Blacking out from drinking alcohol is more common than you might think; some research has suggested that at least half of all young people who drink alcohol will experience a blackout before they graduate college. The stories of what you did and said during your alcohol-induced blackout are enough to make you swear off the stuff forever, but does this alcoholic alter-ego have anything to do with your actual personality, or is it simply the result of taking one too many shots?

It’s not that you forget what happened during an alcoholic blackout, it’s that the memories were never formed in the first place, CNN reported. Blackouts are defined as a period of amnesia while drinking, and are dangerous because, for the most part, neither the drinker or those around them realize that the intoxicated person is “blacking out.” For the most part, what is done during a blackout does not differ very much from what you may do during a regular drinking session; laughing, carrying on conversations, and of course drinking more. However, some individuals report engaging in more serious behaviors such as driving cars, having sex, and engaging in illegal and often lethal activities, all without having any recollection the next day.

Alcohol doesn’t change our personalities so much as it amplifies them. For example, a 2014 study published in the online journal Addiction Research & Theory suggested that are four different types of drunk personalities, and these are based off the five different types of personalities in your sober life, The Atlantic reported. These include, the Hemingway, which are those whose drunk persona changes little from their sober persona; the Mary Poppins, who is agreeable and friendly while sober and even more so while drunk; the Nutty Professor, who is introverted while sober but becomes the life of the party after a few drinks; and the Mr. Hyde, people who become much less conscientious, intelligent, or agreeable when intoxicated.

Alcohol affects our ability to solve problems, and according to Dominic Parrott, a professor at Georgia State University, this may be why some individuals are more prone to violence and aggression when drunk, WebMD reported. However, not everyone who drinks in excess becomes an angry drunk, and individuals who possess aggression-promoting personality traits are the most susceptible to alcohol’s effects on aggression; likewise, those who are hotheads while sober will likely also be aggressive when drunk.

If you experienced an alcohol-induced blackout and were mortified to learn about your actions, relax. We still don’t completely understand alcohol’s effect on the body, and although drinking may exemplify the personalities of some, for others it may suppress their true personality and lead them to do and say things that they actually didn’t mean or even believe, Harpers Bazaar reported.

"Three or more drinks in an hour can lead you to do things you would never do otherwise and may not remember afterward,” Nicholas A. Pace, a member of the medical-scientific committee of the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence told Harpers Bazaar.

We don't have the precise scientific formula for what causes a drunk blackout, or why and how our personality changes during such an episode, but we do know alcohol should be used in moderation, no matter how it makes you feel.

Read More:

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Drinking Too Much Alcohol? Here's What Happens When Heavy Drinkers Blackout: Read Here