The morning after a night of heavy drinking, you may be sicker than you ever could have imagined. Despite the fact that alcohol has been around for thousands of years, few real remedies have been discovered. However, it seems that since humans love to imbibe, many interesting remedies have been created.

For instance, in the middle ages, raw eel was included in concoctions. Even today, remedies are slightly strange - for instance, at 3 AM when you should be sound asleep in your bed, you may stagger home for a cold shower and black coffee - and then wonder why you feel terrible in the morning. So, what remedies actually work? Here are some of the tried and true methods that you can give a try for yourself.

Hitting the local Starbucks or all night diners for a cup of black coffee has long been a standard "cure" for hangovers. While you will no longer be falling asleep drunk, you will still be drunk - just wide awake. Caffeine does not sober you up, though it may help your headache. However, it can also dehydrate you further and irritate your stomach, making you all the more miserable once it wears off.

One of the biggest mistakes is to drink coffee before trying to go to bed. Best case scenario it will disrupt your sleep - assuming you can get to sleep at all. If you need coffee to get your engine started in the morning, have a small cup. Otherwise, you may suffer from caffeine withdrawals on top of your hangover.

Of course, every good alcoholic will tell you that having a drink in the morning will help ward off the hangover. While this may help the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal your body experiences, it is only prolonging your suffering. Your body still has to process the alcohol from the night before, plus whatever new stuff you put in, and, unless you continue drinking yourself into oblivion, you will eventually have to deal with the after effects. All in all, a drink the next day is just going to put you further on the road to a drinking problem.

Some drinkers turn to natural remedies to solve their hangover issues. However, some people find the "cure" to be worse than the sickness. Milk thistle is often used for people suffering from liver problems, and can help improve liver function. Taking it may help your liver eliminate the toxins from the alcohol better. Gingerroot tea can help settle that nauseous stomach in the morning. Fresh fruit and vegetable juices can get nutrients into your body quickly and help get you hydrated again. Soup can also help to hydrate, and soothes the stomach as well as providing much needed nutrients.

Of course, there are always the hangover recipes that you can try out. Many of these are a mixture of alcohol, juice, and flavorings. Again, keep in mind that in most cases, drinking more alcohol will only prolong your pain and can lead to big problems down the road. At best, these recipes provide temporary relief.

Time is the only real cure for a hangover. So, if you are going to drink, make sure you schedule time to recover.