Drug Detox Central

Drug Detox Treatment Strategies

When you are faced with the reality of an addiction, you need to consider your options. It might sound crazy, but you do have the option of staying where you are, of staying addicted. As I’ve gone deeper into Byron Katie’s teachings, I realize that we have to embrace reality what ever its form. So if you are not ready to break your addiction cycle, well then you are not ready. That’s the reality of the situation. If you do feel ready and you’re doing this for you and not for someone else, then here are some options.

First depending on the drugs involved, of course, you might be able to handle this as a private home matter. Alcohol drug detox is nothing to fool around with, so if were talking about alcohol addiction, please seek professional guidance. Otherwise, with some planning and the help of friends and family, you may be able to detox at home. Drug detox is nothing to fool around with so if you think that you might balk, seek professional help and do a clinic detox instead. As with many things, it would be better to spend the money and do it once instead of have a half-baked experience.

Gather the OTC meds that you’ll need for the detox. You’ll need things like Malox and Advil and fluids like Gatorade and plenty of Pepto Bismol. Tell people what you are doing. Having emotional and physical support is going to make all the difference. I have a friend who did it on his own, but it was scary and I wish I had known so I could have helped. Your loved ones would want to know and help because they want you to be free of the addiction as well.

If you end up at a drug rehab detox, that’s a great option too. The medical professionals will guide you through the first part — the detox — and then seamlessly shift into the real work of learning new ways of living in the world. Group therapy, art therapy, and the like. Just taking it slow and going one day at a time is the only way to free yourself from the drugs.

Being able to stay in one place for both the initial drug addiction detox and the therapy afterward appeals to many people. Even if you are worried about insurance, don’t let that stop you. Talk with the in-take people about your fears. I bet that they can make you feel better about the money part. What matters is getting you clean.

Many churches sponsor drug detox treatment, so if you are a member of a church group, check with the leadership about that. These days most churches realize that addiction comes in all varieties and that you don’t have to be a bar brawling biker to be an addict.

If you want help in your drug detox, ask for it. Ask your friends, family, teachers and coworkers. Truly seeking help is the way to receive help. Just open yourself up to the possibilities. Getting sober is a journey and you will never be alone on that journey.

The Basics of Drug Detox

Drug detoxification refers to several possible intervention strategies related to controlling drug addiction and/or drug withdrawal. Flushing the body of traces of the drug is paramount to recovery. Detoxification will mitigate the physical effects caused by the drug or drugs and can be an important step on the road to becoming drug-free.

It must be noted that detoxification programs do not necessarily treat other aspects of drug addiction. The psychological aspects of addiction, the behavioral and the social must be treated in tandem or after the detoxification process has occurred.

There are typically three steps to clinical drug detoxification
First, evaluation. The patient is tested to see what substances are presently in their bloodstream. The amount of the drug or drugs is also noted. Staff will also review the patient’s history and current behavior for potential disorders, mental or behavioral issues.

Second, stabilization. At this point, the patient goes through the process of detoxification. Medications may or may not used during this phase. Generally, medications are used.  As a secondary part of stabilization, information is extremely important. The patient should be informed about what to expect during treatment and recovery. If it seems prudent, family members and friends can be introduced into the environment to aid in stabilization.

Third, treatment. The last step in the detox process is to ready the patient to enter a recovery program. Remember, drug detoxification only deals with the physical dependency. It cannot meaningfully address the psychological aspects of drug addiction. The treatment stage concludes with agreement that the patient will complete the recovery by going to rehab.

Drug detoxification can happen in many settings. The level of intensity and patient commitment can vary within these settings. Deciding which sort of clinic, hospital or other setting should be determined by the patient’s needs. It’s important, as the process starts, to begin thinking about post detox help. Often this can happen in the same facility as the detoxification. Insurance, or the lack of insurance, plays a huge part in where and for how long the process can happen. People needing to detox come from all walks of life and income situations. Clinics realize this and most offer plans equipped to tailor treatment to their client populations. Knowing that detox was successful can be measured, in part, by whether someone enters or remains in rehab after detoxification.

