Addiction is a chronic illness that requires long-term treatment for sustainable recovery. Each stage of this recovery process is unique and demands diverse care. While most people need or go for free drug rehab, others begin their recovery journey with a short stay in a drug detox clinic. Drug detoxification is the initial and the first step crucial to your recovery.
If you don’t know anything about how addiction treatment works, detox will be a new concept for you. Here, we will explain how detoxing works, its importance, its benefits, what happens in detox, and much more.
The Detox Process
Detoxification allows your body to re-adjust to a lack of drugs or alcohol. When a body experiences withdrawal symptoms, detox helps endure the physical and mental pain. It happens because every time you use drugs or alcohol, your body becomes more accustomed to it. And when you suddenly stop or cut back the use of these substances, the body retaliates in its own manner. Based on the dependency level, a person can experience various symptoms, such as
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Stomach aches
- Hallucinations
- Shaking
- Sweating
- Fatigue
- Muscle soreness
- Seizures
- Irritability
- Paranoia
- Insomnia
- Intense cravings
- Nausea and vomiting
These symptoms can be severe as time passes, and therefore, drug detoxification becomes significant. Also, various factors, such as the substance of choice, dosage, and duration will decide your duration of stay.
Why Detox is Important for Recovery?
An exquisite balance of chemicals is necessary for your body to function in a suitable way. When these chemicals get disturbed, the structure of the brain and how it works change. The repeated and excessive use of substances causes this hindrance and further disturbs hormone regulation.
Various substances like heroin, cocaine, and alcohol affect the neurotransmitters in the brain, which affects the pleasure centers of the brain and sends wrong signals to the body. As this substance use continues to increase, the body starts functioning more normally in the presence of a drug than without it.
During detox, the body starts experiencing withdrawal symptoms as soon as you stop the intake of substances. Why? Because the body tells you that it needs to consume drugs in order to function normally. The detox process helps restore brain function to healthy levels by inhibiting the use of drugs and alcohol. While the withdrawal symptoms can be severe, they are only temporary sensations that will pass once your body restores itself.
Owing to these harmful effects on your body, detox becomes a necessary step to take during the recovery process. It needs a lot of courage to accept that you are suffering from problematic addiction and then participate in a drug detoxification process. Once you complete the drug detox in a drug rehab centre, your life will soon come on track.
What you should expect from Drug Detoxification Facilities?
Breaking the dependence on alcohol and drugs that you have is both a difficult and painful process. And 90% of people rarely become successful on the first attempt. Hence, the drug rehab centre comes into the picture and helps you manage the symptoms.
Drug detoxification treats patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings. Let’s understand them to make an informed decision:
| Outpatient Detox Treatment | Inpatient Detox Treatment |
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● A regular visit to the drug rehab centre is needed. ● Treatment sessions are short, varying from 15 to 30 minutes for 10 to 14 days. ● Drug use by patients is not strictly monitored. ● Clients can talk to their friends, family and even a support group for personal support. |
● Clients have to stay at the treatment centre. ● People with severe addictions are closely monitored by therapists. ● Patients are transferred to rehab programs for continuous monitoring. ● Inpatient Treatment is expensive as compared to outpatient treatment. |
Benefits of Drug Detoxification
While drug detoxification may seem unpleasant to you at first, it has many benefits attached to it. For example, the detox process will keep your body healthy by flushing out the toxins that may be present due to substance use. A licensed drug detox clinic protects your recovery and works toward lifelong sobriety. Here’s what you can expect from a detox process:
Structure
A vast majority of drug rehab centres offer residential programs to the patients and work round-the-clock to monitor and alleviate the symptoms.
Aside from medical supervision, a schedule is also set in a detox program so that the patients can follow a routine. In this routine, everything is lined up in order, such as peer support, group therapy, and recreational time. It also helps you reset and leave behind a drug-dependent lifestyle.
Reduced Discomfort
When you quit drinking or drug use, the pain that arises can be excruciating, especially when you have been in the habit for years or decades. As the body restores itself to normal, you feel a certain discomfort, which becomes severe in the initial period. This discomfort also causes unavoidable urges to use the substance again to make the pain go away.
In the drug detoxification process, the therapist works in a way that you feel less pain and discomfort and get rid of the addictive behaviours. The doctors also use medications to enable patients to reduce cravings, ease symptoms, and increase the rate of success in long-term abstinence.
Expert Care
The medical and mental health professionals at the drug rehab centres have proven experience in handling patients suffering from substance use disorder. These professionals understand the struggles of the patient and encourage them to follow the recovery process. The staff at the detox centre also indulge you in the counselling sessions, understand and avoids triggers, and educates you regarding the detox process and timelines.
While reaching out for help may seem intimidating at the first, the staff at the detox centre will help you find freedom again.
Peer Support
When you are surrounded by people who are struggling with the same situation as yours, it becomes easy to relate to them and sympathize when you need a friend.
What Happens at a Drug Detox Clinic?
Every detox centre has unique terms and conditions and may operate differently. Still, there are a few things that you may experience during the drug detoxification process:
Orientation – Just like any other association, orientation is the first step that you take before beginning your stay. During this, the physical and mental severity of the addiction is assessed and a plan is formulated according to your needs. The doctors will also run some tests to examine how much toil your body has taken as a result of addiction.
Physical Detoxification – After the orientation process, the patients enter into the detox process. Here, the doctors or therapists involve you in a counselling session and prescribe medicines that help you curb the cravings, without having any negative side effects. While it will feel awkward at first, you will learn to follow a routine. Also, you might not be able to talk to your family and friends for a few days.
Individual or Group Therapy – Individual and group therapy help patients interact with people with the same issues. It helps occupy the mind and body and serves long-term stability.
Find the Drug Rehabilitation Centre near You
Drug detox program is essential for recovery. You cannot move forward until you flush out the toxins out of your body. Luckily, there are thousands of detox programs across the UK. Programs that are specific to your needs and can help you feel that freedom again! If you need help finding the right program for you, visit the nearest free drug rehab now!
