Detoxification Is The First Phase Of Alcohol Use Disorder Treatment
Detoxifying from alcohol takes place in a hospital-like setting that is constantly monitored by licensed specialists trained to medically and psychologically manage alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Medications and counseling are available to people who are detoxing to help relieve anxiety and reduce symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Crisis counseling is also available for individuals who require intense psychological help due to mental health problems.
EHN doctors and counselors will empathetically guide you through the process of eliminating all alcohol from your body. EHN genuinely cares about your physical and mental well-being during alcohol detoxification. We take every measure to provide relief from withdrawal symptoms that can make it difficult to resist cravings.
Alcohol detoxification includes removing all alcohol from the body and centers on replenishing any nutritional deficiencies caused by heavy drinking. Before starting detox at EHN, patients receive a complete physical examinationto detect heart irregularities, liver disease, infectious diseases such as tuberculosis or hepatitis, and alcoholic pancreatitis. Individuals experiencing severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms may require IV fluid supplementation to reverse dehydration caused by vomiting, diarrhea, and excessive sweating.
Keep A Strong Support Team
You are never alone. You have loved ones who are here to help you, and this is a process you cannot be expected to go through by yourself. Your friends and family, sober communities, and support groups are all there to encourage, comfort, and guide you. Through the help of others, you can break free from your addictive habits and start a new life as an alcohol-free individual.
What Is Outpatient Treatment For Alcoholism
Non-residential outpatient programs to treat alcoholism are offered in community health clinics, doctors or psychologists offices, or in some residential addiction centers that are equipped to support outpatient care.
Outpatient treatment is appropriate for those whose addiction is not severe, whose lives are fairly stable, and willing to participate in and commit to the treatment plan.
Outpatient treatment is also often recommended as a form of continuing care for those who have completed an inpatient treatment program to help maintain the long-term effects of recovery and prevent relapse.
Outpatient alcohol treatment tends to cost much less than inpatient care.
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Safe Way Of Treating Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms
These alcohol withdrawal symptoms tend to shift fast and violently. The signs can rise from minor to adverse in a matter of hours.
Rehabilitation centers have therapy and services to help you deal with these symptoms. They all depend on your history with alcohol usage, for instance, the frequency and the amount of alcohol you consume.
We have discussed these programs above. Therefore, we are going to mention them once again. They consist of:
- Inpatient treatment
- Outpatient treatment
- Medication-assisted therapy
- Individual counseling: Alcohol rehab counselors offer assistance support when the victim is having the effects of alcohol withdrawal.
- Support groups: They help in recovery process long after rehab. Some of these groups in Canada include Alcoholics Anonymous who offer an opportunity to indulge in treatment goals and the likely challenges for people who are recovering from alcoholism.
Get Involved In A Hobby
Oftentimes individuals recovering from addiction forget what they are passionate about since they have replaced their hobbies and interests with drugs and alcohol. One of the most important solutions to addiction is to return to hobbies that ignites your soul. Picking up hobby takes commitment and discipline.
You may not know what you are passionate about, but we would suggest starting where you are curious. Have you always loved salsa music and wanted to try salsa dancing? Perhaps check out a class at your local YMCA. Do you love spending time with dogs? Maybe volunteer at an animal shelter or offer to walk a friends dog once a week. Just start where you feel a spark, where you get excited. The key is to get re-connected to what your soul longs for.
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Contact Ehn Canada For Help With Alcoholism Today
Patients who successfully complete EHN Canadas recovery program will leave with the uplifting awareness that the experience of addiction and sobriety has given them a chance to create the kind of meaningful life they deserve and were always meant to live. In addition, EHN will continue to support all patients who may need counseling as their post-recovery life presents exciting and often unexpected situations.
Successfully treating alcoholism involves different treatments for alcoholism that are tailored to address a persons unique mental, emotional, and physical needs. EHN treats each individual with dignity, compassion, and respect. Our alcohol abuse treatment programs are conducted in safe, therapeutic environments where patients can begin the healing process by detoxifying and restoring their health.
We provide thorough and accurate assessments of each person entering our center to ensure individualized treatment plans effectively address each clients unique needs.
Our treatment philosophy upholds the idea that alcohol dependence is a biopsychosocial disease demanding a compassionate, holistic approach by professional alcohol addiction therapists. Treatment programs endow alcohol abusers with the stability, support, and understanding they need to help them begin leading the kind of goal-oriented, satisfying life they want and deserve.
Find A New Favorite Drink
Choosing the right replacement beverage can help you stand firm in your desire to stop drinking. Plain water might offer plenty of health benefits, but its admittedly not the most interesting choice.
With a little creativity, you can find something enjoyable that doesnt make you miss your favorite drink.
