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Detoxification from drugs and alcohol starts with a physical and psychological assessment. The assessment helps our medical staff determine the best course of action for patients. Here at True Life Recovery, we are committed to giving our patients a safe, comfortable, home-like setting in which they can begin their recovery from alcohol or drugs like cocaine. Each patient is assessed individually, and a personalized treatment plan is developed.
Detox from drugs and alcohol should always be done in a professional, medically supervised environment. There are numerous withdrawal symptoms that can become dangerous to a patient’s physical and mental health. These symptoms are best monitored by medical professionals who can intervene to keep patients safe and as comfortable as possible. Our cocaine detox program in Orange County, CA offers experienced medical staff with provides compassionate, nonjudgmental support to patients as they go through the detox process.
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Cocaine is mentally and physically addictive. When someone is addicted to cocaine and they abruptly stop using it, they will suffer from withdrawal symptoms because their body has become accustomed to functioning with cocaine in its system. When the body doesn’t receive more of the drug, the brain goes into overdrive and detoxing and withdrawal symptoms will begin.
One of the risks of cocaine abuse and addiction is extreme paranoia, a temporary state of severe paranoid psychosis. When users are in this state, they lose touch with reality and often experience auditory hallucinations. This can send them into violent rages, endangering themselves and others.
Cocaine affects the pleasure center of the brain quickly, almost instantly, and the user feels the “high” of the drug intensely. However, the feeling is short-lived compared to other illicit drugs, prompting the user to “binge,” or use the substance repeatedly in a short time. This practice makes the risk of overdose much more likely.
Regardless of the manner ingested, or the frequency of use, cocaine users can experience heart attacks or stroke. These life-threatening conditions can happen even with a first-time user. Often, cocaine-related deaths occur when the user suffers a heart attack or seizure followed by respiratory arrest.
Detoxing from cocaine is different from detoxing from other drugs. Cocaine is water-soluble, which means that it enters and leaves the user’s body quickly. Just as the high that is experienced is quickly delivered to the brain and short-lived, cocaine doesn’t stay in the body for very long. There are three phases of cocaine detox that may be experienced – crash, acute withdrawal, and extinction.
Cocaine is a stimulant that has a short half-life. That means that they enter the system and leave the system quickly. Cocaine elevates the blood pressure and heart rate, and users feel a sense of euphoria, increased energy, and sometimes, aggression. But the feeling doesn’t last long, causing users to binge on the drug to maintain the high. When use is suddenly stopped, users will feel an intense rebound in the effects of cocaine, also called a crash. During this phase, users will have physical and psychological symptoms that include, irritability, hypersomnia (excessive sleeping), exhaustion, increased appetite, anxiety, restlessness, depression, dysphoria, and cravings. The crash phase typically lasts up to a week and because of the symptoms, it is common for users to relapse during this time in an attempt to feel better.
The acute withdrawal phase begins after the crash phase and can last up to a few weeks. During this time, the physical symptoms of withdrawal may continue or decrease, while the psychological symptoms ramp up. People in this phase might experience symptoms like irritability, aggression, anxiety, dysphoria, fatigue, and intensified cravings for cocaine.
Around the two-week mark, most of the physical withdrawal symptoms will have subsided, but emotional and psychological symptoms like anxiety and panic attacks may begin to happen. Excessive fatigue and feelings of depression are often experienced during this timeframe as well.
The last phase of cocaine withdrawal is called extinction. During this phase, physical withdrawal symptoms have usually completely subsided. However, the psychological discomfort of withdrawal may go on for months. Symptoms like anxiety, depression, cravings, and even suicidal thoughts or ideations can become overwhelming. There is a high risk of relapse during this phase.
Stimulants like cocaine enter and leave the bloodstream quickly. The high that users experience is short, so the addictive behaviors of such drugs usually involve binge patterns. As a result, the detox process – ridding the body of the drug – isn’t as long as it may be for other drugs. Cocaine detox typically lasts several hours to several days. However, the psychological effects of cocaine withdrawal may be felt for much longer.
