Texas Alcohol Detox: The First Step in Addiction Recovery

First, our Intake and Admissions clinicians conduct an initial and confidential assessment to establish the appropriate level of care. If medical detox is advised, Santé’s medical team completes a comprehensive review of the drug, medical, and mental health histories of clients. This is imperative for understanding and customizing treatment for each individual’s unique situation.

Second, the medical team monitors vitals, performs withdrawal assessments, and provides general medical care.  If our medical treatment staff deems it appropriate, medication may be administered to reduce symptom severity and the risk for complications.  

Finally, once the individual has completed detox successfully, usually between three days to two weeks, additional customized treatment plans will be outlined and discussed. Since the goal is long-term recovery, it is important that the individuals’ needs intersect with the right clinical therapy programs necessary to learn about their physical addiction and overcome the mental and emotional components of addiction. At Santé Center for Healing, we understand the importance of alcohol detox and strive to create a customized, evidence-based programming experience on which clients can count.

WHAT IS ALCOHOL USE DISORDER?

The medical term for alcohol abuse is “alcohol use disorder” or AUD. However, for most people, AUD can be used interchangeably with the terms alcoholism or alcohol abuse. Simply put, alcohol use disorder is when an individual is unable, either physically or mentally, to control their drinking.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine describes addiction as “a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry.” Addiction has biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. 

Alcohol abuse, in particular, is complicated. Easily accessible, legal, socially acceptable, and often encouraged, alcohol has always been a risky substance likely to be abused. Yet, having an alcohol use disorder doesn’t necessarily mean someone is addicted. However, it greatly increases the risk of dependency and the likelihood of addiction developing. 

This is because alcohol changes an individual’s brain chemistry, causing them to require the substance to function normally. As the disease progresses, individuals routinely find they need to drink more frequently or more potent alcohol to function. Often, it’s no longer about the euphoric effect of drinking. Instead, due to the body’s brain chemistry changing, individuals need the substance to simply function normally. It’s at this stage, having built up a significant tolerance, when an individual unconsciously moves from just abusing alcohol to being addicted to it. 

Those with alcohol use disorder can’t simply stop drinking. Addiction is characterized by inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. 

Going ‘cold turkey’ can do serious and significant damage; alcohol can do as much (or even more) overall harm as many illegal drugs. Self-detoxing rarely addresses what an individual’s body needs while going through withdrawal symptoms. Frequently, individuals who attempt self-detox end up relapsing. 

Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is both chronic and progressive and can result in disability or premature death. 

Don’t let alcohol use disorder control your life any longer. Contact Sante Center for Healing today at 866.238.3154.

WHY SHOULD YOU SEEK DETOX SERVICES?

Detox requires medical intervention, as individuals detoxing from alcohol and other drugs will likely experience harsh withdrawal symptoms. Without experienced professional and medical guidance, it’s easy to fall victim to relapse before successfully detoxing. Sometimes the symptoms are so harsh that they cause physical harm. In these cases, seeking detox services is a matter of safety.

Santé Center for Healing strives to keep you healthy and comfortable during alcohol detox by monitoring vitals, performing withdrawal assessments, and providing general medical care.

Withdrawal symptoms will vary from person-to-person for a number of reasons such as genetics, duration of use, type of substance, number of substances, age, etc. However, individuals who have been drinking heavily for a long time will likely experience the most severe symptoms. Heavy drinkers who have been doing so for a long time will also see withdrawal symptoms arise sooner than others. For most individuals, withdrawal symptoms will last for up to two weeks. Symptoms are generally put into two classes, minor and major. Minor withdrawal symptoms experienced during addiction detox programs can include:

• Anxiety
• Aches and pains
• Extreme cold
• Cravings 
• Sweating
• Nausea
• Insomnia
• Headaches
• Restlessness 

However, there can be more serious withdrawal symptoms requiring medical supervision to ensure the individual’s health and safety. For instance, major alcohol detox withdrawal symptoms include:

• Tremors
• Seizures
• Hallucinations
• Disorientation
• Delusions
• Delirium tremens

This last symptom is perhaps the most serious, occurring when the individual’s body physically reacts to the lack of alcohol in the bloodstream in an extremely negative manner. For example, delirium tremens or DTs can involve seizures, irregular heartbeat, high fever, and uncontrollable shaking. A study by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) revealed that death may occur in up to 5% of patients with DTs. Thus, it’s clear that medically supervised professional alcohol detox, like that provided by Santé Center for Healing, is the best way to begin overcoming alcohol addiction. With a proper medical staff monitoring an individual’s progress through detox, the chances of a serious medical issue arising lower, and should it occur, they are there to immediately address it.

