Whether you’ve struggled with substance abuse for a few months or a few years, there typically comes a time when you realize it’s time to do what you can to stop using and beat your addiction. When that time comes, there are some adults who would try to quit using alcohol or drugs right away, commonly known as quitting “cold turkey.”
However, this is not a wise idea. In fact, quitting cold turkey can have some detrimental effects on your health and recovery.
Reasons to Not Quit Cold Turkey
It Can Be Dangerous
After a long period of using drugs or alcohol, your body has become very dependent on your substance of choice. If you suddenly stop using the substance, your body can go into withdrawal, leaving you to experience highly dangerous side effects, including seizures or cardiac arrest.
Detox Should Be Supervised by a Medical Professional
Many substances, such as alcohol and opiates, need to be carefully flushed out of your system to avoid the aforementioned withdrawal symptoms. In order to safely break that dependence your body has developed, you should slowly detox under the watchful eye of a medical professional, not on your own right away.
You Don’t Address the Root of the Problem
Very rarely does someone begin using drugs because they want to, especially when the side effects of these substances are so well-known. Often, adults turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with personal struggles in their lives.
By quitting cold turkey, you don’t address the physical, emotional, or mental issues that led you to turn to substances in the first place. This is only done through professional addiction treatment.
The first step towards recovery begins with the detox process. At Silver Ridge, we help our clients take that first step toward recovery before creating a customized program of individual counseling sessions to address the underlying causes of their addiction.
Contact us today to get the help you need.
