Symptoms of Alcohol Withdrawal and What You Can Do to Help

It takes years of extreme and excessive alcohol abuse to develop the neurochemical changes that lead into withdrawal. Symptoms of alcohol withdrawal can vary from anxiety, swearing and nausea to headaches, tremors, hallucinations, and convulsions. Evidently, it is a grave medical condition, and self-treatment is not advised by medical professionals. Inpatient detoxification, on which the patient is to be monitored and barred out from any temptation of drinking alcoholic beverages, is the most effective remedy for alcohol withdrawal.

Tremors are treated with barbiturates. Barbiturates are generally depressants intended for the central nervous system. Being such, they are efficient in easing seizures and other symptoms related to the nervous system. However, they are extremely dangerous when taken in large dosages and can even form habits and abuse. They are only sold with prescriptions.

Hallucinations are treated with benzodiazepines. This kind of drugs has anti-convulsant properties, and it also treats some of the more serious psychological symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Chlordiazepoxide, which is taken on about a week, is the most common of these benzodiazepines intended for alcohol withdrawal.

Also, one has to take supplements of multivitamins. A long term alcoholic can also suffer from malnutrition, so this is very important. More to that, taking certain dosages of thiamine and folic acid about four times a day for at least two weeks helps in preventing alcohol withdrawal to progress into more severe brain disorder.

Consume alcohol with the aim to lessen the effects of a hang-over. While it is true drinking some alcohol can help reduce some acute symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, it is basically as counterproductive to do so without careful observation on limiting dosage. With other pharmaceutical treatments that are available, alcohol as a treatment for its own withdrawal is highly debatable.

Craving for alcohol is reduced with disulfiram. Although it does not directly treat symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, disulfiram intervene with the metabolism of alcohol and makes hangovers much worse than they would otherwise be. Therefore, it is sometimes prescribed to help reduce the insatiable desire for alcohol because of its painful and adverse side effects on alcohol consumption.