The drugs that are considered the most uncomfortable to detox from are opioids, especially heroin. Attempting to detox alone at home carries significant risks due to the lack of medical support. If dangerous withdrawal symptoms or complications occur, it can be harder to seek immediate medical attention. People may experience physical, behavioral, and cognitive symptoms when discontinuing substances. These symptoms may range from mild to severe depending on the person, their history of use, and the substance or substances used.
Step Drug Detox Process
The facility and your insurance provider canhelp you determine your costs. To find another treatment program, browse the top-rated addiction treatment facilities in each state by visiting our homepage, or by viewing the SAMHSA Treatment Services Locator. Ultra-rapid detox is a procedure similar to rapid detox, but it only takes a couple of hours. The cost and death rates of this method are significantly higher. In addition, rapid detox can result in heart attack, aspiration, choking, and death. Medically supervised detox can help keep you safe from the life-threatening side effects of withdrawal and ease some of the uncomfortable effects, but it does not eliminate all of them.
What’s the Best Way to Find a Drug Detox Center?
- It may help to get an independent perspective from someone you trust and who knows you well.
- The extent of supervision is different in inpatient and outpatient rehab.
- The taper period varies depending on how long you’ve been using the drug and how much you’ve been taking.
- You may need to undergo a physical exam, blood tests, urine tests, and other procedures.
Make sure to talk with a healthcare provider before going through a substance detox (stopping use of a substance). In some cases, the process can be dangerous, as there are potential complications. The process of detoxing can be stressful and even painful, especially for those with a long history of substance use disorder.
Anxiety
Inpatient programs that offer medication, such as methadone and buprenorphine treatment programs, tend to be the most expensive. Residential detox programs offer 24-hour medical supervision and care, which can be useful when going through withdrawal from highly addictive drugs with dangerous withdrawal syndromes. Some people can detox successfully as outpatients while still receiving medical supervision and any medications that are deemed necessary.
Drug Withdrawal Symptoms
However, it can be a crucial first step in the journey to recovery and healing. The main downside of outpatient programs is that they don’t provide 24/7 support and monitoring. The taper period varies depending on how long you’ve been using the drug and how much you’ve been taking. You should expect to gradually lower your dose over a period of several weeks or even a few months. During detox, your focus will be on reducing your caloric intake and finding balance with foods that nourish your body. Although alcohol is more accessible than other drugs, it can certainly be just as damaging to the body (if not more so).
- This may seem like the easiest and cheapest way to detox, but quitting cold turkey can have serious health risks.
- In rare cases alcohol detox can cause delirium tremens (DT), a life threatening condition that can lead to stroke, heart attack, and death if left untreated.
- After a program like this, you might transfer to a residential facility with less supervision or a fully outpatient program after you’ve gone through detox and your health is stable.
It’s important to understand what to expect during detox before going to rehab. The detoxification process can take anywhere from days to weeks, as a person’s body adjusts to life without the substance. During this process, a person may undergo a series of side effects and withdrawal symptoms that can be mild or severe.
Drug detoxification is the process where a person is weaned off of a drug so that it is no longer in their system. For people dealing with substance use disorder, drug detox may feel intimidating or even frightening. Learning what happens during detox can make this crucial step in recovery more approachable. However, the use of medication to manage withdrawal symptoms for both comfort and safety is common. Many people suffering from addictions feel overwhelmed when first seeking treatment and unsure of how to find the resources they need in order to undergo the detox process. There are several avenues an individual can follow in order to find drug treatment services.
The Basics & Sample Meal Plan
Addiction Resource does not offer medical diagnosis, treatment, or advice. Only trained and licensed medical professionals can provide such services. If you or anyone you know is undergoing a severe health crisis, call a doctor or 911 immediately.
- However, warnings have been issued regarding the safety of this method.
- An overdose happens when the person uses enough of a drug to produce uncomfortable feelings, life-threatening symptoms, or death.
- If you have insurance, you may also want to call your insurance company to learn what your individual plan covers before making a decision.
- Drug and alcohol detox can be an important first step toward recovery and healing for people with substance use disorders.
What to Expect During Medical Detox
For example, some people with a history of alcohol use disorder (AUD) can experience delirium tremens (DTs) drug detox within the first few days of detox. Some symptoms of DTs, like psychosis or seizures, may be severe and require medical attention. Identifying success in the realm of addiction treatment may require people to reframe preconceived ideas about what recovery means. Many people in recovery use sugar and caffeine to keep feeling awake and alert. However, this can cause swings in blood sugar levels that may lead to drug cravings.
Social drug detox programs differ in supervision levels, from on-site medical support to access through clinics, ‘cold turkey’ detox, or supervised medication. Regardless, these programs prioritize addressing psychological aspects, offering counseling, therapy, and peer support. You also may not have the option of using medication to make the process easier. Not all of the medications doctors use for detox are available to take on your own at home. People who detox at home (and don’t follow it with an appropriate substance abuse treatment program) may be more likely to relapse.