Addiction is a chronic and progressive disease and should be treated medically in detox as such.

The severity of the symptoms varies depending on the length of your alcohol addiction. For example, withdrawal can lead to hallucinations and even death for some people. We urge everyone to seek professional substance abuse treatment.

ALCOHOL CRAVINGS

Having alcohol cravings during detox is normal. Addiction makes the body crave alcohol and will feel like it’s shutting down without it. These cravings are typically enough to make most people relapse. At Santé Center for Healing, we help individuals manage and overcome these alcohol cravings.

We choose to be an intimate facility, with 54 or fewer residential clients, where we can customize individual treatment plans for each.  With a 2:1 total staff to patient ratio and a 1:6 clinical ratio, we always have enough expert staff to provide medical, clinical, emotional, and spiritual support our clients need. 

We also know that privacy is important while clients focus on recovery. Our staff members take privacy and comfort very seriously.

PHYSICAL AGITATION

With 25 years of experience, we know that some clients experience physical agitation during alcohol detox. An increased heart rate and sweating only exacerbate the situation. However, failure to address these feelings and withdrawal symptoms can cause even more issues. We work with our clients to limit physical agitation during the detox process.

GETTING TO THE CAUSE OF YOUR ADDICTION

Countless clinical studies over the years, and most recently the “Addiction Treatment Aftercare Outcome Study” published in the Open Journal of Psychiatry, determined that the longer an individual is engaged in addiction treatment the better the success for sustained recovery.

The America Society of Addiction Medicine asserts the chronic nature of the illness mandates a coordinated, science-based approach for chronic disease management. 

At Santé Center for Healing, our goal is to help individuals achieve long-term recovery. That is most successfully achieved when clients and staff can discover, address, and begin to address the root issues so often underneath addiction.  Our clinical and medical teams know that effective treatment is not about ease or automation, but about impact, about a strong foundation for recovery. To create this strong foundation, we offer addiction therapy as part of detox treatment. This is a critical ingredient in the recovery process, increasing the likelihood that the gains made in detox transfer to the work of residential treatment for reinforcing and sustaining for life-long recovery.

Trauma therapy programs can play a major role in recovery. The goal is to uncover hidden issues contributing to or acting as a trigger for behaviors leading to alcohol addiction. Dealing with underlying trauma is the only way to fully overcome any addiction. Since many people use alcohol to mask trauma, it’s important to work with trauma-informed professionals committed to trauma resolution in order to achieve long-term recovery.

LET SANTÉ CENTER FOR HEALING HELP

At Santé Center for Healing we offer individuals and their families a long-term, clinical recovery continuum of care spanning more acute medical and clinical needs to less acute therapeutic transitions. Providing alcohol and other addiction treatment programs from medical detox, to residential, to intensive outpatient, to transitional living, to family programming, to individual therapy and medication management, to life-long alumni support. 

All of our treatment plans are customized to the client, whether for:

• Substance use disorder
• Mental health/dual diagnosis
• Trauma therapy
• Problematic sexual behavior
• Disordered eating
• And other compulsive behaviors 

Addiction impacts everyone in the family unit. Santé Center for Healing truly believes that family and friends play in integral part of addiction treatment. Families and friends can contribute to their loved one’s belief that recovery is possible because of and after residential treatment; outcomes improve when the family and community of friends are active in the recovery process. To the best of their ability, families and friends can support anything that leads to their loved one’s hope, health, healing and recovery while holding boundaries for anything contrary to those goals. 

Santé’s Family Programming has three main aspects: a Family and Friends Support Group (virtual and on campus) offered three times/week, a three-part Family Therapy Series, and a two-day family intensive customized to the client and their family.  

Don’t live another day with alcohol addiction threatening you or your loved one. Call Santé Center for Healing today at 866.238.3154 for more information.