This occurs when a person's body adapts to a drug. The body gets used to the drug and needs it to function 'normally'. High tolerance to the drug will have developed. If a physically dependent person stops taking the drug, they will go into withdrawal. This is the body reacting and attempting to readjust without the drug.
Withdrawal symptoms differ according to the drug and how long the person has been dependent.
Symptoms can include nausea, vomiting, anxiety, sleeplessness, diarrhoea, stomach cramps, mood swings, sweating and fever, chills, aching joints, delirium and tremors. Withdrawal Withdrawal symptoms are the effects felt when regular drug use stops. The range of symptoms a person experiences is called a withdrawal syndrome. Physical withdrawal or detoxification from most drugs takes from four to ten days. Many people find psychological withdrawal much harder to cope with than physical withdrawal.