How to Taper Off Alcohol to Avoid Withdrawal Symptoms
There are two types of triggers alcohol rehab that can set off a person’s urge to drink. External triggers are people, places, things, or times that offer opportunities to drink and remind a person of alcohol. Internal triggers are thoughts, emotions, or physical sensations that cause a person to drink.
In Recovery, Sometimes You Fake It Until You Make It
- The material is not a substitute for qualified medical diagnoses, treatment, or advice.
- If you struggle with drinking, the safest way to quit is under a doctor’s care.
- Stopping alcohol use is the first step of the recovery journey, but staying sober for longer and longer periods is the goal.
- Reach out to one of our Recovery Advocates and begin the healing process.
Whether you’re thinking about tapering off or going cold turkey, it’s crucial to understand the implications of both approaches and which strategy is likely the safest and most effective. If you experience severe withdrawal symptoms while tapering off alcohol, adjust your plan. The goal of tapering is to make the withdrawal process safer and more bearable. Tapering off alcohol is generally safer and more effective than quitting cold turkey. The withdrawal symptoms are less severe and dangerous, and the individual is more likely to achieve a lasting sobriety. Ideally, your support network will include mental health, medical, and addiction treatment professionals, as well as friends and family.
Decreased Risk of AUD
- Discover how alcoholism develops over time, its impact on health, and the stages of this long-term progression.
- Working with a medical professional to taper your alcohol consumption can help the likelihood and severity of alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
- However, various strategies can help you cope with these symptoms and make the journey toward sobriety more manageable.
- A doctor can supervise your tapering progress, helping you manage your cravings and prevent relapse.
- These can indicate a life threatening condition called delirium tremens.
When combined with counseling, this approach is proven highly effective. Figuring out where to start your alcohol taper schedule can be challenging. Counting each drink you consume may seem simple, but all drinks are not created equal. The alcohol content itself is important, and it depends on the percentage of alcohol, the proof of the alcohol and the actual amount of alcohol in the drink. Weaning off alcohol involves gradually decreasing the amount of alcohol you drink. This can be done by reducing the number of drinks, increasing time between drinks or choosing a weaker drink with a lower alcohol content.
Here to Help You Safely Stop Drinking
Recovery is a lifelong process, and safely tapering off of alcohol is the first step towards achieving the life you want. It’s important to nurture a healthy relationship with your body so you can have a healthy relationship with your mind. You can start building the foundation for a happy future by going to rehab for alcohol. In order to fully recover, you can start your healing process by safely ridding yourself of alcohol. Getting professional treatment for alcohol addiction can give you the tools to create, and maintain, a healthy and happy lifestyle. If you are tapering off of alcohol, the time it takes depends entirely on how long the taper is and how well you adhere to it.
Why Alcohol Withdrawal Occurs
The reason for weaning off alcohol instead of quitting cold turkey is to reduce the severity of withdrawal symptoms. If a person abruptly stops drinking alcohol within 6 to 8 hours they will experience hyperactivity, anxiety, tremors, sweating, nausea, and confusion. Seizures are another complication of abruptly quitting alcohol how to taper off alcohol that may occur within the first 12 to 48 hours of stopping. When done under medical supervision, tapering off alcohol has few downsides.
Moreover, physical withdrawal can be challenging, and there’s also a phenomenon called the kindling effect to https://ecosoberhouse.com/ consider. Because tapering is not the recommended way to stop using alcohol, there is no recommended tapering schedule. If you plan to taper, you must create a schedule that is right for you. It is important that your recovery plan has a list of people who can support you as you wean off alcohol.
- Habitual drinkers may have neurotransmitters that are so used to combatting the effects of alcohol that they continue to do so even when a person no longer has alcohol in their system.
- Instead of feeling uninhibited and sedated, they will feel anxious, paranoid, and have difficulty sleeping.
- Explore the new study on daily adolescent substance use and its impact on mental health and prevention strategies.
- John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine.
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