That's Fit

I used to work on a computer support line. For some reason, I'd get hiccups very often back then. So I'd be on the phone with a client holding my hand over my mouth to muffle the sound or pressing the mute button so they didn't hear my hiccups. Part way through my hiccupy calls, the guy in the cube next to me was doing the same muffle/mute routine -- but not to block his own hiccups ... instead he was trying to cover up his laughter over my predicament.

Everybody gets hiccups from time to time. There are many causes for a case of the hiccups, ranging from stress, to a large meal, to a sudden change in temperature. A hiccup is just a involuntary contraction of the diaphragm (a muscle involved with respiration).

So what do you do to cure hiccups? There are plenty of home remedies for hiccups, but most are pretty ineffective. Taking a spoonful of sugar, holding your breath, being startled, or drinking cold water quickly are just a few. For some people, taking slow, controlled breaths can help the hiccups. For most people, however, you just have to let them run their course. Though very rare, some people do get cases of prolonged hiccups. If you have a case of hiccups that lasts for a long time, call your doctor for advice.

Fitsugar posted on something that's always perplexed me: The Hiccups, and more specifically, what causes them. Hiccups are a result of your diaphragm unintentionally contracting, but what causes that? Here are some usual suspects:

• spicy food
• Eating too fast
• Alcohol
• Smoking
• Extreme stress
• Sudden temperature changes

Whatever the culprit is, hiccups are pretty annoying, especially if, like me, you have really loud hiccups that can be heard (seriously) a kilometer away. And though it's never worked for me (maybe I'm doing it wrong?), everyone in my family swears that drinking out of the wrong side of a cup is the surefire way to get rid of them.

How do you get rid of hiccups?