Serious Signs of Alcohol Withdrawal

Alcohol withdrawal can be described as the mental and physical symptoms you experience when you stop after drinking alcohol heavily over a long period of time. Some alcohol withdrawal symptoms are mild while others can be quite serious. If you are only an occasional drinker, you may not experience signs of alcohol withdrawal if you stop drinking. But if you drink heavily for several months or years in a row, alcohol withdrawal could be a severe problem for you.

What Causes Alcohol Withdrawal?

Alcohol is a depressant. This means that it slows you down instead of speeding you up like some other drugs. Essentially, alcohol slows down the way your nerves report messages back and forth to each other. It also slows down the way your nerves communicate with your brain.

Brain function itself is also slowed down by alcohol. In fact, this is often a reason why people drink in the first place. The depressive effects can help alleviate worries and lower inhibitions–especially during tense social situations.

But as someone continues to drink for many weeks, months, or years, the body adjusts. The central nervous system assumes that it will have alcohol in its system at all times and re-adjusts to having it.

The problem is that your central nervous system stays this way even when alcohol suddenly stops flowing in your system. If you drink for a long time, then stop, the symptoms that you experience are a result of your brain and body re-adjusting, and they are called “withdrawal symptoms.”

What Are the Most Serious Signs of Alcohol Withdrawal

The following is a list of the most serious signs of alcohol withdrawal:

• Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea
• Insomnia
• Shaky hands and delirium tremens
• Racing heart rate
• High fever
• Confusion, hallucinations and severe anxiety

How Can You Alleviate the Signs of Alcohol Withdrawal?

Only professional help from certified and accredited drug and alcohol treatment centers can help you alleviate the signs of alcohol withdrawal. Once you check into a facility like this, you’ll go through alcohol detox.

Detox is absolutely essential for anyone who wants to recover from alcoholism. During this time, health professionals will medically monitor your body in order to keep you safe and comfortable during withdrawal.

If you’re looking for a treatment center to treat alcohol withdrawal and recover from alcoholism, Beaches Recovery can help. We offer the following types of proven therapy:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavioral therapy
• Post-traumatic stress disorder therapy
• Anger management
• Holistic treatment including art and music therapy
• Group therapy and family therapy programs
• Programs designed specifically for men and women

To learn more about these therapies and our approaches to the alcohol treatment we offer at Beaches Recovery, give us a call today at 866.605.0532. Don’t wait to change your life.