alcohol withdrawal syndrome

Alcohol withdrawal syndrome – a set of disorders of the body, nervous system and psyche that occurs in an alcoholic with a lack of ethanol in the body (due to a significant reduction in the daily dose or complete rejection of alcohol).

Theory. In everyday life, the withdrawal syndrome is usually called a hangover. The problem is that a hangover is often confused with feeling unwell the next morning after an evening of excess. In fact, in most cases, nausea, dizziness, weakness after alcohol abuse are the consequences of intoxication of the body. As soon as the decomposition products of ethanol are neutralized and removed from the body, the person will feel better.

A hangover is a state when you want to get drunk, that is, take a new dose of alcohol. On this basis, a healthy person is distinguished from an alcoholic. With ordinary postintoxication, even the very thought of alcohol causes disgust, and the alcoholic dreams of a strong drink as a medicine.

Withdrawal (hangover) syndrome is a symptom of alcoholism starting from stage II. In a healthy person, there can be no desire to get drunk with alcohol.

Cause of withdrawal syndrome

The liver perceives alcohol as a poison that needs to be neutralized. But if the poison is taken in large doses daily, the liver sooner or later ceases to cope with it. The gradual degradation of all internal organs begins.

However, the human body has a fairly large margin of safety. The body is trying to adapt to new conditions. Since ethanol and its breakdown products are now constantly present in the blood, the body builds them into the metabolism.

Sooner or later, alcohol begins to regulate the production of the neurotransmitter hormone dopamine, which is responsible for the feeling of pleasure (satisfaction). The joy of something: delicious food, a pleasant pastime – we experience precisely due to the production of dopamine.

And if a healthy person’s condition only improves as they get rid of toxins, then the opposite is true for an alcoholic. The metabolism is disturbed, the production of dopamine stops.

The patient, experiencing bodily suffering, falls into depression. And all this can be fixed with a few sips of alcohol. In order not to succumb to temptation and not go into a binge, you need to have a strong will.

Withdrawal severity levels

The severity of the withdrawal syndrome in alcoholism depends on the stage of the disease, the state of health and the age of the patient.

Classification of the withdrawal syndrome depending on the level of severity:

• mild, inherent in the beginning of stage II of alcoholism. The symptoms are tolerable. The patient experiences some weakness, headache, nausea, and the mouth becomes dry. The craving for alcohol is moderate, you can do without it at all or get drunk in the evening. It should alert the patient that after drinking alcohol it becomes easier;
• medium severity. The ailments described above intensify, problems with pressure and heart (tachycardia, pain), swelling, and gastrointestinal disorders are added to them. The patient can still go without alcohol for several hours, but prefers to get drunk before dinner;
• heavy. To these symptoms are added disorders of the nervous system. The patient becomes irritable, sleeps badly, hands begin to tremble. To get drunk, a person is ready to move mountains in search of alcohol;
• acute, characteristic of the end of the second stage of alcoholism. Mental disorders appear: uncontrollable fear, depression, up to suicidal moods;
• deployed. Exacerbation of all symptoms, accompanied by chronic insomnia. The patient is approaching stage III;
• syndrome with psychoorganic disorders, characteristic of stage III alcoholism. A person experiences sudden, unmotivated mood swings, gradually loses memory, speech is disturbed, hallucinations are possible.

Treatment of withdrawal symptoms at home

Treatment of withdrawal syndrome is just a preparatory stage for treatment for alcoholism, the two processes should not be confused. In the hospital, the disorders that accompany the hangover syndrome are cured with the help of intravenous infusions (infusions) of various drugs. The dosage must be very strict, so it is forbidden to use such drugs at home.

Attention! Self-medication can be harmful to health, before using the above methods, consult your doctor.

Treatment of withdrawal syndrome at home is possible only if the patient:

• under the age of 60;
• does not suffer from cardiovascular diseases;
• has a strong will.

Home treatment procedures

1. It is necessary to take an absorbent 2 times a day, the easiest way is activated carbon, at the rate of 1 tablet per 10 kg of weight. The duration of the course is 2-4 weeks. At least 2 weeks should elapse between taking coal and other medicines. It is not recommended to cleanse the stomach with vomiting, as this can provoke internal bleeding.
2. On the first day (to saturate the body with magnesium and potassium salts), 4-5 Asparkam tablets should be taken. They are ground into powder and dissolved in 100 ml of warm water. In the next 2-4 weeks, you need to take 1-2 tablets of “Asparkam” daily. It is advisable to introduce seaweed into the diet.
3. On the first day, drink at least 1,5 liters of Borjomi, Luzhanskaya, Dilijan, Essentuki No. 4, Essentuki No. 17 or Arzni mineral waters. If there is no mineral water, 1,5–4 g of soda is dissolved in 10 liters of ordinary warm boiled water. The liquid should be drunk during the day, and you can’t drink more than a glass in one gulp, so as not to induce vomiting. In the next 2-4 weeks, you should drink at least 2-3 liters of non-carbonated water per day.
4. In addition to water, it is recommended to drink diuretic preparations, teas with lingonberry leaves, birch buds.
5. Take vitamin C tablets for at least a month (according to the instructions).
6. To restore neurotransmitter processes in the cerebral cortex, take glycine for 2-4 weeks. During this period, khash, jelly, aspic dishes are very useful.
7. Enrich the diet with boiled meat, fish (fried foods create a load on the liver). To replenish protein, eat legumes, walnuts, hazelnuts.

Such methods help with withdrawal symptoms, and with the consequences of alcohol intoxication. As a rule, the patient becomes much better after 1-2 days of procedures. For the entire period of treatment you need to give up alcohol.

Attention! Self-medication can be dangerous, consult your doctor.