Tips for Safe Recovery in Drug Detox

Getting help for a drug or alcohol problem entails going through the different stages of the recovery process. Drug detox or detoxification enables recovering addicts to eliminate the body’s physical dependency on drugs, which is the first stage of recovery. This necessary first step makes it possible to deal with the life issues that drive a person to addiction.

While drug detox is a necessary first step, it can also be dangerous depending on the extent of a person’s addiction. As the body goes through the detox stage, here are a few things you can do to make the healing process safer and less uncomfortable. Ultimately, the better you treat your body during drug detox, the easier the process will be.

Get Professional Help

Once drug use has reached the point of addiction, drugs exert toxic effects on brain and body functions to the point where the body exists in a diseased state. This diseased state stems from the progressive damage drugs cause combined with the incessant cravings for more drugs.

detox

Medical professionals can help you stay safe during a detox!

Deteriorated brain functions have weakened a person’s thinking and reasoning abilities making everyday decision-making a difficult task. Psychological stability has also been significantly compromised, as drug-seeking behaviors become part of a person’s overall identity.

For these reasons, seeking professional drug detox help is the best route to take for anyone serious about getting free from drugs. According to Staten Island University Hospital, drug detox programs take a medical approach to treating drug withdrawal effects as well as any conditions resulting from long-term drug use.

People who experience moderate to severe withdrawal symptoms benefit the most from the various medication therapies used to help ease a person through the drug detox stage. Most importantly, making it through the drug detox stage sets a firm foundation for the recovery process.

Strategies for Coping with Cravings

For most any addiction, ongoing drug cravings can be expected during the drug detox stage. Once a person becomes addicted, drug cravings are both physical and psychological in nature. Strategies for coping with cravings entail soothing the mind and body’s desire for more drugs.

Realizing that cravings only last for the first few days of detox and will eventually pass can help make them more bearable. Staying busy during drug detox can also help take the focus off the desire to use drugs. Another coping strategy involves taking up a daily exercise routine, which can help the body produce its own needed endorphins and greatly reduce your physical cravings for drugs.

The Importance of Sleep

Of all the possible withdrawal symptoms a person can have, problems sleeping tend to crop up regardless of the type of addiction. In general, someone recovering from a drug or alcohol addiction may experience sleep problems for as long as six months into recovery and sometimes longer. Sleep problems experienced during the drug detox can make this period all the more difficult to bear.

Ways to increase the chances of getting a good night’s sleep include:

  • Avoid self-medicating with over-the-counter drugs
  • Consider asking your doctor for a non-addictive sleep aid
  • Get as much sunlight as possible to help restore your natural sleep cycle rhythms
  • Exercise daily

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