Both alcohol and heroin addiction can lead to deadly detox and withdrawals. Mistakenly, people think that avoiding a detox center or medical withdrawal is a better, cheaper option than paying for professional detox. The ultimate cost could be their lives. Detoxing at home from either heroin or alcohol can lead to severe consequences as symptoms increase over the first few days. Without a professional nursing staff, access to medications, and being in a secure environment, detoxing from heroin or alcohol alone could result in seizure, stroke, relapse, or death.
Alcohol vs. Heroin
Alcohol and heroin are both deadly substances that can cause overdose death. In separate ways, both alcohol and heroin contribute to heart failure. Alcohol can cause inflammation in the heart, physical health problems that affect the heart, and raise blood pressure in a way that could cause heart attack. Heroin slows the heart rate down to a dangerously low level. Over time, heroin addiction can atrophy the heart, making it too weak to handle normal production of blood flow. In the event of an overdose, heroin slows the heart down to a total stop. Withdrawal from both substances is dangerous because of the psychological cravings and the physical symptoms. Heroin is known to create an illness often described to be the worst flu someone could endure. Sweating, shaking, shivering, vomiting, diarrhea, and feeling generally unwell lasts for days. On Top of these uncomfortable physical symptoms is a severe psychological craving for more heroin, well knowing that a dose of heroin could instantly stop the symptoms of withdrawal. People with the flu don’t often crave heroin, but crave something to make the discomfort go away. For those with heroin addiction, however, their neurobiological ability to tolerate discomfort and pain in any way has been compromised by heroin which has changed the way the opioid receptors work in the brain. Alcohol withdrawal also causes vomiting, digestive problems, sweating, shaking, and shivering. Insomnia is common as are hallucinations both visual and physical. Alcohol is famous for creating the sensation of bugs crawling on or under the skin and seeing what isn’t real. Working with psychosis and paranoia is not something people who aren’t nurses are qualified to do. The high levels of anxiety can ramp up the heart rate, elevate the blood pressure, and cause heart failure. Cardiac arrhythmia during detox from alcohol is common.
Choose to detox in a safe clinical program where you can quickly and effortlessly transition into a residential treatment program. Oceanfront Recovery is a men’s addiction treatment program offering detox and residential treatment in addition to intensive outpatient and a specialized executive track. Our core philosophy is that when men change their story, they can change their lives. For information on our detox program, call us today: 877.279.1777
