When you take drugs or drink alcohol on a regular basis, you can start to crave the sense of euphoria that drinking and taking drugs has given you. Because this feeling is one that is pleasant, there is an urge to continue drinking and or taking drugs. When this happens, the brain is being conditioned to let the body know that this behavior needs to continue in order for the user to feel good.
When the user quits drinking and or taking the drugs that he is addicted to, the brain will send messages to the body letting the person know that there is something very wrong. These messages the brain sends can consist of quite a few painful, uncomfortable, and even dangerous withdrawal symptoms that can even lead to death if the person experiencing them doesn’t get the proper treatment.
The Proper Treatment
Many people who have become addicts have found that the best option for getting sober is to go to a treatment facility. Entering a rehab facility can ensure that the addict is removed from triggering situations and environments. They also provide an environment that is therapeutic and structured. One of the treatment options is outpatient drug treatment. Outpatient programs can include standard outpatient treatment, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient treatment options. Partial and intensive are treatment programs that are more time intensive and structured. The addict will attend several therapy sessions each week depending on how intense the program is. The more standard outpatient programs generally require only a single therapy sessions each week.
Sleep
One of the things that rehab programs can help with is dealing with withdrawal symptoms. When alcohol starts to finally get out of your system, it can interrupt your sleep cycle. While you might be of the opinion that you can’t sleep without getting your fix of drugs and alcohol before bed, this can actually make you sleep worse. This even holds true with nicotine. If you want to sleep better, staying away from the drugs and alcohol for longer than it takes them to get out of your system will help.
Different Symptoms for Different Substances
Each and every drug will be different. There are some drugs that can give addicts more serious physical withdrawal symptoms. These drugs can include things like tranquilizers, opiates, and alcohol. Then again, other drugs can have few physical withdrawal symptoms but quite a few emotional withdrawal symptoms. These drugs can include things like ecstasy, marijuana, and cocaine. On top of that, each person’s pattern of physical withdrawal can be different.
Some Physical Withdrawal Symptoms
When someone is going through withdrawals, they can experience hot flashes, excessive sweating, as well as nausea and vomiting. Other people might gain an enhanced sensitivity to pain or develop the shakes. Headaches and insomnia are also quite common, as are symptoms that can be likened to the flu, such as overall body aches and systemic weakness. Sometimes people experience severe pain in the abdomen while others might have heart palpitations, seizures, and or difficulty breathing.
Emotional and Mental Symptoms
Suring drug withdrawal, there are a variety of chemicals that can flood through the brain. These can cause the person experiencing the withdrawal to feel irritable, restless, and or anxious. They might find it difficult to be able to concentrate on things. The emotional state can also become heightened. This can turn a slight worry into full blown anxiety, or a touch of sadness into deep depression. People can also tend to withdraw from others when they are going through withdrawals, while others can push the boundaries of their relationships.
Dealing with Symptoms of Withdrawal
If the person going through withdrawals allows their emotions to run roughshod, there is likely to be a relapse. This is true even when they don’t think they will use again. A lot of people have found that exercising, even meditative sorts like yoga, assists the brain in becoming centered and being able to defeat those wild emotions that can be part and parcel with withdrawal.
Another thing that can be incredibly helpful is to have a support system made up of your family members and or friends who will help to get you through the process.
