According to the NSDUH National Survey on Drug Use and Health from 2011, nearly 25 million Americans who are older than 12 have experimented with illegal drugs in the month before they took the survey. This represented a shocking near 10 percent of the adult population. It means that nearly one in ten Americans counted as current drug users. This makes the question: “How does a drug detox center help with withdrawal pain?” extremely relevant for many American adults.
Unfortunately for so many in the country today, addictive alcohol and drugs change the means of your brain processing emotions and regulating moods. A huge number of these processes cause there to be a neurotransmitter flood (including serotonin and dopamine) that leads to the artificial feelings of ecstasy better known as a “high.”
Withdrawal can be a miserable time for most users. The symptoms of such withdrawals and the amount of time that these last will range wildly. It all comes down to the abused drug and the addiction length. Here are a few of the common withdrawal symptoms from the most commonly abused drugs:
- Benzodiazepines – causes anxiety and seizures that can last for weeks or even months in certain cases
- Heroin and prescription painkiller medications – give symptoms like the flu that hold for five days on average
- Cocaine – causes restlessness and depression that lasts anywhere from seven to ten days
- Alcohol – gives users seizures and tremors that last from three days up to several weeks long
The Various Drugs Possess Their Own Symptoms and Timelines
After a person has formed a dependence to an illicit substance, the varying withdrawal symptoms always begin after the substance has been taken away from the user. Every drug has its own withdrawal symptoms and timelines. These depend entirely on the way in which the substances interact with the body and the brain of the user. Different drugs remain in the organism for differing lengths of time. This is commonly called the “half life” of the drug.
How severe and long this withdrawal proves to be is heavily influenced by the amount of dependency to the substance, as well as several other relevant factors. These include the following:
- Type of substance that is abused
- Amount of time spent abusing this substance
- Means of abuse (smoking, snorting, injecting, or even swallowing)
- Quantity of drug consumed per occasion
- Mental and medical health factors
- Genetic makeup and family history
It makes sense that an individual who has routinely injected huge amounts of heroin for a few years (who also possesses a family background of addiction and other related mental health issues) will experience lengthier withdrawal symptoms that include more potent symptoms versus a person who only took smaller amounts of the same drug for a shorter timeframe.
Withdrawal Timelines for Certain Drugs
Most drugs have their own unique symptoms and timelines for withdrawal. Some of the most common are as follows:
- Heroin – the withdrawal starts after 12 hours of the final dose and peaks in 24 to 48 hours, lasting for a week (though some symptoms hold on for several months)
- Benzodiazepines (like Valium, Xanax, and Ativan) – the withdrawal can start within one to four days and peaks within the first two weeks. Extended withdrawals can hold for a few months to even several years if treatment is not obtained
- Prescription Opiates (like OxyContin, Vicodin, and morphine) – have withdrawal beginning in from eight to twelve hours that peaks in from 12 to 48 hours and holds typically from five to ten days
- Cocaine – the withdrawal begins in only several hours of the final dose and peaks within several days while holding from one to 10 weeks
- Alcohol – symptoms of withdrawal start in from eight hours of the final drink to several days later and peak in from 24 to 72 hours, lasting a few weeks
How Does A Drug Detox Center Help with the Withdrawal Pain?
Detox patients can count on getting help and relief from medical professionals from the severity of the symptoms when you go to a drug detox center. The treatments are all backed by proven research and efficiently help to deal with the symptoms. This enables the patients to effectively manage their withdrawal symptoms through each and every part of the process. The good news is that people who are afraid of the pain of withdrawal symptoms do not have to suffer through it on their own.
In Conclusion
There is absolutely no reason to suffer through withdrawal symptoms alone today. If you are ready to get started with treatment and the road to recovery, simply contact us today at 833-846-5669. Our caring staff will be waiting for your call. We can help!