What is Detox?

Originally posted on https://thecorecenters.com/what-is-detox/

Living with addiction is hard. Days and nights are filled with hopelessness, sadness, and feeling imprisoned by the endless quest to get your next ‘high. Loving someone who has an addiction to drugs or alcohol can be painful too. The fear, uncertainty of what will happen next, always wondering if they’re okay steals your happiness and peace of mind.

Whether you or someone you love is struggling with an alcohol or drug use disorder day to day life can be hard. But there is hope and there is help; no matter who you are, what your past, or how bad your addiction has become, you too, can recover from alcohol or drug addiction. The Core Centers in Fort Lauderdale can help.

One of the biggest challenges someone suffering from addiction (or someone who is close to someone with an addiction issue) faces is the feeling of isolation. You may feel alone, that no one truly understands, and that you have nowhere to turn for help. Help that will give you long lasting freedom from addiction and guide you on the road to recovery, joy, and a life free from this deadly disease.

You are not alone.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2017 more than 70,000 people in the United States alone died from drug overdoses including illicit and prescription opioids. The most staggering increase attributed to fentanyl and fentanyl-related overdoses. The epidemic continues and is getting worse.

And it’s not just drugs. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports that annually about 88,000 people die from alcohol and alcohol-related causes in the U.S. This makes it the third most preventable cause of death in the nation.

Life in the bondage of addiction—to drugs or alcohol—doesn’t have to keep being part of your story. You or your loved one don’t have to become one of these statistics. There is hope and lasting freedom from addiction is possible. The first step is finding the addiction treatment center best for you.

Change your story today. Your past doesn’t define you.

When you live with an addiction to alcohol or drugs most days you may feel like you exist only to get your next drink or your next high. You wake up trembling from withdrawal or a painful hangover from the night before. Drugs or alcohol and when you get a drink or get high may be the first thing you think about when you wake up. You want to feel better – physically and mentally – and a drink or drugs are all you know that will help make it stop.

The problem is that what once may have helped you feel better or take the edge off, no longer does. Now you’re caught in the endless cycle of drinking or using drugs just to function. Once in the grips of addiction, many barely function.

There is hope, there is help. The Core Centers has helped guide hundreds of people, just like you, on the path to recovery and reclaiming their lives. Good lives, filled with joy and peace of mind.

Take the first step.

The first step on the road to recovery and a life free from addiction is making a decision. If you’re tired of living life the way it is today, then it’s time to get help. Many people find that once they make this life-changing decision there is a sense of relief.

For most people with an alcohol or drug use disorder seeking treatment at a reputable center with a detox program comes first. Detox, in a safe environment with caring, experienced professionals who can help, is crucial.

Detox is necessary to get through the withdrawal process, which can sometimes be life-threatening.

Withdrawal from alcohol or drugs progresses through different stages, on varied timelines, involving varying symptoms, and can be different for everyone. The specifics of withdrawal will depend on numerous factors including:

• What type of substance(s) is being stopped
• When the last dose was taken
• How much was taken the last time
• How long the use/abuse of alcohol and/or drugs has been
• What, if any, co-occurring mental health issues are present

Withdrawaling can be very difficult and present many symptoms which often cause a person to relapse in order to stop the painful symptoms. It’s vital to understand that detoxing on your own can be dangerous and is not recommended. Suddenly stopping using a substance can cause:

• Increased blood pressure
• Difficulty breathing
• Muscle fatigue
• Heart attack
• Stroke

This is one reason seeking treatment at rehab which offers detox is an important step in long-term recovery. Many treatment centers, like The Core Centers, also offer medically-assisted detox which has been proven to be successful in getting through the first stages of detox.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine defines withdrawal as “the onset of a predictable constellation of signs and symptoms following the abrupt discontinuation of, or rapid decrease in, dosage of a psychoactive substance.”

The first stage of detox is the acute withdrawal or simply the withdrawal stage. This can last for days or weeks depending on the above factors. The timeline below is a general guideline for acute withdrawal:

• Alcohol (five to seven days)
• Opioids (four to ten days)
• Methadone (14 to 21 days)
• Cannabis (five days)
• Stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamines, methamphetamines (one to two weeks)

When going through withdrawal, some or all of the following symptoms can occur:

• Anxiety, racing thoughts
• Fatigue
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Sweating
• Shaking
• Seizures
• Body aches
• Cravings
• Hallucinations
• Agitation, irritability
• Depression
• Paranoia
• Insomnia
• Mental confusion

Detox treatment at a quality treatment center helps successfully get through this difficult – but vital –  part of recovery.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), there are three stages of detox:

1. Evaluation
2. Stabilization
3. Further treatment

During the first stage, qualified and experienced medical and mental health professionals will evaluate what drug or drugs are in your system, current state of mental health, any co-occurring mental health issues, other medical conditions present. After this evaluation, a detox and treatment strategy will be developed and suggested.

In this second part, the bulk of the detox and associated detox treatment will happen. You will be told what to expect during detox and any medications will be given to ease withdrawal symptoms as well as psychological counseling as needed.

While detox is an unavoidable first step in the road to freedom from addiction, it is not the only step to take if you want to truly find peace of mind and a life free from the bondage of alcohol and/or drugs. Engaging in treatment as well as committing to follow up care is important to gain the tools needed for long-term recovery from addiction.

Change Your Story—Start Today

Addiction is a chronic disease with no cure. But you, or your loved one, can find live free from the pains of life in active addiction. Treatment past the detox phase as well as engaging in ongoing follow up care, and there are many options for both, is the key to recovering physically, mentally, and emotionally from the deadly and destructive disease of addiction.

When you take the first step and find the courage to begin to change your story, you’ll start to experience a new life, a new sense of freedom. A life free from addiction brings with it many gifts. Gifts of peace of mind, finding your place in life and the community, helping others, and true happiness.

The Core Centers is here to help. Located in on the water in beautiful Fort Lauderdale it’s the perfect place to find the peace of mind you so desperately need. Take the first step now. You will discover strength you didn’t know you had.