Ongoing abuse of drugs and alcohol will eventually result in harmful impacts on your physical and psychological health. Detox and withdrawal are not easy to overcome, and the symptoms you will experience are unique to you. No two people experience detox and withdrawal in the exact same way. That is where Marina Harbor Detox comes in. Marina Harbor Detox is a premier detox center in San Francisco. Contact us today to learn more about our program and how we implement medications for detox to help manage symptoms.
What is Drug Detox?
The first step in many drug addiction treatment programs is detox. For addiction treatment to be successful, it is vital first to cleanse your body of any remaining substances. During detox, your body must learn to function without substances it has become dependent on. For many, the detox process can be scary, unpleasant, and, as previously mentioned, potentially dangerous. While using or drinking, your brain and systems within the body become accustomed to certain levels of drugs or alcohol to function. Withdrawal symptoms are your body’s reaction to not having access to the substances it craves.
How Does Detox Impact the Body?
When you begin detoxing, your body often reacts negatively to a lack of drugs it has accustomed to. These adverse reactions or effects are known as withdrawal symptoms. The duration, intensity, and severity of the withdrawal symptoms you experience during detox are related to various factors, including the duration of your addiction, the severity of your addiction, and the substance or substances you used. It is important to note that detoxing from certain drugs such as opioids or alcohol can be dangerous and sometimes leads to fatal withdrawal symptoms.
Withdrawal symptoms are your body’s reaction to not having access to the substances it craves. For most, withdrawal symptoms last for three to seven days, although they can last up to two weeks in some cases. Common withdrawal symptoms include changes in appetite, altered mood or behavior, fatigue, restlessness and irritability, aches and pains, changes in sleeping patterns, and respiratory issues such as congestion or runny nose. Other common symptoms include sweating, shakiness, nausea, and vomiting. In some cases, more severe symptoms such as seizures, cardiac arrest, respiratory arrest, and delirium tremens (DTs) can occur.
Are There Medications for Detox?
Depending on the severity of your withdrawal symptoms, your treatment providers at a professional detox program may administer medications for detox. Although medications are not suitable for all, several detox meds may help reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms, allowing you to focus on healing and achieving sobriety.
What Medications Can Be Used in the Detox Process?
Several medications are frequently used in the detox process as part of a medically assisted treatment program. Examples include:
- Acamprosate: an FDA-approved medication used to treat alcohol use disorders (alcoholism).
- Antiadrenergic agents: drugs that inhibit the signals of specific neurotransmitters in the body. They help reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms from opiates, benzodiazepines, and alcohol.
- Anticonvulsants: depending on the specific drug, work in different ways to prevent the occurrence of seizures during detox.
- Antidepressants
- Anti-nausea medications
- Antipsychotics
- Benzodiazepines
- Buprenorphine: used primarily for opioid or opiate detox. It works as an opioid partial agonist, limiting the effects of opioid drugs and reducing the severity of withdrawal symptoms.
- Methadone: often used in medication-assisted treatment programs for opioid use disorder.
- Naltrexone: Frequently used in medical detox for those detoxing from alcohol and opioids.
- Suboxone: Used in the treatment of opioid addiction.
- Subutex: medication used to treat opioid dependence and addiction.
- Vivitrol: helps reduce cravings for alcohol and opioids.
How to Find a Medically-Managed Detox Program in San Francisco
The best and safest way to detox from drugs and alcohol is at a medically assisted detox program like Marina Harbor Detox. At an addiction treatment center specializing in medically managed detox, you will receive medical supervision throughout the detox process. Depending on your unique needs and the design of the program, this may include the administration of medication to help manage and reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms.
Medically assisted detox helps provide holistic assistance with mental and physical stability while providing nutritional support during the earliest and most challenging days of treatment.
Marina Habor Detox is a San Francisco rehab center specializing in drug detox programs in Northern California. Contact us today to learn more about how our programs can help you overcome withdrawal.
