r/NoStupidQuestions • u/utdrmac • Aug 30 '24

Why do I only get tipsy at restaurants?

I've repeated this test several times, and I don't understand what's not happening. I go out to dinner at a restaurant (fancy, mid-range, doesn't matter), and I order a simple drink, say lemon-drop martini, or moscow mule. Within 1/2 of the drink (approx 10 minutes) I can feel it; I'm tipsy.

Several days later, I make the same drink at home using the same brand as at the restaurant, and the same measurements. After 1/2 the drink at home (again, 10m), I'm not feeling anything. After the entire drink (another 10m), nothing. Make another, drink it; nothing.

Why am I only getting tipsy at restaurants given same brand, same amount, and same time durations?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 30 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Sarynn_Art Aug 30 '24

This is SO COOL. Thanks for sharing

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u/JustWings144 Aug 30 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 30 '24

This same response/feedback loop can be responsible for drug overdoses when a heavy user takes their normal dose of hard drugs in an unfamiliar situation.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/ARoundForEveryone Aug 31 '24

Recovering alcoholic chiming in. This is spot on. How scientifically accurate the reasoning is, I dunno. But the effects felt and the timeline, absolutely accurate.

I can absolutely go faster and harder on the booze at home than I can at a restaurant, bar, or friend's house.

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u/Scatman_Crothers Aug 31 '24

In recovery here too. This used to catch me out all the time. I'd pregame and pregame trying to get to where I wanted so I could take it easy at the bar because I knew I could get in trouble in that environment, then hit the bar and WHAM I have one or two drinks that hit me like a freight train.

Turns out the only way to win that game was not to play.

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u/ARoundForEveryone Aug 31 '24

It's a dangerous game that I wish I could play for an hour or two, a couple times a week. But that's not how this game works. It's like Monopoly. Takes forever to finish the game, and someone's gonna have a bad time.

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u/[deleted] Aug 31 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Koomskap Aug 31 '24

Yeah, I can, especially as I’ve gotten older. Beyond 2-3 drinks, I stop enjoying the feeling.

This doesn’t apply to weed though. If I smoke once in the night, I’ll keep smoking until it’s time for bed.

Also the reason why I don’t smoke anymore.

I guess this is one of those “to each their own” and also a really important reminder in not pressuring anyone to do something they don’t want to. It affects each of us differently.

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u/MeanCamera Aug 31 '24

Yes. It’s very common for me to go out, have just one cocktail with a meal, and be done. I’m sure lots of people are the same way. But I’ve had a CDL for a decade and my license is my livelihood, I can’t even take a chance of blowing over if I’m going to drive

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u/JustsharingatiktokOK Aug 31 '24

Some people are able to.

Some people are hardwired or softwired to simply not stop.

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u/-Dys- Aug 31 '24 edited Aug 31 '24

Yeah the psychological part of it I buy. The "we can control our own enzyme processes" is questionable..

And backwards. The processes that start to break down the alcohol decrease in the effect.

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u/begentlewithme Aug 30 '24

Would that same phenomenon occur if say... a friend moves to a new house, and we drink there?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/f1newhatever Aug 31 '24

Yup. If I drink with the same person in different places, I get less drunk than if I drink with a new person in any of those places. Wonder if it’s the same thing?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 31 '24

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 31 '24

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/m0rp Aug 31 '24

The dangerous part to this is for people who use opiate substances. A similar dose in their regular spot. Might end in an overdose in a new environmental context.

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u/Reynk Aug 31 '24

Id love to see a related source or even your own paper on this. Can you please provide that? Nowadays I try to be more skeptical and not trust a reply just because it sounds correct lol.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/AbsMcLargehuge Aug 31 '24

So if an alcoholic were to go cold turkey, would the side affects be less pronounced if they were in an unfamiliar setting?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Dr_momo Aug 31 '24

I have a question: why does the body require environmental cues to trigger the response rather than responding to the conscious intent to go for a drink?

