Drug detox services are an important first step for many people who are struggling with addiction. Medically assisted detox helps you get through the roughest part of the withdrawal period in as comfortable a state as possible so you can move past fears about withdrawal symptoms and begin working on your recovery. But detox itself is about more than medical treatment. Here’s a look at how drug detox services can set the stage for long-term success.
Safely Stop Using Substances
Medically monitored detox is a safe way to stop using substances that have created changes in your body. Many drugs create changes in your brain and a physical dependency in your body, to the point that your body believes it needs the drugs to survive. When you stop using those substances, your body’s reaction can be alarming.
Withdrawal symptoms can include aches and pains, problems sleeping and other discomforts. They can also include more severe issues such as nausea and vomiting, mood changes and even changes in your heart rate or blood pressure. These symptoms are often enough to drive people back to using the substance, which makes quitting cold turkey alone much harder. Plus, these symptoms can be dangerous for your health.
When you come off of drugs in a supportive environment with medical staff on hand, they can provide appropriate medications and treatments to manage withdrawal symptoms for a safer, more comfortable experience.
Enjoy the Support of Community and Counselors
But detox goes beyond the medical side of things. While your body is physically ridding itself of drug toxins, you can work with a supportive community of counselors, other professionals and fellow people in recovery. That support helps you begin to heal in non-physical ways as you work through causes for your drug use, understand triggers that might lead to use and develop healthy coping mechanisms to deal with stressors in the future.
That community and the use of cognitive behavioral therapy and other treatment models have been shown to make a huge difference in outcomes when it comes to recovery. In short, you don’t have to fight your addiction alone.
Engage With Aftercare to Keep Seeing Success
That truth and community can continue even after you’re discharged from a detox program or residential treatment facility. Addiction is a chronic condition that goes into remission; it’s not something that is magically cured. That means you may need to deal with it for the rest of your life, although your cravings may lessen over time and you may become more adept at using healthy coping mechanisms to stay sober.
One benefit of detox services is that you can step down from that level of treatment with the full support of counselors and other professionals. They will work with you to create an aftercare plan to support your needs and make referrals to groups, individual counseling or outpatient treatment programs as necessary. Each step you take back toward normal life is supported by alumni from your detox program and aftercare treatment and engagement designed to keep you on track.
If you’re struggling with drug addiction, don’t wait for the cycle to become more cemented in your life. Contact New Day Recovery today and ask about our detox programs.