You may decide to seek medical treatment for your withdrawal symptoms or make the choice to enter a professional detox or rehab center. Even if you don’t succeed the first time, there are still plenty of treatment options you can turn to. This is why it is important to stop regular, heavy drinking only under the supervision of medical staff.
This is because when you drink heavily for months or years, your body can start to depend on alcohol to function normally. When you are physically dependent on a substance like alcohol, your body adapts accordingly. An alcohol taper is a way to wean yourself off alcohol and avoid withdrawal symptoms. Although all forms of alcohol cessation should be done with medical guidance, tapering your alcohol intake may allow you to self-wean from drinking at home. Tapering off alcohol is generally safer and more effective than quitting cold turkey.
- This way, the process of breaking free from alcohol dependency becomes safer and more achievable.
- During this time you’ll likely experience the worst portion of withdrawal symptoms.
- That’s why it’s important to remember that relapse is not failure.
- The first night I barely slept because of auditory hallucinations and the second night I had tunnel vision and felt like a stroke victim.
- At a rehab clinic, an alcohol withdrawal taper can be provided to slowly get you back to normal life.
Effects of Tapering Off Alcohol
It’s common to experience emotional ups and downs during the weaning process. Anxiety, depression, and mood swings can all arise as your body adjusts to lower alcohol levels. Stay in tune with your mental health and seek professional support if needed.
Understanding Alcohol Withdrawal
Although most people who go through alcohol withdrawal make a full recovery, symptoms such as sleep changes, rapid mood changes, and fatigue may last for months. Understanding the severity of alcohol withdrawal underscores Sober House Rules: What You Should Know Before Moving In the importance of seeking professional help and support when trying to wean off alcohol. At a rehab clinic, an alcohol withdrawal taper can be provided to slowly get you back to normal life. This form of tapering would likely involve medications to eliminate withdrawal symptoms. Slowly, to reduce the discomfort of withdrawal symptoms, you will come off the medication with the goal being complete abstinence from alcohol. Tapering alcohol is beneficial because you can avoid alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Tapering Off Alcohol
Deciding to taper off alcohol is a slower process that requires planning, but it can decrease both the chase of experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms and relapse. If you properly taper your alcohol use, you’re less likely to experience alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Gradually reducing the amount of alcohol you drink can help give your body the time it needs to adjust to the lack of alcohol. However, help and support aren’t just something for when you finish detoxing; it is also important while initially stopping alcohol. The Recovery Village at Baptist Health can help you start your recovery with alcohol addiction treatment — safely, comfortably and with your future in mind.
Alcohol Withdrawal: Symptoms and Timeline
Your friends and family may not https://northiowatoday.com/2025/01/27/sober-house-rules-what-you-should-know-before-moving-in/ be the best support system, unless they’re also recovering addicts/alcoholics. They may have trouble relating to you and you could feel out-of-place talking to them about your problems. Do anything and everything you can to distract yourself from drinking. Whether that’s watching TV, cooking dinner, cleaning the house, going for a walk, or taking a bath. Force your self to do normal activities, but nothing too strenuous or physical beyond what you might normally do.
- The term gradual is pivotal here, as the entire process is based on the act of eliminating alcohol over time.
- “The role of GABAA receptors in mediating the effects of alcohol in the central nervous system.” Journal of Psychiatry & Neuroscience, July 28, 2003.
- Drinking less each day can help you eventually achieve alcohol abstinence or drinking moderation.
- Eating well and ensuring you are staying hydrated can stop dehydration and some of the nutrient deficiencies that come from prolonged alcohol use and withdrawal.
These states include, but are not limited to, California, Colorado, Delaware, DC, Florida, Maine, Mass, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. Alcohol works by increasing the potency of a neutral chemical in the brain called GABA, or gamma-Aminobutyric acid. GABA is a neurotransmitter responsible for your brain’s rest and digest response, which helps to facilitate sleep, relaxation, and anxiety release. However, your body is adaptable, and after a period of regular, heavy drinking, your nervous system will adapt to the presence of alcohol.
- These states include, but are not limited to, California, Colorado, Delaware, DC, Florida, Maine, Mass, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.
- Remember, it’s not about achieving immediate perfection but about making steady progress towards your goal of sobriety.
- Some alcohol withdrawal symptoms can be so severe that they can lead to death.
- If you drink frequently, you can become physically dependent on alcohol, meaning your brain needs alcohol to function normally.
- For many other drugs, tapering is actually a standard treatment during medical detox.
If you have 20 or more drinks per day, they suggest one drink per hour the first day, every hour and a half the next, then reducing by 2 drinks per day after that. Gradually reducing alcohol intake can lead to various physical health benefits. These can include improved liver function, better sleep quality, enhanced cognitive function, and a lower risk of developing alcohol-related diseases.
Ideally, your support network will include mental health, medical, and addiction treatment professionals, as well as friends and family. Also, your insurance should cover addiction treatment services, so look for therapists and/or rehabs in your network to help reduce the costs. Quitting drinking, “cold turkey,” means you suddenly stop consuming alcohol.
When you quit drinking or wean off alcohol, your body will adjust to the lack of alcohol in your body. Some find tapering is not a suitable option to stop drinking due to various factors such as social responsibilities or peer pressure. For many people, tapering alone is insufficient to help heal their addiction. Tapering is also a strategy used by people with a substance or alcohol use disorder (AUD). However, improper tapering could lead to relapse, overdose, and severe health consequences. Always remember that if the taper is not working for you or if you are having major withdrawal that it is safest to check into a medical detox because alcohol withdrawal can kill you.
This is especially true of heavy drinkers who are surrounded by the triggers that encourage drinking and lack the support needed to encourage change. If you mess up once or twice and drink more than you intended to, don’t be too discouraged. You can continue your taper the next day from whatever point you think is appropriate. I’d try to shoot for your original goal the following day if the physical withdrawals were subsiding. Don’t just give up and drink a fifth because you had your 6 drinks before noon when you meant to have 6 drinks over the whole day.
If you are serious about mindful drinking, ask your friends, family, or other trusted member of your community to help you cut back. You can plan fun events that don’t center around alcohol, and they can assist in keeping you accountable to your goals. To lower your alcohol consumption, try to stick to only one alcoholic drink per hour. In between drinks, you can have soda, water, or even a non-alcoholic beer or mocktail. Not only does pacing yourself help cut back on alcohol consumption, but it also gives you confidence and self-discipline.