About half of people with alcoholism will get withdrawal symptoms if they drink less than usual. About 5% to 20% of patients withdrawing from alcohol will get the most dangerous form of alcohol withdrawal: delirium tremens. About 1/3 (one out of three) people who have withdrawal seizures will get delirium tremens.
Symptoms of alcohol withdrawal are mostly caused by a central nervous system that is over-excited and working too hard.
Everybody has a different set of withdrawal symptoms. Some people have only mild symptoms, like being unable to sleep or feeling anxious. Other people have very bad, life-threatening symptoms, like delirium, hallucinations, very high blood pressures, and very high fevers.
Withdrawal usually begins 6 to 24 hours after a person takes their last drink. Acute withdrawal can last for up to one week.
To be diagnosed with alcohol withdrawal syndrome, patients must have at least two of these symptoms:.
Many things affect how bad alcohol withdrawal symptoms can be. The most important things are:
Symptoms are also grouped together and put into categories based on how bad they are:
Every person goes through alcohol withdrawal differently. Even the worst of alcohol withdrawal symptoms can happen as soon as 2 hours after a person stops drinking. Because of this, it is best to talk to a doctor, go into the hospital, or get treatment before a person stops drinking alcohol. In many people, however, symptoms usually happen in this order:
"Six to 12 hours after the last drink:"
"Twelve to 24 hours after the last drink:"
"24 to 48 hours after the last drink:"
"48 hours after the last drink:"<BR>
Usually, people will start to feel better after 48 hours. But sometimes, after 48 hours, alcohol withdrawal can still get worse and turn into delirium tremens. Delirium tremens can last anywhere from 4 to 12 days.
Acute alcohol withdrawal usually lasts only a week. But many alcoholics have what is called Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS) (also called "protracted alcohol withdrawal syndrome). This means that some withdrawal symptoms continue beyond the acute withdrawal stage. Some withdrawal symptoms can last for at least a year after a person stops drinking.
Symptoms of post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS) can include:
Insomnia is also a common symptom of PAWS. It often keeps happening after acute (immediate) alcohol withdrawal. Research has showed that people with insomnia are more likely to relapse (start using alcohol again). Studies have found that magnesium or trazodone can help treat insomnia in recovering alcoholics.
For some people, the acute phase of alcohol withdrawal can last longer than usual. Protracted (longer than usual) delirium tremens has been reported in medical research, but is not common.
People with bad alcohol withdrawal symptoms often need to go into a hospital to make sure they are safe while they are withdrawing from alcohol.
Many different medicines can help with the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal:
Benzodiazepines are the most commonly used medication for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal. They can help decrease alcohol withdrawal symptoms and prevent seizures.
The most commonly used benzodiazepines are long-acting (medications whose effects last a long time), like chlordiazepoxide and diazepam (Valium). These seem to be the best medicines for treating delirium, and do not have to be given as often.
Although benzodiazepines work very well at treating alcohol withdrawal, they should be carefully used. Benzodiazepines should only be used for short periods in alcoholics. This is because alcoholics are more likely to get addicted to benzodiazepines. There is a risk of replacing an alcohol addiction with benzodiazepine dependence or adding another addiction. Also, both alcohol and benzodiazepines are depressants. If a person takes both at the same time, they are more likely to get depression or become suicidal.
Alcoholics often do not have enough of certain vitamins in their bodies. One of these important vitamins is thiamine. If a person does not have enough thiamine in their body, they can get serious health problems and even brain damage.
When a person is going through alcohol withdrawal, the most important vitamins are thiamine and folic acid. If an alcoholic who stops drinking does not have enough of these vitamins, they can get Wernicke syndrome, a very serious brain problem. To keep this from happening, people who have stopped drinking alcohol are often given thiamine and folic acid intravenously (through a needle placed into a vein). They may also be given other vitamins. This can help prevent Wernicke syndrome.
Sometimes, anticonvulsant (anti-seizure) medicines are given to try to prevent seizures.
Some evidence says that topiramate (Topamax), carbamazepine (Tegretol), and other anticonvulsants are helpful in treating alcohol withdrawal; however, research is limited.
Other studies have shown that benzodiazepines work just as well as anticonvulsants.
Clonidine may be used along with benzodiazepines to help some of the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
Antipsychotic medicines, such as haloperidol, are sometimes used along with benzodiazepines to control agitation or psychosis. However, antipsychotics have to be used carefully. They can make alcohol withdrawal worse, since they make it more likely for a person to have a seizure.
If alcohol withdrawal is not treated correctly, people can die or have permanent brain damage.
Alcoholics often cannot stop drinking alcohol after their withdrawal symptoms are over. Often, they need support for months or years after withdrawal is over.
Pilot Butte, Saskatchewan
Pilot Butte is a town in Saskatchewan, Canada. It has over 2,100 people living in it. Most people live in town but drive into the nearby city Regina to work. The town got its name after the hill (or butte) that it surrounds. Pilot Butte is sometimes known as the "Sand Capital of Canada" because of all of the sand and gravel it has. The Pilot Butte Storm are a junior ice hockey team that play in Pilot Butte.
Basidium
A basidium (plural basidia) is a microscopic type of spore-producing cell found on certain fungi. Most often the basidia are elongated and club shaped. But there is variation in the shape. A basidium usually bears four sexual spores called basidiospores.
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Cocaine withdrawal
Cocaine withdrawal happens when a person who uses a lot of cocaine stops using cocaine. It can also happen when a person who uses a lot of cocaine starts using less cocaine than they did before.
Cocaine (also called coke) is a powerful stimulant. It is an illegal drug outside of hospital usage. It makes people feel very happy, talkative, energetic, and not want to eat as much food.
Cocaine's most dangerous side effects include:
After using cocaine regularly, some users will become addicted. When a person who is used to using cocaine stops right away, they will go through what is called a "crash" along with many of other cocaine withdrawal symptoms, like:
Some cocaine users also report having similar symptoms to schizophrenia patients and feel that their mind is lost. Some users also report formication: feeling like things are crawling on the skin (also called, "coke bugs" or "spiders"). These symptoms can last for weeks or, in some cases, months.
Even after many withdrawal symptoms go away, most users feel like they need to keep using cocaine. This feeling can last for years and may get worse during times of stress. About 30-40% of cocaine addicts start using other kinds of drugs or alcohol after they stop using cocaine.