Alcohol detox, explained properly

Detox is the process of getting alcohol out of your system safely while your body readjusts. In a clinical setting it means prescribed medication on a reducing schedule, alongside monitoring of symptoms, blood pressure and hydration.

What it is not is treatment. Detox deals with physical dependence over a week or so. It does nothing about the reasons someone was drinking, which is why people who detox and stop there so often end up detoxing again. It is the first step, and treating it as the whole journey is the most common mistake in this field.

Day one is assessment and the first doses. Days two and three are usually the hardest — this is the window the medication and monitoring exist for. By day four or five most people are sleeping better and eating properly again, and the medication is tapering. By the end of the week the physical part is largely done and the therapeutic work has already begun.

At The Wellbourne Clinic that happens in a 6-bed clinic in Kenilworth rather than a ward — which for most people makes the difference between enduring the week and getting through it reasonably comfortably. There is more detail on the clinic’s detox page.