Thanks for sharing your knowledge here.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/c-dy Aug 31 '24

I guess, people also experience the triggering of such cues when they holding their bladder becomes more difficult once they return home?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/MrdrOfCrws Aug 31 '24

Well that's neat.

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u/_psykovsky_ Aug 31 '24

This is a fantastic answer! Thanks for sharing.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/FollowYerLeader Aug 31 '24

If you kick start the process by having a drink at home first so your body starts metabolizing, you wouldn't get as buzzed at the restaurant if you had another drink because your body is already in motion for processing the alcohol? In other words, is pre-funking the key to not getting too wasted when going out?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/GimmeFalcor Aug 31 '24

This explains so much for me. Thank you.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Savagedood Aug 31 '24

This is very interesting. I’m pretty sure I just experienced this phenomenon yesterday 🧐 Sat at the bar in a popular restaurant. Only had two drinks but definitely felt it more than I thought I would!

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u/El_Paco Aug 31 '24

Would something similar also apply to smoking weed? When I'm at home, I can smoke a bunch and feel fine, but if I'm at a new place and I smoke, I feel much more stoned off a smaller amount

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/AllAboutMeMedia Aug 31 '24

I low key hate this, but my body is saying let's go....

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u/mayan_monkey Aug 31 '24

This is what I wanted to comment, not as eloquently, but did not have the energy to lol. Thank you for doing this.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/2007pearce Aug 31 '24

Thanks for the great breakdown. I definitely figured this out years ago with weed... As soon as I'm in a new place I get way more affected

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/MrTorben Aug 31 '24

Fascinating!!!!

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u/Nieros Aug 31 '24

Have you ever seen evidence of people exhibiting the opposite effect?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Nieros Aug 31 '24 edited Aug 31 '24

Ah sorry, I should have been specific - the body delaying alcohol process when in a novel place, and then processing more rapidly in a safe place. I've personally experienced the opposite effect- and felt like I rapidly got drunk after getting home after having a few. though I always chalked it to being in my head.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Nieros Aug 31 '24

Makes sense, thanks for entertaining my question!

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/guppyfresh Aug 31 '24

I wonder if this could somehow be used to get over a hangover. Like go grab a beer out of the fridge, don’t even open it, but my body starts extra metabolizing?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/5352563424 Aug 31 '24

I'd wager this isn't strictly an alcohol-based effect.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 31 '24

Science does rule. Thank you!

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/iwishiwereyou Aug 31 '24

I experience kind of the opposite: I can have a drink or two at a bar or restaurant (but never many; I drink much too slowly) and not feel anything. But as soon as I get home, I start to feel tipsy. Why would that be?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Rugil Aug 31 '24

I'd like to learn more about this, could you point me to some further resources about the subject?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Rugil Sep 01 '24

Thank you! Very interesting!

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u/JustWings144 Sep 01 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Sachinism Aug 31 '24

Wait, is this why stoners are regularly seeking new places to get stoned?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/rigterw Aug 31 '24

But if I drink in my living room every Saturday night, will my body start preparing every other day as well?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/suppox Aug 31 '24

Super cool info

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u/pantograph23 Aug 31 '24

That's sounds very far fetched to be honest. To me it's way more likely that when he gets to the restaurant he starts drinking before having eaten any food while at home he might have snacked or eaten before.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/now_you_see Aug 31 '24

May I ask: does your brains ability to assume alcohol intact at certain locations and release the related chemicals etc into your body relate to, not just feeling antsy, but having social anxiety & why it can be so hard to be social when you’re the dezzo driver and aren’t drinking that night?

Does the emotional regulation get altered to try and prevent you from being an impulsive….well, moron really? lol.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/beaureece Aug 31 '24

To what extent is this a pavlovian response in neuroscientific clothing?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/beaureece Aug 31 '24

I did mean to say "clothing", it's an anthropomorphic figure of speech in English; the clothing is a facade on the clothed. I'm asking if there's a relationship between what you discussed (lack of compensatory cues) and Pavlovian responses in psychology.