The following factors have to be considered, as they contribute to the length of time it will take:
While the acute phase of withdrawal from cocaine may only take a relatively short period of time, the psychological symptoms may persist for much longer.
At True Life Recovery, we have a compassionate and supportive staff that carefully monitors patients’ physical and mental symptoms during the detox process. They monitor vital signs and provide physical check-ups to ensure that patients are safe and as comfortable as possible during their treatment. Medication may be given to help manage symptoms that are unpleasant or dangerous.
The good news is, there is treatment for cocaine addiction. The sooner you begin treatment, the less likely you are to suffer long-term side effects.
The first step of any drug addiction treatment is detoxification. After detox, psychological treatment is necessary to learn coping skills that will aid in relapse prevention and to deal with any underlying issues that contributed to the drug use. Individual and group therapy is essential to recovery, as is learning coping and life skill, relapse prevention, and addiction education. All of these and more are available to you in inpatient drug rehab. Just because the withdrawal and detox from cocaine isn’t as serious as some other drugs, it doesn’t mean that you don’t need to seek help for your addiction. What you learn in rehab will help you achieve sustainable, long-term recovery.
True Life Recovery is a residential detox program in Orange County, CA specializing in drug and alcohol detox. Our attentive staff is here around-the-clock to help and support you. They provide comfort and safety as you go through the process of detox. Ongoing psychological support is available for all of our clients after cocaine detox. Our residential center is quiet, comfortable, and private.
Addiction is a complicated, irrational and multi-faceted disease. Addiction is a chronic disease of the brain that is persisting, recurring and difficult to stop. Addiction is not a moral failing or a lack of will power. Nobody chooses to be an addict. Experimenting with drugs and alcohol may lead to addiction in certain people. People basically use drugs or alcohol to relax, escape or reward themselves. A potential addiction occurs and is more likely in people who have an addictive personality caused by biology, environment or socially or are predisposed through heredity. These people don’t just feel good after using they feel so good they chase the feeling and the substance.
Signs of Addiction:
If you cannot control or stop using alcohol or drugs and your use is affecting your life adversely regarding health, self-esteem, family, employment, friends even law enforcement it’s probably time to consider a recovery program for yourself.
The first step after deciding to take control of your life back is to detox. Detoxing from an addiction is the first step in changing your life.
A “cold turkey” approach is not recommended because of the physical problems that may arise. In our experience people who try going cold turkey usually disappoint themselves and relapse. Detox should never be attempted at home or without medical supervision at a licensed detox treatment facility.
At True Life Recovery, we medically manage your detox stay and provide you with as pain-free and safe experience as possible. We manage the physical effects of withdrawal, give you a safe comfortable supportive environment with proper food and emotional support.
When an individual determines to live life clean and sober the first step is detox.
The next phase is adjusting to abstinence. Lasting recovery means behavioral changes that support your journey. Talking it out in a private or public support system will assist in recovery.
Active involvement in support groups such as AA or NA are recommended.
There are many drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers also available to assist individuals to learn new coping skills and focus on their recovery. As well, your religious organization may be of great support.
Addiction is a chronic disease, therefore the goal is a long-term successful management of the disease.
Detoxification from drugs or alcohol varies depending on the type, the level of abuse, and the individual client’s health.
In general, detox will take 3 to 10 days.
When you speak with one of our True Life Recovery representatives they will begin to assess your dependency and will give you a good idea of what timeline to expect to stay.
Costs include 24-hour supervision and monitoring, room and board in a private or shared room, intake evaluation, counseling and therapy sessions as well as nutritious food freshly prepared daily.
For anyone worried that the wrong person will find out that you are going through a detox program – don’t be. Deciding to become clean and sober is a very personal issue and we highly respect individual rights. We do not give out personal information, have and maintain a very strict confidentiality policy.
