping with Depression After Drinking
Here are some tips if you feel you suffering from depression a night after a drinking bout:
Hydrate and Nourish Your Body
The fastest way to feel better after drinking is to rehydrate. Dehydration not only contributes to depression, but it is also a direct result of alcohol depleting your body of fluids. Consume lots of water or electrolytes fluids be coconut water which helps the body regain it lost in the last 30 days. What helps to combat your nutrient deficiency are the consumption of nutrient-dense food, affluent in vitamins B12 and folate, which can help you make up for what lost while drinking alcohol Water
Get Moving
Great, so the last thing you want to do after a night of drinking is get up and move around but some mild exercise may just be what the doctor ordered. Exercise raises endorphins, your body’s natural mood elevators. Just going out for a short walk can clear your head and lift your spirits, even slightly. However, the sun does tend to have some benefits and fresh air can help a person out mentally as well.
Work It Out (Not All Day)
However, it is very important to rest especially if you can rest too much. While it is tempting to want to sleep the day away, this backfires and makes you even more tired. Instead, try to return that day for a restful nap or if not, early to bed, and your body’s kit again throughout the night.
Be Kind to Yourself
It is easy to feel guilt and pass self-judgement after the wine is gone. But self-compassion is crucial — in order to get past those feelings. Remember that it is normal for everyone to slip up and you are allowed to feel less than perfect after a night out.
It is important to remember that as you sit with your craving, engaging in positive affirmations will help you note this feeling shall pass.
Limit Alcohol consumption
When your drinking results in depression symptoms, maybe it is time to assess your reliance on this substance and try to find some other less harmful ways of having fun.
Reducing or Pause on Alcohol-In some points when drinking has a negative outlook on your mood, then you may be prompted to consume large hopes that it would manage these feelings.
You could also try non-alcoholic options for social events as a starter. So, if you instead find that your mental health dramatically increases when you reduce your alcohol intake — take it as a sign that your body and mind respond well to it.
When to Seek Help
In fact, for many people the depression they experience after a few drinks is because of something bigger: alcohol use disorder or an underlying mental health problem.
However, if depression, anxiety or hopelessness stay with you long after your last drink (typically for more than a few days) or you are finding that alcohol is often used to self-medicate when stressed then it is advised to speak to a professional.
Some of the reasons for your drinking might need to be worked out with a therapist or counselor, as well as ways you can still drink and take care of yourself mentally.
FAQ: Depression After Drinking
Q1.Why do I feel depressed when I drink alcohol?
Alcohol shifts the balance of chemicals in your brain by reducing neurotransmitters, like serotonin, that regulate mood. If you have had the exact same drink as everyone else and they all appear drunker than you after a couple of hours, it could also lead to feelings of depression following drinking such as: when alcohol is still drawing on feeling good but know the mood steps are appreciated.
Q2. Do you get depression after drinking?
For sure, a lot of people feel that way after drinking — especially if you are pounding it down and had an underlying mental health condition. Most people do not talk about it, but this is a fairly common phenomenon.
Q3: How long does a depression from drinking last?
It can last anything from 24 to about 48 hours for your body metabolize the alcohol and re harmonise itself. If you feel depressed for more than just a day or if these feelings are re-occurring, consider talking to someone good health care professional.
Q4: Could we lessen depression by reducing alcohol intake?
Yes, cutting back is the best way to reduce those depressing emotional and physical consequences we feel after imbibing. If you see a trend of low moods after consuming alcohol, relaxing or eliminating alcohol consumption might be worth considering.
Q5. Am I feeling anxious after drinking alcohol?
It can be a quite common occurrence — Post-booze fear; you know, when the next day after drinking you wake up in extreme panic with an awful hangover. It first relaxes you, yet as the comedown it will make anxiety worse as your body has to work extra to get back into balance.
Conclusion: Finding Balance After Drinking
If you develop some good coping strategies—drinking water, moving around, taking a nap, being gentle with yourself, and dialing back the alcohol as necessary—you will ride that wave of emotion without crashing.
Understanding how alcohol can alter your mood and body allows you to become better at choosing when, where and with whom to drink. But above all, if this is something that you deal with more days than not when drinking has happened, please know that help exists and maybe by addressing your own alcohol problem could change your mental health outcome significantly.