Teen Alcohol Detox

Table of Contents
What it Does
Early Intervention Key
Co Occuring Disorders
Benefits of Detox
Costs of Detox
Treatment After
Staging and Intervention
Help at Newport Academy

Teens who experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop drinking will need to start the rehabilitative process with an alcohol detox program that can provide them with the medical assistance they need to stop drinking safely. Detox, more so than alcohol addiction treatment, focuses on physical dependence as opposed to psychological addiction, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Teens who require this stage of treatment have generally been drinking for quite some time, having built up a tolerance to alcohol that results in withdrawal symptoms or a physical illness when he or she stops drinking.

A teen’s alcohol addiction and need for detox can be terrifying for parents to accept. However, ignoring the problem won’t make it go away or eliminate the need for medical treatment. Rather, enrolling your teen in an alcohol rehab that provides alcohol detox and psychological addiction treatment is the best choice for your child and your family.

At Newport Academy, our focus is on helping teens recover from drug and alcohol abuse. This means helping the family heal, too. If you would like more information about our family-focused therapeutic options, teen-specific alcohol detox, and alcohol addiction treatment, call us today.

What Teen Alcohol Detox Does for Your Child

There is no cure for alcohol or drug addiction. There are, however, effective treatments that can help your teen to recover from drug and alcohol abuse, even at a young age. These treatments can give your child the coping skills that he or she needs to continue living alcohol-free long after returning home and returning to a normal school schedule.

Teen alcohol detox is usually the first step in a teen alcohol addiction treatment program if your child presents with withdrawal symptoms. Many teens who drink daily and/or drink large amounts regularly will begin to feel ill if they attempt to stop drinking. According to Õ¢__ÎÅ_Treatment of Alcohol WithdrawalÕ¢__Îëù by Hugh Myrick, MD, these withdrawal symptoms can include:

  • Headache
  • Tremors
  • Sweating
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Difficulty focusing
  • Anxiety and irritability
  • Sensitivity to light and sound

A teen alcohol detox addresses this issue by treating the withdrawal symptoms and helping to make the detox period as short as possible. It also means that medical care is available should complications arise.

Note: Complications are rare, especially in teens healing from a short-term alcohol addiction. In most cases, complications only occur when there are underlying medical disorders that are undiagnosed and untreated. A complete physical is given to every patient during the intake process to make sure that everything goes as smoothly as possible.

Early Alcohol InterventionEarly Intervention Improves Your Child’s Chances of Success

Your child’s brain is extremely malleable. The resiliency with which teenagers have the ability to “bounce back” after alcohol abuse and addiction is truly amazing. The earlier that you can intervene and provide them with a medical teen alcohol detox to help them break free from physical dependency and follow up with solid alcohol addiction treatment and continued care, the better.

Early intervention means limiting the number of times your child gets drunk, which also limits the opportunities for him or her to become a victim of an alcohol-related car accident or to make other choices that result in coma, death or disease. Time spent in alcohol detox and rehab is time not spent drinking. Learning early on that their choice to drink will be met with immediate action is important, but even more important is what they learn while they are in alcohol rehab Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ how to make choices to make themselves feel better that do not include alcohol.

When Co-Occurring Disorders Are an Issue for Your Teen

At teen alcohol detox, medical and therapeutic professionals have a single goal in mind Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ to help your child stabilize physically after alcohol addiction. The same remains true in the cases of children with co-occurring disorders. If your teen is living with an eating disorder, depression, schizophrenia, ADHD or a medical condition in addition to alcohol addiction, it’s important that you opt for a teen rehab that provides treatment for both issues simultaneously, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Treatment Improvement Protocols. Certain medical or psychological conditions may exacerbate withdrawal symptoms and cause complications, so it’s important to let your child’s medical professionals at teen rehab know about his medical history and other diagnoses for optimum treatment.

Alcohol Detox BenefitsTeen Alcohol Detox Benefits

By the time the detox process is complete, your teen will experience a host of physical and mental health benefits and have the clarity of mind to focus on the addiction treatment program to follow. Some of the most noticeable benefits of alcohol detox include:

  • Health benefits. Because your teen’s physical health is the primary focus of teen alcohol detox, one of the first changes you will notice in your teen is improved physical health. Depending upon how long your teen spent drinking, the amount he or she drank daily, the use and abuse of other drugs, and the presence of co-occurring disorders, the changes in health that you notice will vary.

 

  • Mental benefits. When your teen drinks regularly, it is more difficult for his or her brain to function properly. Physical reactions to stimulus are slower, short-term and long-term memory decreases, and processing information happens more slowly, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). After alcohol detox, your teen will be able to more easily process information at school and at home and have the clarity of mind to put forth a real effort in personal and group therapy session during addiction treatment.
  • Emotional benefits. The process of emotional healing begins during alcohol detox, and you’ll notice a calmer and more focused teen after the first 48 hours or so of detox. Emotional healing will continue after alcohol detox when alcohol addiction treatment begins. As your teen creates positive peer relationships, attends personal therapy, begins to work on family issues in family therapy, and develops a treatment plan geared to meet his or her personal goals for treatment, their emotional healing will continue.

