Alcohol Withdrawal Treatment in Elyria, OH

Alcohol can be one of the most dangerous substances to withdraw from because it can cause serious and sometimes life-threatening side effects. If you or a loved one suffers from alcohol addiction, seeking alcohol withdrawal treatment in Elyria can provide you with the medical and psychological support needed to overcome your addiction while minimizing the risk for adverse side effects.

What Is Alcohol Withdrawal?

When a person abuses a substance such as alcohol, the substance causes changes in the brain. The body becomes accustomed to having the substance. As a result, when the body no longer has the substance present, withdrawal symptoms occur. Alcohol affects certain neurotransmitters in the brain, specifically those that cause tremors and muscle spasms.

If a person drinks a significant amount of alcohol a day and suddenly stops drinking, they will likely experience several symptoms, including muscle symptoms. Alcohol also impacts additional neurotransmitters in the brain, such as the GABA-A receptors that reduce excitability in the brain, causing the sedative effects alcohol can lead to.

Over time, these receptors are less responsive to GABA, which leads to tolerance. As a result, a person who abuses alcohol will have to drink more and more to experience the same effects that drinking less once resulted in.

Abuse of alcohol can cause a condition called alcohol withdrawal syndrome. The symptoms can start as little as six hours after a person has their last drink. For this reason, when a person decides it's time to get sober, they should first seek an alcohol withdrawal treatment program.

Is Alcohol Withdrawal Dangerous?

Alcohol withdrawal can be very dangerous because of the most severe symptoms it can cause. Examples of these symptoms include the following:

  • Tremors
  • High blood pressure
  • Rapid heart rate
  • Vomiting
  • Nightmares

Predicting the severity of a person's withdrawal symptoms can be difficult because the symptoms depend upon how long and how much alcohol a person abuses on a regular basis, their overall health, and how many times they have tried to quit drinking before. As a general rule, the more times a person has tried to quit drinking and failed, the more severe the alcohol withdrawal symptoms can be. According to the National Institutes of Health, the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal syndrome are at their height at an estimated 24 to 48 hours after a person has their last drink.

Alcohol withdrawals can cause a syndrome called delirium tremens or DTs for short. An estimated 5 percent of people who undergo alcohol withdrawal experience DTs, according to the National Institutes of Health. The condition can cause severe and sometimes life-threatening symptoms, such as extreme agitation and confusion, seizures, fever, and hallucinations, or seeing, hearing, or feeling things that aren't really there. Medications are available that can minimize these effects. Instead of attempting to detox at home, a person is much safer from a medical perspective to seek alcohol withdrawal treatment in Elyria.

Why Should I Go Through Alcohol Withdrawal at a Treatment Center?

Due to the potentially dangerous effects of alcohol withdrawal syndrome and delirium tremens, a person who suffers from alcoholism should always undergo alcohol withdrawal treatment in Elyria at a treatment center. Long-time alcoholism can also cause a number of health conditions that can complicate alcohol withdrawal.

Examples include malnutrition, heart failure, liver disease, pancreatic disease, and nervous system disorders. Those who abuse alcohol are also at risk for a form of dementia known as Wernicke's dementia. This dementia type can lead to irreversible dementia if left untreated. At an alcohol withdrawal treatment program, doctors can administer thiamine, a vitamin that reduces the risk for Wernicke's dementia.

While there are alcohol withdrawal treatment options that involve outpatient therapy, indications a person should undergo inpatient alcohol detoxification include:

  • History of experiencing DTs
  • History of medical or psychiatric illness in addition alcohol abuse
  • Lack of a reliable or significant support group
  • Pregnancy
  • Having undergone previous multiple detoxifications

An alcohol withdrawal treatment facility offers medical care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Medical personnel can administer medications known to reduce the likelihood severe withdrawal effects will occur. Examples include diazepam (Valium) and anti-nausea medications such as ondansetron (Zofran).

Undergoing withdrawals for alcohol abuse is not easy, but alcohol withdrawal treatment in Elyria can provide a safe, comforting place for a person to begin the rest of their alcohol-free life. In addition to support for physical health effects, a person can undergo counseling to start the healing process of learning to live a life that does not involve turning to alcohol for stress and anxiety relief.

If you or your loved one is suffering from alcohol addiction, then you don't have to go through the withdrawal process alone. Call Elyria Drug Rehab Centers at (440) 540-5418 for more info on our alcohol and drug detox programs in Elyria today.


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