An alcohol detox symptom checklist helps you prepare for alcohol detoxification. You are more likely to complete your detox program successfully if you know what to expect going in to the program. You may not experience everything on the checklist, but if you do, you will know it is part of the process.
Before entering a detox program, you are assessed to determine the severity of withdrawal symptoms. The assessment has two components. You provide a self-assessment of how you feel. You may not connect everything you feel to alcohol withdrawal. Your counselor will help you with this. The second component is provided through observation. Medical professionals observe you over a set period of time and write down observed symptoms.
You will have both physical and mental symptoms of withdrawal. The physical signs are often more obvious. You may sweat profusely. Nausea is a common symptom that can lead to bouts of vomiting. You may have tremors or shake uncontrollably. You can suffer excruciating abdominal pain as a result of alcohol withdrawal.
Some physical symptoms may not be apparent to an observer. You are likely to feel an overwhelming craving for alcohol. You may become tense or anxious. Be sure to let a medical professional know what you are feeling. Some people can hide these physical symptoms of withdrawal.
Mental symptoms are usually harder to hide because they become apparent during conversation. Depression often sets in during detox. You feel beaten down and hopeless. Despair becomes your primary emotion, resulting in a depression that may eventually have to be addressed with medicine. If you are depressed, you may not be willing to talk to anyone. You appear disinterested.
Another mental symptom is confusion. An observer is able to tell immediately if you are confused. You may be confused about where you are or why you are there. Confusion may occur as you try to remember certain moments in the past and can't recall things you think you should. You might experience hallucinations as a result of alcohol withdrawal. Although hallucinations are temporary, they can seem very real and terrifying.
A common but rarely discussed alcohol detox symptom is fear. Many people are afraid of the actual process of detoxification. They don't know what to expect. What if something goes wrong? Fear is a very real symptom of withdrawal that can be one of the biggest obstacles to recovery. Use the alcohol detox symptom checklist prior to detox to help address as many fears as possible.