The Costs of Teen Alcohol Detox

Financial costs associated with teen alcohol can be daunting for parents, but there are a number of other costs incurred when alcohol abuse and addiction go untreated Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ costs that amount to far more than the bill for treatment.

 

 

  • Physical costs. Medical treatments and care for issues related to alcohol can be steep for teens. Far more likely to be in car accidents, to suffer injuries related to intoxication, and to get involved in physical altercations than teens who don’t drink, parents of alcoholic teens are often the recipients of high medical bills for their child who drinks. Even if you have insurance, the cost of medications, deductibles and co-pays will add up.
  • Financial costs. Teens under the influence make bad decisions that often end up costing parents large sums of money. Vandalism, driving under the influence, theft of alcohol around the house and money or credit cards in your wallet Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ all these can mean big bills for parents.
  • Social costs. When your child is drinking heavily, he or she will often miss a lot of school, get in trouble for drinking on campus or being drunk in class, miss homework assignments and fall behind academically while also gaining a reputation as a troublemaker. Ultimately, lost opportunities can mean lost opportunities for the future as well.

Addiction Treatment After Teen Alcohol Detox

When your teen’s alcohol detox is complete Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ usually within seven to 10 days Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ their treatment is not over. The biggest part of treatment comes next in the form of therapeutic treatment. At Newport Academy, we offer two residential programs for six boys and six girls at a time. During this program, each child will work toward their education goals as defined by an Individual Education Plan (IEP) developed with their school, and undergo at least 30 hours of therapy each week Õ¢__Î_ÑÒ six hours of personal and family therapy, 12 hours of group therapy and 12 hours of experiential therapy. The goal of the program is not only to help your teen break free from the physical bonds and cravings that characterize addiction but to develop the coping skills necessary to find better ways of dealing with sadness, stress, anger and self-esteem or psychological issues.

Staging an Intervention for Your Teen

A teen alcohol detox intervention is one of the best ways to start your child’s addiction treatment experience in a positive way. Though few teens will initially embrace the idea of teen alcohol rehab, the goal is that they will fully understand the need for treatment by the end of the intervention. As their loved ones relate stories in which your teen’s alcohol issues hurt her or them, it will become clearer to her just how serious her alcohol abuse is. The hope is that your teen will then voluntarily choose to attend teen alcohol detox and addiction treatment, according to Õ¢__ÎÅ_Motivation for Change and Alcoholism TreatmentÕ¢__Îëù by Carlo C. DiClemente, Ph.D., Lori E. Bellino, M.Ed., and Tara M. Neavins, M.S..

Have you attempted conversations with your teen, trying to communicate your concerns about his or her alcohol abuse, only to be met with resistance or anger? Has your child promised to quit drinking but been unable to do so? Is your child missing school or losing ground academically due to his or her alcohol abuse? Does your child experience withdrawal symptoms when he or she stops drinking? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then teen alcohol detox may very well be a necessary part of teen alcohol rehab for your child. Some of the things you will need to consider include:

  • Where and when to hold the teen alcohol detox intervention.
  • Who to include and who will speak at the event.
  • Packing a bag for your teen in the event that he or she chooses to accept the offered alcohol detox and treatment.
  • Securing a space for your child at a teen alcohol rehab that has the medical care facilities to give your child the help he or she needs.
  • Consider hiring a professional interventionist. A professional interventionist can take the pressure of running the intervention itself and even escort your child to teen alcohol rehab when it is over.

The hope is that your teen will agree to go to alcohol rehab after the intervention is over. It is important that he or she be taken directly to the alcohol rehab facility you chose as soon as the intervention ends. Don’t allow your teen to wheedle a week or even a day to prepare or say goodbye to friends. It’s important that your child go immediately to treatment.

You may determine that your child will go to teen alcohol rehab after the intervention, whether or not he or she agrees to the prospect. Many parents go this route in hopes of saving their child from a lifelong struggle with alcohol addiction by providing an early intervention.

Teen Alcohol Detox at Newport Academy

You will notice the benefits of teen alcohol detox as soon as the withdrawal symptoms fade. Your teen’s ability to eat more healthily and absorb nutrients and minerals will improve. His skin will look healthier, as will his hair and nails. His energy will return. He may develop an interest in a sport or outdoor activity or rekindle interest in an old hobby. When alcohol no longer controls your teen, he has the ability to take over the reins of his life.

The teenage years are the years that most adult alcoholism and tobacco addiction begins. If your child is already using alcohol, do not take it lightly. Contact Newport Academy today for more information about how you can intervene early and assist your child is breaking from alcohol addiction and abuse.