Try:
- infusing plain or sparkling water with chopped fruits or herbs
- adding cinnamon sticks or spices to tea, apple cider, or hot chocolate
- mixing juice or lemonade with sparkling water
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Begin The Process To Beat Alcohol Addiction Today
At Northpoint Recovery, we can assist you with getting the alcohol treatment you need. Beating alcoholism could be well within your reach. However, it does require for you to be willing to take the first step. While it is difficult to admit youre an alcoholic, youll find it was the best decision you could have made. Are you looking for ways to beat alcohol addiction in your own life? Do you need information about how we can help you reach that goal? Please contact us to learn more about our numerous treatment options.
Why Are Alcohol Support Groups So Effective
Alcohol addiction support groups are very close-knitted, comprising only a few members joined by a sense of intimacy and a communal effort to overcome the addiction. The group-held meetings allow members to interact with one another, share their stories of success and failure, all while offering comfort, support, and motivation to each other.
Alcohol Meeting Groups will Usually Share Key Rules Such as:
- Every group requires a sponsor, a person who has been sober for a long time
- The sponsor is there to lead the group meetings and set a positive example
- Participation in support group meetings returns optimal results if the person also undergoes other addiction treatment methods
- Visiting a professional treatment program is not mandatory to gain admission into a group
- Most of the support group meetings are free of charges
Alcohol support sessions can be of two types: 12-step and non-12-step groups. The classification is based solely on the treatment philosophy endorsed by a group.
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How To Stop Binge Drinking
Of course, not all people have the same pattern of alcohol use. For some, the issue may not be daily, heavy drinking, but a pattern of binging on certain evenings or weekends.
Binge drinking is generally defined as four or more drinks on one occasion for women, and five or more for men. While this may overlap with alcohol use disorder, it doesnt necessarily. Some people binge only occasionally and may not qualify as addicted to alcohol. On average, however, one in six Americans binge drink at least once a week.4
Long term, this pattern can have negative health consequences, or lead to a larger drinking problem. If you find that its hard for you to control how much you drink on social occasions, or that youve developed a habit of drinking heavily some nights to manage stress, its best to reign it in sooner rather than later.
Solutions include apps to help you monitor your drinking habits, a mobile breathalyzer to keep you aware of your blood alcohol content, and medication. Naltrexone in particular is prescribed to help people achieve moderation, or control their consumption on social occasions. It works by reducing the pleasurable effects of alcohol, blocking the reward cycle in your brain that can lead to runaway consumption.
While getting help for alcohol tends to be associated with more severe problem drinking, it doesnt need to be. Many types of alcohol use can have a negative impact. You dont need to identify as an alcoholic to want to drink less than you do.
What Is Inpatient Alcohol Rehabilitation
Residential rehab involves checking in to a residential facility, either a discrete and isolated wing of a larger hospital or health complex or a standalone facility.
An individual essentially puts their life on hold for the period they are in rehab and commits to staying for an agreed-upon time. Inpatient treatment and thus taking time out from their daily life can be beneficial for those who want to become sober, especially those who have tried other approaches that didnt work for them.
The actual length of time spent at an inpatient facility will vary depending on individual circumstances. Still, the first part of the stay will involve a period of medically supervised detoxification.
The detoxification process is followed by other forms of therapy and activities designed to help resident patients examine beliefs or negative self-concepts that may damage them and perpetuate their addiction. These therapies seek to eliminate destructive patterns of behavior and replace them with new, healthier patterns.
There isnt one right home-held intervention model. The best method will depend on the circumstances surrounding the individuals case.
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Medication To Stop Drinking
Medication has been an option for many decades, and despite having a strong success rate it is not very well known. Fortunately, this is starting to change.
The original medication for alcoholism is disulfiram, also known as Antabuse. This prescription drug causes you to feel ill when you drink any amount of alcohol, and is now considered a fairly harsh way of quitting. Still, for some people, disulfiram remains an effective choice.
There are now milder options as well. Since the 1990s, naltrexone has been approved by the FDA to treat alcohol use disorder. This drug limits the pleasurable effects of drinking without making you feel sick. Naltrexone is a key component in the Sinclair Method, which uses targeted doses of this drug to help people moderate or quit over time. It is also available as a monthly injection , or as a daily pill.
For those who have already quit and want help managing cravings, there is also acamprosate, an abstinence maintenance medication that helps rebalance your brain chemistry. And beyond these, there are several off-label medications that can be useful, including gabapentin, topiramate, and baclofen.
Any of these medications can make a big difference in battling physical addiction, making the psychological parts of alcohol dependence easier to work through.
Continue reading about medication for alcoholism, and how it may be able to help you quit
Resources: Identifying Strengths And Weaknesses Developing Skills To Fill The Gaps
Overcoming addiction requires you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses and to address your weaknesses effectively. This involves two related sets of activities:
- First, you need to assess what resources you already have and what resources you currently lack.
- Then you need to develop the skills that will allow you to expand your resources. Moreover, these skills themselves are critical in overcoming addiction.
