For many people struggling with alcohol addiction and truly wanting to get sober, the thought of detoxification holds them back from making the bold step in their recovery — seeking professional help. If you are in a similar situation, you’re not alone.
While it’s natural to have these mixed feelings, we assure you that your fear about alcohol detox is based on misconceptions about what you think will occur— not on the reality of what’s involved in this medically-supervised process and its importance. Understanding how this process works and its role in your healing will ease your worries about completing this critical phase of your recovery.
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What Is Alcohol Detox?
Alcohol detoxification is the process through which alcohol is cleared from your body to remove all the alcohol toxins accumulated in your body for the period you’ve been drinking. During this process, different withdrawal symptoms appear. Withdrawal is your body’s way of healing as it rids itself with the toxic effects of this substance.
When you’re under the care of medical professionals, you’ll be given effective medications to make your withdrawal symptoms bearable, lessen overwhelming cravings for alcohol, and reduce your risks of complications.
If you attempt to quit without professional assistance, you’re likely to give in to drinking just so the withdrawal symptoms can disappear. A medication-assisted process ensures that this isn’t an option for you, which means you won’t take a step back in your recovery.
Alcohol detox happens in steps. These are:
· Assessment
Before anything, your treatment team will gather relevant details about your drinking history and overall health. They’ll use this information to create for you a personalized detox plan that aligns with your detoxification needs.
· Withdrawal
The process begins. A clinical team will closely monitor you throughout, so they can quickly intervene in case of any emergencies. In most cases, withdrawal symptoms during the first 24 hours range from mild to moderate.
Symptoms may become intense within 72 hours and mostly begin to subside as you approach one week in detox. At this point, you’ll start feeling stronger because your body is making progress in defeating the physical dependence it had formed on alcohol. Although some symptoms may last a few weeks, they’ll be mild and eventually disappear with time.
· Recovery
You will have enough rest to ensure you fully recover from the process. Your treatment team will assess you to ascertain whether your body is completely medically stable as you prepare to start therapy.
While alcohol detoxification may not be an easy journey, it’s absolutely worth it. You’ll feel anew because your body won’t have to rely on alcohol anymore to feel normal.
Deciding That Enough Is Enough
If you’re struggling with a drinking problem, find comfort in knowing you weren’t meant to live a life controlled by alcohol. The greatest decision you can make is to take back control of your life from the enemy, alcohol, by accepting that professional help is what you need and choosing to get started on your detox journey.
Your life after this process will be much more satisfying than a life trapped in alcohol dependence. Don’t give this addiction more chances to stand in the way of your future, happiness, interests, relationships, and finances.
Speaking Up and Seeking Help
Acknowledging you have a problem you can’t overcome on your own is a big milestone in your sobriety journey. The next important step is opening up to someone you trust about your drinking problem — this can be a trusted family member, a friend, or a medical professional like your GP. You don’t have to carry this heavy burden alone. By being honest about drinking struggles, and your desire to go through the life-changing detox process to kick start your healing from alcoholism, you might be surprised at how much support you’ll receive in finding a suitable detox treatment provider.
Fearlessly Walk Into the Treatment Center
Treatment providers fully understand how exhausting dealing with alcohol addiction is, and are eager to meet the detox treatment needs of individuals battling this illness. Recovering from alcoholism is all about confronting your fears head-on.
One way you can do this is by making your way to your preferred treatment provider and letting them know of your interest in detoxing from alcohol. They will guide you on the various detox treatment options as well as address all the questions and concerns you may have.
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Consider a Safe at Home Detox
If you wish to conveniently undergo medical detoxification from your house, at-home detox treatment, similar to that provided by services such as UK Home Detox, can be a cheaper alternative to residential treatment. You simply contact the treatment professionals and engage them about your preferences. They can arrange for detox medication to send to a loves one who will manage your withdrawal.
Rediscovering the Beauty of Life
The end of your detoxification treatment marks the beginning of a fresh start in life. You had gone through months or even years of using alcohol as a crutch to maneuver tough situations, but thanks to detox, alcohol dependency is no longer holding you down. This is an opportunity for you to relive the life you wanted before alcohol came in the way, and make every moment with your loved ones count as you divert your thoughts away from drinking.
Give your marriage a new beginning by renewing your vows to your spouse. By treating your union as a new relationship, you’ll allow your partner to become acquainted with the sober version of you as you patiently work on rekindling your union — which alcoholism nearly destroyed.
Create time to show up for your children’s football practices and participate in fun activities together. Take excursions, and cultivate other interesting hobbies to fill up your free time. All these will help you guard your newly-found sobriety.
Overcoming Detox Fear: Replace Fear With Acceptance
In conclusion, detoxification is the first and most significant step in getting your life back from alcohol addiction. It’s best to view this treatment positively since fear only hinders you from taking several steps forward in your recovery.
When your body heals from being alcohol-dependent, you’ll be able to create an amazing life for yourself — beyond what you had even imagined. The truth is, living a life rooted in alcohol addiction is tougher than alcohol detox.
