Drug and Alcohol Blog

Detox is described as the physical withdrawal of substances from the human body and generalized as a very uncomfortable and sometimes painful and dangerous process. For most drug and alcohol rehab programs, detox is a first and essential step to beginning the recovery process. Since drug and alcohol addiction are both psychological and physical, the opportunity to relive an addict of the physical dependence through detox is vital. This leaves only the psychological addiction to overcome in drug and alcohol rehab which, with commitment, can be achieved.
Detox can feel very different for various substances and different treatments are indicated to ensure that detox is as safe and comfortable as possible. Detox from opiates, for example can be quite jarring with symptoms mimicking a severe flu with increased blood pressure and heart rate along with muscle pains and spasms. While generally not life threatening, opiate detox is extremely uncomfortable and can be very dangerous. For this kind of detox, medical staff is recommended to administer medication for high blood pressure and heart rate, as well as to work to help decrease nausea and vomiting.
There is also a process called rapid opiate detox which uses anesthesia and a variety of medications to speed the detox process from several days to a matter of hours and the patient awakens after 4 -6 hours with the opiate detox process completed.

Detox from other substances such as alcohol and benzodiazepines can also be dangerous and require medical monitoring as well as medications to stabilize the condition of an individual going through the detox. Aside from the extreme discomfort of detox, the dangers of it can make the process very scary. Generally, detox from alcohol and benodiazepines are not life threatening, however in some cases, can be more dangerous than opiate detox, with symptoms ranging from mild to sever seizures, increased blood pressure and heart rate as well as extreme anxiety in severe cases of benzodiazepine detox. For symptoms such as these, medical monitoring and treatment is strongly recommended.

Although the detox process is no easy thing and typically an addict’s biggest fear about getting sober, it is the first step to recovery from addiction and with the proper care and medical assistance, detox can be achieved safely and made to be as comfortable as possible so the remainder of the addiction treatment can begin to take place.