Not all people are created equal in terms of kicking addictions. You might think, Sure, I could lose weight if I had a personal trainer and chef like Oprah and those Hollywood stars. However, compared to someone else who cant afford a health club membership, you may be in a relatively good position to get in shape. Take someone working at a marginal jobsay, a single mother who waitresses. What does she do during a break or following work in order to relax? Smoking seems like the cheapest, easiest relief she can turn to, while a better-off person might take an aerobics class.
Research shows that the more resources people have and develop, the more likely they are to recover from addiction. Resources are not limited to money. Here are key assets in fighting an addiction:
Key Assets in Fighting Addiction
- Intimacy and supportive relationship
5.1. Assessing Your Strengths and Resources
- I quit smoking.
- People turn to me in crisis.
- I have always held a job.
- I have good relationships with my children.
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They Are Paying Less Attention To Self
When alcohol addiction begins to take more control over a persons life, they may find themselves getting hungover more often. The lethargic side effects of drinking and the negative mental and physical impacts will make it difficult for anyone to pay close attention to self-care and hygiene.
This can result in skipping meals, worsening depression, and showering less. If you start seeing these symptoms in your own life or someone elses, it may be a sign that their alcohol consumption is causing them to be less attentive to their own needs. Things can continue to worsen from here and may result in long-term impacts or suicidal tendencies.
The Importance Of Persistence
Because AUD can be a chronic relapsing disease, persistence is key. It is rare that someone would go to treatment once and then never drink again. More often, people must repeatedly try to quit or cut back, experience recurrences, learn from them, and then keep trying. For many, continued follow up with a treatment provider is critical to overcoming problem drinking.
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Rewards: Weighing The Costs And Benefits Of Addiction
If motivation is the force that drives you to act, then rewards are what you gain from that activity. People quit their addictions when they begin to get more rewards for living without the addiction than they got from feeding the addiction. Put into economic terms, you give up your habit when you believe that its costs exceed its benefits.Of course, the nature of rewards is highly subjective. You incur all sorts of costs from an addictionhealth, financial, legal, interpersonal, and so on. However, you also are getting benefits from itrewards that often loom larger than life because they are so immediate and familiar to you.
4.1. The Rewards of Addictions
Excessive alcohol consumption, eating, and sexual activity etc provide you with feelings and sensations that you desire and need. Some of these essential feelings are a sense of being valued, of being a worthwhile person, or of being in control. It is critical for you, or anyone trying to help a person with an addictive problem, to understand the needs that the addiction fulfills. This understanding is necessary in order to root out the addiction.
However, addictions dont really provide people with positive experiences or benefits. Although they provide short-term or illusory rewards, addictions ultimately lead to negative feelings and life outcomes. In the long run, you are worse off as a result of your addictive behaviors.
4.2. Are Addictions Pleasurable?
4.3. The Rewards of Work and Family
Procrastination
How To Quit Drinking Safely
As previously mentioned, there are situations in which quitting alcohol can be dangerous. That doesnt mean it isnt possible to quit on your own, but its best to have a doctors advice about how your body will reactespecially if you drink heavily. If you think you have a more severe habit, you should either cut back before quitting completely, or seek medical supervision for withdrawal.
Quitting Drinking Cold Turkey
Cold turkey refers to quitting alcohol, or any addictive substance, abruptly. This often results in withdrawal symptoms, physical and mental discomfort, and a week or so of limited activity while your body goes through detox.
This isnt always necessary, but some people prefer to go straight through withdrawalthe equivalent of ripping off a band-aid. The advantage can be that you push through the physical symptoms quickly, and come out the other side ready to change your habits. The downside is that cold turkey can also leave you feeling drained and vulnerable. This might actually encourage relapse, and then make you scared to quit again.
The biggest issue with cold turkey is that withdrawal symptoms can be severe enough to threaten a persons safety. In the case of alcohol, they can even be life-threatening.
Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms
Treatments for Alcohol Withdrawal
This shouldnt discourage you from quitting. But overall, be cautious about giving up alcohol cold turkey, and consider tapering off if possible.
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How To Overcome Alcohol Addiction
Alcoholism is a severe use of alcohol which makes it hard for the victim to control his/her drinking habits. Another name for alcoholism is alcohol use disorder. Alcohol use disorder exists in three categories or stages: mild, moderate and severe.
Each of these categories has symptoms which distinguish them and are characterized by adverse side effects. Like in many cases, if disregarded, the consequences can be irreversible.
Time and again, people affected by alcoholism feel that they cannot do anything without taking a few sips.
When one gets to those levels, everything around them gets affected for instance, an individuals professional goals, private matters, relationships, and overall body health. With time, the consistency in alcohol abuse worsens and results in complications.
Gradually Taper Your Drinking
Rather than quitting drinking abruptly, you can gradually taper your drinking habit. This also requires a lot of discipline not to reach for the second drink of alcohol.
However, this may be more appropriate for people who are dependent on alcohol rather than those who are suffering from an addiction to the substance.
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