We’ve all been there: you went a little too hard. Perhaps you’d gone out for a big post-exams bash with all your mates. Perhaps you said you would only go out for “one” and it turned a little excessive.
Whatever it is, the morning after you might be feeling a panicky, anxiety-ridden, looming sense of dread. And while drinking culture at Uni can be a fun and friendly whirl of neon disco lights, funny tales, and socialising, it can also open up other, less favourable aspects of student life: peer pressure, loneliness, and of course the dreaded morning after, when, once all the dopamine sensors are well and truly fried, worries about the night-before can slowly begin to creep under the skin.
‘Hangxiety’ (a combination of the words ‘Hangover’ and ‘Anxiety’) describes the worrying, crippling deep pit in your stomach you feel after a night of alcohol consumption. It may look like a string of panicked messages to a friend asking about all the things you might or might not have done the night before, or a self-declared ‘I’m seriously never drinking again’ to an onlooking housemate. Whatever it is, the feeling is generally not a nice one.
Yet, hangxiety is a painfully under-discussed and normalised dimension of uni life. The attitude is: you drink, you deal with the consequences. And while taking accountability is generally a good thing, such attitudes tend to ignore how much student culture revolves around drinking and going-out. So, whether you’re a second year frantically trying to fill the holes in your foggy memory, or a first year, over-obsessing over the minor details your brain won’t let you forget, you are not alone! Here’s what to do:
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Have a chat with a good friend: hear them out and let them hear you out.
When it comes to anything in life, talking is truly one of the healthiest ways to air out any worrying or upsetting thoughts you have. Call and have a proper talk with a trusted friend over a hot brew. You may think it’s pointless, even a bit embarrassing to express any sort of negative feelings about the night before.
But often, the extra ‘No you were just having fun!’ from a mate can be just what you need when your mind is burdening you with the thought of all the things that you could have been up to. Talking will help you get out your own head, de-centre your night and hear another side – and who doesn’t love a funny debrief about the night before!
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Remember: No-One Cares.
On more cynical days we might complain about the selfishness of the world – the TikTokers and wannabe reality stars, ‘main character syndrome’, and how nobody asks each other how they are. On hangxiety mornings we should celebrate this! No-one cares what you did last night: everybody’s just thinking about their own night out, what they did, and what scran they’re going to have to recover from it. You’re not a celeb plastered on the Daily Mail! Most times, people won’t even remember. Ask yourself if you are thinking extensively about anyone else’s night and then sit in the comfort that nobody else is really thinking about yours.
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A walk and some fresh air go a long way!
A cliché but truly a gem: leaving your warm and comfy nest for the nippy outdoors is a game-changer. It may seem long and a tiresome effort, but walking helps to get some of that healthy dopamine back into your system, breaking the chain of overthinking and refreshing your thoughts. Grab a mate, get out your house and get moving!
