The symptoms of alcohol withdrawal are the hardest things that someone can experience when trying to stop or quit from too much alcohol consumption.
Giving up alcohol has many definite health benefits. For many, it is not as simple as putting it down and walking away. Alcohol withdrawal may be part of the process. There are many different symptoms associated with giving up alcohol. There is no way to determine how severe these will be, as it depends on the amount of drinking that one is used to, and how long they have been drinking.
Even casual, or weekend drinkers may experience alcohol withdrawal. Whether or not this happens depends on just how dependent the body has become on this substance. Heavy drinkers should most definitely consult with a physician before quitting completely. It may be necessary to quit gradually, and not cold turkey, as death is a possibility.
Alcohol withdrawal symptoms are being experienced by alcoholics and these can be extremely unpleasant or mild. Even individuals who drink frequently can also suffer from these symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. The more you drink every day, the more that you can feel the effects. These usually start after 5 to 10 hours from the time when you had the last drink or can also start after some days. After about 72 hours, the symptoms can even become worse and may continue for some weeks. At first, nausea, insomnia, rapid heart beat, mood swings, tremors, and headaches are possible. There is no way to know how long these will last, as it depends on the level of addiction.
More serious effects can occur as the process continues. Blackouts, seizures, body tremors, hallucinations, anxiety attacks, and depression are all possible. Some of these conditions can be life threatening, and medical help should be sought if any of these are experienced. It may be necessary to enter a facility that offers a monitored detox program. Some alcohol withdrawal symptoms are headaches, sweaty hands and vomiting. These are the things that someone who has just started an alcohol free life can go through. The person can even have heart palpitations, shakes, unhealthy complexion and cannot eat and sleep well. The shakes can be only in the hands or can affect the whole body. All of these will lessen while a person’s condition is recovering from the prolonged period of taking in excessive alcohol.
In addition to physical symptoms, there may be a plethora of mental ones as well. Nervousness, a high level of anxiety, and irritability are all common. When these are combined with the physical aspects, detoxing becomes even more difficult. The mental dependency factor is just as important as the physical one. Anxiety attacks can happen anytime. Fatigue, being easily irritated and depression are also included. It is always better to get medical advice before trying to quit drinking. Treatment for the mental side of addiction may be required.
There are medications that can help with the process of detoxing. These are available by prescription only, and will require one or more visits the the doctor. Though many simply wish to quit on their own, the truth is that doing so can be dangerous. Those that insist on not visiting a physician should at least have someone stay with them throughout the process. This person should be educated as to what might possibly happen, and should be prepared to call for medical help should it become necessary.
Many people who already stopped drinking and suffered from these symptoms were not able to handle their situation so they just started drinking again. Getting medical help and advice is the best way in handling this situation. More symptoms of alcohol withdrawal are not that difficult to treat as long as you seek for medical help. For people with mild or moderate cases, they can be in an outpatient setting. However, there should be someone who always keeps an eye on the patient during this process. There should be an every day visit to the health care provider during recovery period. The more severe cases may need hospitalization. Some of these conditions include high fever, hallucination and involuntary muscle contraction. Memory loss can also be experienced during this time. Careful medication and monitoring are very important for people who are suffering from these severe symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
The symptoms mentioned here are just a few of the possibilities. There are many other alcohol withdrawal symptoms that can be experienced. Once the body has become dependent, it will not be happy when it no longer gets the alcohol that it has become used to.