Hiccups are an annoying, involuntary spasm or sudden movement of the diaphragm, a muscle that helps with breathing, which can cause a coughing or ‘hic’ sound. It's involuntary, so the human body can't control or stop the intrusion instinctively. There are several ways to manually stop hiccups, and this article will outline a few.

The most common ways that often first come to mind are holding your breath or ‘scaring the hiccups’ out of you. Holding your breath forces your diaphragm to stretch and relax, along with increasing carbon dioxide levels, which can stop the spasms. While there is no scientific proof that scaring someone can get rid of hiccups, it's one of the more effective ways to get rid of hiccups. 

Some remedies that help some might not help others, so here are a few other ideas and why they work. Covering a cup of water with a paper towel and drinking the water through the paper towel stimulates the vagus, increasing carbon dioxide and relaxing your diaphragm. Biting a lemon can also stimulate the nerve, solving your hiccups. Pull on your tongue gently for a few seconds, pressing on your eyelids gently, or even acupressure might be worth a try. 

There are many wives' tales, and secrets to getting rid of hiccups, as not every hiccup can be rid of as easily as the one before it. The overall trick is to stimulate the vagus, slightly increasing your carbon dioxide levels, which inevitably relaxes the diaphragm and the spasms. There are many ways to prevent getting hiccups, but no absolute way. Drinking and eating slowly, staying upright after eating can decrease your chances of getting hiccups. Hopefully, these tips will help solve your spasms.