Sydney Tubbs is a driven and compassionate Operations Director at The Freedom Center. With a profound understanding of the complexities surrounding addiction, Sydney has dedicated her career to improving the lives of individuals struggling with substance abuse. With herself and her staff their main goal is to provide a safe, nurturing environment for our clients. Through her relentless pursuit of excellence, Sydney empowers individuals on their journey towards recovery, offering hope and healing to those in need.
Can You Stop Drinking Alcohol Cold Turkey?
In fact, cigarette cessation guidelines conclude that the best way to quit smoking is by abruptly stopping. There is research that states outright that quitting “cold turkey” Top 5 Advantages of Staying in a Sober Living House has a rate of success that is comparable to nicotine replacement therapy. Tapering involves gradually and progressively reducing your alcohol consumption over time.
Other Dangerous Side Effects of Alcohol Withdrawal
However, some groups have stepped in to try to bridge this gap and have published sample tapering schedules to help those trying to stop drinking. Moreover, substituting one kind of beverage for another does not help you taper off alcohol if you consume the same number of standard drinks as you usually have. For example, one 12-ounce can of beer contains the same amount of alcohol as a 5-ounce glass of wine or a mixed drink containing 1.5 ounces of alcohol.
What is Quitting Alcohol Cold Turkey?
Even if you think either option sounds like something that could work for your situation, we still recommend talking to a doctor before proceeding. Nonetheless, quitting cold turkey might be the only way for people who don’t have an alcohol use disorder (AUD). In this case, having a strong support system, attending AA meetings, and talking with an addiction counselor are key to a successful detox process. During medical detox, medical professionals obverse the side effects of withdrawal and can help provide the support and guidance you need to continue your recovery process. They can also ensure you receive fluids to manage dehydration and provide balanced meals to minimize withdrawal effects. Tapering is meant to reduce the withdrawal symptoms from quitting alcohol, but this isn’t a guarantee.
Alcohol also changes your brain chemistry, which can result in higher levels of anxiety and depression for the first several months. Finally, just because you’ve gotten past the withdrawal phase doesn’t mean you won’t continue to face psychological aspects of addiction—including alcohol cravings and drinking triggers. This can sometimes cause unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, and these symptoms can make it hard to stick with your recovery plan.
Being free of the harmful substance sooner
- Exploring alternatives to the ‘quitting drinking cold turkey’ approach can provide safer and more effective pathways to overcoming alcohol dependence.
- This leads to raised blood pressure, raised pulse rate, rapid breathing, fever, hallucinations, seizures and D.T.s.
- If people have a less severe alcohol dependency, they could quit alcohol on their own.
- There are multiple health benefits you can experience when you start drinking less alcohol.
- This can set you up for a safe and effective detox and put you in a good position to continue your recovery in rehab.
- While there are no significant health risks when quitting smoking cold turkey, nicotine withdrawal symptoms can be very unpleasant.
With these things in mind, you need to weigh the pros and cons of tapering your alcohol use—ideally with someone you trust—to make a fully informed decision. John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine. For over 20 years Dr. Umhau was a senior clinical investigator at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Lazare Shadzeka is a Board Certified Psychiatric https://marylanddigest.com/top-5-advantages-of-staying-in-a-sober-living-house/ Mental Health Nurse Practitioner via the American Nurses Credentialing Center, with privileges in Maryland and Washington DC. Lazare has accumulated over eight enriching years in the provision of holistic care to a wide variety of clients, with psychiatric conditions. Benzodiazepines are a class of drug that slows down brain and nervous system activity, which makes them an effective counter to anxiety and other conditions such as insomnia and epilepsy.
- If you go through a medical detox the people they may rehydrate you with an IV and may also give you vitamin shots.
- Although it is possible to taper your alcohol use alone, professionals highly advise that you seek medical attention.
- Being born and raised in Gaithersburg, Maryland, it was always a dream for James to start a program where he began his own recovery journey.
- As mentioned above, we strongly recommend speaking with a doctor to ensure your plan is a safe one, and won’t cause dangerous withdrawal symptoms.
- If you’re worried that you may be addicted to hentai, this article can help you understand some of the warning signs to look out for, as well as some steps you can take to move past this habit.
While there are no significant health risks when quitting smoking cold turkey, nicotine withdrawal symptoms can be very unpleasant. By stopping instantly or going cold turkey, a person may experience more extreme withdrawal symptoms initially. However, they can often get past this withdrawal period more quickly than those who are quitting gradually.
Kevin’s expertise and experience as a Primary Therapist, paired with his natural talents and abilities as a speaker and an artist, have uniquely equipped him to reach our population and render top-notch care. Being born and raised in Gaithersburg, Maryland, it was always a dream for James to start a program where he began his own recovery journey. Having faced addiction in his own life, and having worked through recovery, James truly understands what it takes to get sober and stay sober. James now has the opportunity to do what he loves and help others achieve long-term recovery. This may work for many people, but in practice each individual will respond best to a different pace, and each doctor will have their own recommendations. The risk of tapering too slowly is that you won’t stick with it, while the risk of tapering too fast is severe withdrawal.