Detoxification For Alcohol & Opiates

Detoxification is a process in which person’s addicted to drugs or alcohol are medically cleansed of the toxins created by those substances.  Detoxification, or detox for short, is almost always the first step in the rehabilitation process for many addicts and alcoholics.  Before addicts and alcoholics can be admitted to drug and alcohol treatment, they must first complete the detox process.  There are many different forms of detoxification depending on the substance of dependence and the severity of the addiction.  However, there are some drugs that do not require detoxification such as methamphetamines, cocaine, and marijuana.  The abuse of these drugs can result in a very serious psychological dependence, which requires intense therapy and sometimes monitoring, but not medical detox.  Other drugs like heroin, alcohol, and many prescription medications like barbiturates and benzodiazepines create not only a psychological, but a serious physical dependence, requiring medical detoxification.

The process of detoxification is only the beginning of drug or alcohol rehabilitation, but it is one of the most important parts of this process.  Detox is imperative because it is the physical removal of the damaging substance from the body and rehabilitation cannot begin if there is still a physical dependence on drugs and alcohol.  The physical dependence is one of the main motivations for alcoholics and drug addicts to continue using, as it is what causes the painful and often dangerous physical symptoms at cessation.

Detoxification seems imposing with the horrible stigma it has for being painful and uncomfortable, but be assured that it is absolutely required for rehab to begin and pales in comparison to the pain and dangers associated with continuing addictive behaviors.  The medical staff required for the detox process is dedicated to ensuring the saftey and comfort of this procedure, and are assisted by a myriad of medicines available to aid.

Alcohol Detoxification

Alcohol is one of the most dangerous drugs around, not only because of its availability and acceptance, but also because of its damaging effects and dangerous detox.  Many alcoholics who have tried to stop drinking on their own have reported very uncomfortable symptoms, and sometimes these symptoms have proved to be fatal.  Alcohol detox symptoms are dependent on the severity of the alcoholism and length of time abuse has be going on.  During alcohol detoxification, the patient is medically monitored during the removal of the alcohol from the system.  During this removal, alcoholics may experience mild to sever symptoms such as sweating, headaches, delirium tremors (DT’s) leading to seizures, anxiety, increased heart rate, insomnia, agitation and sometimes death.  The process of detox can be very complicated, again depending on the severity of the addiction.  Many times, medical staff will utilize medications to ease some of these symptoms.  Often, drugs in the class of benzodiazepines, such as Clonazepam and Diazepam are anticonvulsants used to assist with anxiety and calm the muscles.  These benzodiazepines are low level tranquilizers, and during the detoxification process, they play a beneficial role in relaxing the alcoholic and decreasing many of the physical symptoms of the withdrawal process.

With the use of mainly these two drugs, medical staff finds more success in making alcohol detox more comfortable and safe for the patient undergoing this process.  Despite all the medical care one is able to receive during the detoxification process, alcohol detox always runs risks and for very severe cases of alcoholism where the patient has experienced cirrhosis of the liver or other organic diseases caused by drinking, the detox process can last several weeks to months for medical care. Most cases of alcohol detoxification, however, take anywhere from 3 to 10 days.

Alcoholism is a chronic disease that makes a person’s body dependent upon alcohol. A person becomes obsessed with drinking and will go to great lengths to be able to do so. Alcoholism is not a condition that can be controlled, and a person continues to drink despite negative consequences and problems. It is entirely possible to have a real problem with alcohol without displaying any of the typical characteristics of the disease. A person can ‘abuse’ alcohol without being actually addicted, but the problem is still very serious and requires professional treatment and rehabilitation.

StepHouse Recovery is proud to offer a referral to alcohol rehabilitation and treatment services. With counseling, therapy and life-skills classes, the facility is able to offer a comprehensive array of options for those who need treatment for alcoholism. Other services offered through the facility include faith-based modalities which are based on Christian teachings and biblical principles. Either type of treatment is guaranteed to be successful and treats the alcoholism as a whole, not just sending the patient back into society before all facets of addiction are successfully dealt with.

The outcome for alcoholism treatment is dependent upon many different factors such as desire of the client to be treated, severity of alcoholism, overall health and whether or not a strong support system is provided. Each of these components factor into the type of treatment a person receives from the referred treatment facility which directly increases the sucess rate for a positive outcome.

Opiate Detoxification

Opiate abuse is very common, especially these days when opiates are available in a wide array of forms, including prescription pills on the black market, such as Vicodin and OxyContin.  Opiate dependence creates a serious physical addiction which, when stopped abruptly, can lead to abdominal pains, runny nose, nausea, insomnia, agitation, and many flu-like symptoms.  Very few fatal cases of opiate detox have been reported, however this is a substance that often requires medical detoxification.  The severity of the addiction will determine the process of detox for the patient, as symptoms can be very severe and uncomfortable.  Generally opiate detox involves the use of Buprenorphine, an opiate agonist medication which attaches to the opiate receptors in the brain, blocking the opiates of abuse from affecting the addict.  This drug has recently been approved by the FDA as an effective method of detox from opiates such as heroin, methadone, Oxycodone and hydrocodone.  One common form of buprenophine is Subutex, also used in opiate addiction treatment as a sublingual treatment (under the tongue).