What Symptoms Can You Expect After Quitting Alcohol?

Benzodiazepines like Librium (chlordiazepoxide) and Ativan (lorazepam) may also help to prevent minor withdrawal symptoms from becoming more severe. Other drugs a healthcare provider might prescribe include anxiolytics , vitamins, and suboxone. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms can be greatly reduced or even eliminated with proper medical care. There are specific treatments available for anyone who wants to stop drinking—even after long-term, chronic alcohol use.

Your Relationships May Improve

Over time, heavy drinking can cloud your perception of distances and volumes, or slow and impair your motor skills. It can even make it harder for you to read other people’s emotions. But if you quit, your brain seems to be able to regain some of these abilities. With sustained abstinence, your risk of getting any type of cancer drops. One study looked at cancer risk for more than 4 million adults over three to seven years and found the risk of alcohol-related cancer dropped by 4%, even for light drinkers who quit.

• If you’re experiencing mild to moderate symptoms, outpatient resources may be sufficient.
• People who consumed alcohol heavily or for extended periods typically experience more pronounced changes than those with lighter drinking patterns.
• In addition to healthier activities, at this point, you’ll likely enjoy a more normal appetite.
• This is something EVERYONE who goes through a detox experiences at one point or another.
• Delirium Tremens is most likely to occur in individuals who have been drinking large amounts and frequently over an extended period of time.
• Stage II typically has an onset within hours after your last drink.

Can you reverse 20 years of heavy drinking?

Contact a local rehab center to discuss personalized treatment options based on your medical needs. Librium helps by mimicking alcohol’s effect on GABA receptors, calming the central nervous system and reducing the risk of severe symptoms. While this is often a time people experience much higher quality sleep, it’s also common to have vivid dreams of drinking alcohol and wake up disoriented. Dreaming about alcohol is a totally normal part of any sobriety journey. Completing 30 days without alcohol is a huge accomplishment and it’s within your reach. In 2024, 25% of US adults who regularly drink alcohol completed the Dry January challenge.

• A rare but very serious syndrome called delirium tremens can occur during alcohol withdrawal.
• While occasional drinking after withdrawal is technically possible, it’s not recommended due to significant relapse risks.
• This medical emergency is characterized by sudden and extreme confusion, agitation, hallucinations, and severe changes in nervous system function.
• You may reach a point where you start drinking again just to relieve your symptoms.

This Is What Happens to Your Body When You Stop Drinking Alcohol

Learn on the strategies that have Sober living house worked for you in the past to get through these urges. Speaking of work, you’ll likely experience increased productivity and concentration at whatever it is you’re doing, whether that be working, studying, or reading. You might encounter feelings of restlessness or irritability around this time.

This could include nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and dehydration. If you start to experience these symptoms, it may be a good indicator medical intervention is necessary. About half of all individuals who have an alcohol use disorder will experience alcohol detox symptoms when they cut down or stop their alcohol use.

Week Four Benefits

Your healthcare team will help treat each symptom as soon as it develops and equip you for success. This can help you avoid much of the unpleasantness that can occur as withdrawal symptoms alcohol detox side effects develop. Thiamine (vitamin B1) helps your body break down food for energy.