Where the patient goes for detox (and possibly post-detox treatment) depends in part on the drug or drugs used. Experts suggest that for alcohol, sedative, and opiate withdrawal, hospitalization (or some form of 24-hour medical care) is often the preferred setting for detoxification. If hospitalization cannot be provided, then a setting that provides a high level of care – 24/7 – is recommended.

A big challenge for detoxification programs is ensuring that exiting patients have information and access to substance abuse treatment services. Spending time in treatment is almost always needed if the patient is going to be clean in the long term. The stats are astounding. Over 250,000 people detox in hospitals every year. Only 20% of them go on to receive substance abuse treatment.

Stats come from this document:
Detoxification and Substance Abuse Treatment
by Norman S. Miller, M.D. & Steven S. Kipnis, M.D.

Alcohol Detox

We can thank Hippocrates, the Greek father of modern medicine, for recording an eye witness description of alcohol withdrawal. If the patient, he wrote for future students, is “in the prime of life and if from drinking he has trembling hands,” that patient has probably addicted to alcohol, has not had alcohol recently and is therefore exhibiting withdrawal symptoms. The signs and symptoms of acute alcohol withdrawal generally start 6 to 24 hours after the last drink.

Believe it or not, alcohol withdrawal can begin even if you have significant blood alcohol concentrations. In other words, you can be technically drunk and your body starts to feel withdrawal. The signs and symptoms may include the following: insomnia and/or nightmares, restlessness, irritability, anxiety, and agitation. In addition as the body metabolizes the alcohol you may experience nausea, vomiting, hand tremors, elevated heart rate, and increased blood pressure. As if that wasn’t enough, the poor brain is going through some trauma of its own. Additional symptoms include: poor concentration, impaired memory, increased sensitivity to sound, light, and tactile sensations, and possibly, hallucinations and paranoid delusions.

Something else to be aware of is what is known as “the kindling effect.” Originally coined to describe how epileptic seizures seem to get worse (more often, longer episodes) with each seizure, the term has been co-opted for use in other areas. Since alcohol has a huge impact on the brain and in fact seizures can be one of the worst parts of alcohol withdrawal, it is easy to see how medical folks could make the leap from epilepsy to alcohol withdrawal. Over time the term has expanded to describe the phenomenon of diminishing returns with alcohol detox. In other words, when you try to kick the bottle, every time you fail, it gets harder. Alcohol addiction, in particular, has a high rate of binge behavior so drinking and drying out is the worst behavior to exhibit as the kindling effect brings full force to hamper the recovery process.

The physical addiction to alcohol is devastating. The brain, when deprived of its former levels of alcohol goes into this hyper state and that’s what causes the anxiety and tremors.

It’s the physical symptoms that can trigger the almost obsessive thoughts about drinking. So again, the kindling effect come full circle: the body is without its chemical and so the physical discomfort begins. This in turn triggers the desire to introduce alcohol back into the body and so on. To make matters worse, the brain can be conditioned in a Pavlovian way so that even being at the same clinic for another attempt at detox can trigger the kindling effect even before true symptoms can manifest.

Some people want to try to detox from alcohol on their own. It can be done, but there are some really basic things to consider. First and foremost – is this a first attempt? If so, remember the kindling effect; you want this to be a successful because next time it will be harder. Some basic care helps keep the worst of the withdrawals at bay. Fluids and electrolytes need to be constantly available. Diarrhea, vomiting, and sweats may affect the patient, so fluids are essential. For some people using Xanax or Valium is not uncommon. These drugs actually decrease the likelihood of seizures during withdrawals. Of course they also help with anxiety and tremors. These things will help. But nothing is going to beat getting true medical help for alcohol detox. You want to get sober once and for all and the best way to do that is at a clinic.

Brain image credit: Wellcome Library, London