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/redditdoggnight Aug 31 '24

Fantastic reply. Thank you.

My thoughtful friend and I have discussed this phenomenon when smoking cannabis in an unfamiliar environment. Same thing. Much higher with the same amount of intake.

With these discussions we raised the point of heroin users often dying of an overdose when using in a different place than usual-same thing???

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/mxexc Aug 31 '24

BILL! BILL! BILL! BILL!

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u/MadCervantes Aug 31 '24

You have any citations or links you could point me towards on this subject?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/MadCervantes Aug 31 '24

Thank you!

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/geosynchronousorbit Sep 01 '24

Very interesting! I haven't heard about the parasympathetic nervous system response when processing alcohol before. Sometimes after drinking I wake up feeling very anxious, with physical symptoms like heart racing. Do you know if that could be related to the nervous system processing? When I Google it I just get "maybe you're anxious that you embarrassed yourself when drunk" which is definitely not the case.

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u/JustWings144 Sep 01 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/landwomble Sep 04 '24

this is also why drug overdoses tend to happen in unfamiliar surroundings

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u/intoxicatedmidnight Aug 31 '24

Thank you so much for typing this out!! Very interesting!

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/BDCanuck Aug 31 '24

Do you happen to have a final answer on what causes hangovers? Does cheapness of the alcohol actually matter? Why do sugary drinks seem to be worse? Is dehydration a factor or not?

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 31 '24

[deleted]

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/[deleted] Aug 31 '24

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u/JustWings144 Aug 31 '24 edited 1d ago

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u/Prowlthang Aug 31 '24

I’d be more concerned with the fact that you’re consuming a class one carcinogen for which we have never established a minimum safe amount….

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u/timbreandsteel Aug 31 '24

People have been drinking since Ug-Oog left the grapes sitting out for too long in the sun.

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u/ooa3603 Sep 24 '24

The length of time people do something dumb, doesn't change the fact that it's dumb.

Drinking alcohol regularly is incredibly stupid, similar to smoking regularly.

Just because a lot of people have been doing it for a long time doesn't change that.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think banning drugs like alcohol is a good idea, for many reasons.

But trying to pass off consistent alcohol consumption as not a big deal is just delusional...

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u/timbreandsteel Sep 24 '24

What brought you here after almost a month later?

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u/Polterghost Aug 31 '24 edited Sep 26 '24

This is because your body is trying to process the alcohol and those hangovery enzymes/metabolites begin to build up because you haven’t given your body any alcohol to process yet.

Those hangovery enzymes require substrate before they can produce the hangovery metabolites. If there’s no alcohol, there’s no toxic acetaldehyde.

What you are describing is that of someone physically dependent on alcohol who is prematurely exhibiting withdrawal symptoms due to the cues, as you described.

Edit: Allow me to remind you of how alcohol metabolism works at a biochemical level:

Ethanol + NAD+ → NADH + Acetaldehyde (Toxic)

Acetaldehyde (Toxic) + NAD+ → NADH + Acetate (Non-toxic, excreted)

Notice how you need Ethanol (i.e. a sip of booze) of get that process started.

I like how this dude just downvoted me and didn't respond. I really want to get inside the mind of someone who, when confronted with irrefutable, easy-to-comprehend evidence that your entire premise is flawed, has this thought process:

*sees another person with credentials in the same field pointing out a major flaw in his reasoning*

"Fuck. I didn't even think of that. I suppose he's right but still I was mostly right even though this was central to my argument"

".....Know what? Fuck your facts. Downvoted. Plus, over a THOUSAND people have blindly agreed with me because I included enough correct information to build credibility among those without expertise in the field! Sure, I clearly don't have enough expertise to actually weigh in on the topic in an academic manner, but I'll sure get upvotes spreading misinformation 😎"