subject: The Stages of Alcohol Treatment [print this page] The Stages of Alcohol Treatment The Stages of Alcohol Treatment
Treatment for alcohol misuse can only begin when a person is ready to seek help. There is an intervention stage, perhaps before excessive use of alcohol has turned into dependency, when a person can prevent themselves from slipping further into addiction.
Clinics and treatment centres can offer prevention programs that help the individual to recognise that they are in a danger zone, where continued drinking at current levels could lead to a serious substance misuse problem. Individuals are asked to assess their drinking patterns, recognise their triggers and are given plans to reduce their alcohol intake levels.
However, many who seek help for alcohol misuse are already beyond this stage. If this is the case then a detoxification programme is offered to help people withdraw from alcohol in a managed way. A medical stabilisation is used, where alcohol is substituted with a more stable substance then the substitute medication is gradually withdrawn.
This process must be managed and implemented by trained professionals, as unmanaged withdrawal from sustained amounts of alcohol can lead to damaging or even fatal side effects. The detoxification process is commonly undertaken by people on an in-patient basis, where the person stays at a clinic over a number of weeks.
Detoxification can also be offered at out-patient clinics or surgeries but this is more often for people with less severe alcohol dependency. Out-patient detoxification is often combined with rehabilitation advice, in order to ensure that the person sticks to their alcohol free life.
Full rehabilitation and aftercare can also be offered at in-patient clinics, where following detox, the person is taken through a series of steps in order to learn how to stay alcohol free. They are taught skills and given the confidence to make real choices and changes in their lives. A period of aftercare then ensures that patients do not relapse and continue to manage their own recovery.
A managed program involving all these stages of alcohol treatment ensures that the individual safely withdraws from alcohol and then has the strength to continue to live an alcohol free life.
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