How Do You Detox?

Well, before the drug detoxification process, certain factors must be present in the patient. Let's call the patient Jim. Before detox, Jim will have some sort of physical dependence to a substance of some sort. The drug that Jim is addicted to may vary, but it will be a physical addiction, where withdrawal symptoms are present. A withdrawal symptom is some response the body has to the absence of a drug. This happens after frequent and sustained exposure to a substance. For example, Jim may have used heroin for a period of time, and afterward had several withdrawal symptoms after ceasing use. He will lie in bed, vomiting frequently and have extreme trouble sleeping. This will be extremely uncomfortable and especially so on the second day of the detoxification drug process. After one week, Jim will have gotten over the worst bulk of the symptoms and be approaching a healthy state once again. It may have been several months or even several years since he has experienced this healthy state, and there may be irreparable damage done to the body, but after the detox process, he will be far healthier than he has been.

The process is fairly similar for alcohol addiction. As alcohol can have a strong physical effect on the user's body, to detox alcohol from a patient's body is also quite common. Let us assume that a similar patient, Jill, is going through the alcohol detoxification process. She experiences some seizures during the treatment, though it is not nearly as severe as it would have been without professional help. Some instances of withdrawal symptoms can result in very intense seizures and, in some cases, death. After three weeks, Jill finally finishes the withdrawal symptoms. Though the process has not been extremely long, for the patient it can feel like a tremendously long detoxification. Alcohol as a drug can cause especially difficult physical responses during the recovery process and is known to last a long duration.

Whether an alcohol addiction or another drug addiction, the detox process is a necessary one. After detox, drug addiction patients will often transfer to a residential treatment center, or to a residential area with a strong support network. Jim may check into a halfway house, where he would live with other recovering heroin addicts. He can try to find a job and live as a functional member of society, leaving his drug addiction behind. Jill can move back in with her parents, who can support her through the difficult time in her life and attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings on a regular basis. In both instances, the recovering addict has an understanding and supportive team of people close by, which is important for the individual to find a healthy path. If left to his or her own devices, an individual might quickly relapse, ending up victim to the alcohol or drug addiction very quickly.

During the detoxification process, the patient is in a facility where professional help is available to ensure that each patient is cared for properly. This is very important to assist the patient through such a difficult recovery process, while maintaining a state of physical and mental health throughout. The risks for physical harm are especially common, and without professional help, many could find serious harm from the withdrawal process.

Before any of that, the first step to detox is to find a treatment facility equipped to handle that specific detoxification. If you are in need of detox, please contact a drug treatment center to find more information and begin the process to recovery.