| Alcohol detoxification is the process of ridding the | | | | depends on the amount and how long you have been |
| body of excessive amounts of alcohol (toxins). It can | | | | drinking. As an experienced drinker, I knew that once I |
| be different for everyone depending on the individuals | | | | reached around 1 liter of vodka consumption in a 24 |
| drinking habits and history. This information is from my | | | | hour period for more than a few consecutive days, |
| experience as a recovering alcoholic. I do not claim to | | | | the detox process would be... well, hell. Meaning I was |
| have medical knowledge of the detoxification process. | | | | in for some pretty discomforting withdraw symptoms |
| From years of drinking I have been through many | | | | like cold sweats, nausea, and headaches. These may |
| different stages of detoxification. Some worse than | | | | not sound bad, but if you've ever experienced them |
| others. I will share a few of them with you here and | | | | you know it's horrible. Withdraw symptoms, depending |
| what I learned from the process. | | | | on the individuals drinking history, can and usually are |
| Detox basically means to rid the body of toxins. | | | | part of the detoxing process. If you or anyone you |
| Depending on how much and for how long one has | | | | know is experiencing withdraw symptoms from |
| been drinking, the length of time it takes to entirely rid | | | | alcohol, it is highly recommended you consult a |
| the body of alcohol can vary. From a few days to | | | | physician. Alcohol detox and withdraw can be |
| several months. From experience as an alcoholic and | | | | extremely serious resulting in seizures and |
| due to the progression of the disease of alcoholism, | | | | hallucinations. At my first attempt at sobriety in 1997, I |
| the period of time increases as the disease | | | | was drinking roughly 2 liters of vodka a day for |
| progresses. This has been my experience. Meaning, | | | | several months. When I abruptly quit, I ended up in the |
| over the years, each time I detoxed from alcohol the | | | | hospital for a week going through severe detox and |
| period it took to rid my body of the toxins increased. | | | | withdraw. I experienced hallucinations and had to be |
| There may be a medical reason for this, such as liver | | | | strapped to the bed to prevent me from pulling out my |
| damage, but I'm not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV, | | | | IV's. |
| so I do not know the reason. | | | | The actual detox process can last from a few days |
| There are really several parts to alcohol detox. First, | | | | to a week or more. The longest I have ever spent in a |
| one must stop adding more alcohol to their body. If you | | | | detox specific facility was seven days. And that was |
| want to stop drinking, you're going to have to stop | | | | prior to entering an in-patient treatment program, also |
| drinking. If you're anything like me, that was a lot easier | | | | known as "rehab." On a few occasions I detoxed |
| said then done. "I'll quit tomorrow" was a common | | | | myself or had a family member help me reduce the |
| theme in my life, yet tomorrow never came. It's been | | | | consumption of alcohol over a few days. This I would |
| said there are two things an alcoholic does not like; the | | | | not recommend. From experience it does not work |
| way things are and change. What a dilemma. How | | | | very well. If you are an alcoholic, and only you know if |
| you stop drinking is a whole different topic, but basically | | | | you are or not, the last thing you want to do is control |
| it's quite simple; you stop. For me, wanting to stop | | | | your drinking. I can either control it, or enjoy it, not both. |
| meant the pain of the way things were finally | | | | It's sort of like placing a kid in a room with a big red |
| outweighed the fear of trying something different (i.e. | | | | button and telling them not to push it. The best thing is |
| living without alcohol). I realized I could not not live with | | | | finding a facility dedicated to alcohol detox. Plus, they |
| or without alcohol. Again, getting past that point was | | | | often have medication such as Librium that helps with |
| not easy and could fill numerous more articles. | | | | the detox and withdraw symptoms making it less |
| So you have stopped drinking, now what? Again, this | | | | painful. |