People addicted to alcohol have an extensive treatment system at their disposal. The health, psychological and social effects of alcohol addiction are often very serious, so it is worth seeking professional help as soon as possible.
Where to cure alcoholism in South Africa?
Alcoholism is a serious disease caused by physical and mental dependence on the substances contained in high-alcoholic drinks. A person who becomes addicted cannot stop drinking on their own. In the more advanced stage of the disease, craving for alcohol occurs – severe somatic symptoms and a very strong psychological compulsion that prompts to reach for alcohol. Rehab helps you get through the most difficult phase and prepares you for further therapy. Where is the treatment for alcoholism?
In South Africa the best place rehabilitation centres in Johannesburg called Rehab Helper. Patients can use outpatient clinics, as well as day and 24-hour addiction treatment facilities (hospitals, public or private alcoholism treatment centers). You can visit the clinic without a referral from your family doctor. For admission to day and round-the-clock wards, a referral is required which can be obtained from an addiction treatment clinic.
The most common symptoms of alcoholism
Psychological and somatic symptoms of withdrawal syndrome (irritability, anxiety, strong sweating, nausea and vomiting, palpitations, blood pressure jumps) most often appear in addicts after discontinuing alcohol (or a sharp reduction in the amount drunk). They should weaken over time and disappear after a few days.
However, with a strong addiction (critical and chronic phase), medical intervention may be necessary.
You should visit the Rehab Helper in Johannesburg when:
- alcohol withdrawal is accompanied by auditory or visual hallucinations or seizures (so-called alcohol epilepsy),
- the patient is more severely weakened, dehydrated or malnourished,
- an addicted person combines drinking alcohol with taking drugs, designer drugs or medications,
- the alcoholic additionally suffers from other diseases,
- withdrawal symptoms are very strong,
- a sick person drank alcohol for a very long time.
In such cases, you should see a doctor who will conduct tests and assess where to treat the alcoholic. He or she may refer you to a hospital or alcohol withdrawal unit for detox. The treatment usually lasts 10 days, and its purpose is not to treat alcoholism itself, but to detoxify from toxic substances (which are a side effect of alcohol metabolism in the body). During detoxification, tests are performed on an ongoing basis, electrolytes are replenished, vitamins (mainly B1), magnesium, potassium and other minerals are administered. Unpleasant symptoms are often relieved with the use of appropriately selected pharmaceuticals – e.g. painkillers, sedatives or sleeping pills.
A stay in the rehab cape town treatment unit does not cure the addiction and it cannot be expected that it will result in stopping drinking. The treatment, however, allows you to break the alcohol intake and improve your health. Often, doctors or therapists can also convince the patient of the need for further therapy.
Treatment of alcoholism
Addiction to alcohol is psychological, it often results from the inability to recognize one’s own emotions and problems with coping with them. Alcohol activates the reward system, allows you to feel better and artificially controls consciousness. If the patient has been diagnosed with alcoholism, psychological therapy is necessary. It is the only way to learn about the mechanisms that govern addiction, learn to recognize drinking situations, and to identify the feelings that accompany them. Therapy in South Africa is provided by addiction treatment clinics that operate in Johannesburg.
To make an appointment at the clinic, you do not need a referral from your doctor. All you need to do is set an appointment by phone or contact form on RehabHelper’s site and report to the facility with a proof of identity. During the first visit, the therapist conducts an interview with the patient, diagnoses the problem and its degree of advancement, and determines the stages of further treatment. It should be remembered that only sober people are admitted in the clinics, therefore you should refrain from drinking before the visit.
The therapist may recommend outpatient treatment or refer the addicted person to a day or 24-hour ward. Outpatient treatment (on an in-patient basis) is longer than in closed wards. Initial (basic) therapy continues here on average from 6 to even 12 months, and meetings take place 2-3 times a week and last 1-2 hours. Addiction treatment clinics adjust their programs to the patients’ daily activities, therefore sessions are usually scheduled in the afternoon or evening hours. They take the form of individual therapy (consultations with a therapist) and group meetings. Consultations of a psychologist and psychiatrist are also often available.
Treatment of alcoholism on an outpatient basis allows you to participate in therapy without having to give up family and professional responsibilities. The advantage of such a solution is also the fact that all the techniques learned during therapeutic sessions can be put into practice in your own environment. In this way, it is easier to perpetuate behaviors (eg assertive) than in a closed center, where the alcoholic is in “artificial” circumstances. However, outpatient therapy requires a lot of determination, because during treatment we are constantly exposed to external temptations and we can reach for alcohol at any time.
Alcohol dependence day wards
Daily alcohol addiction treatment wards enable treatment in the form of several-hour therapeutic classes. Classes are held from Monday to Friday. Patients report to the ward at the agreed time, but live at home. Therapy usually lasts from 6 to 8 weeks. For its duration, the Patient may receive a sick leave, because the intensity of classes is difficult to reconcile with full-time work. After the end of treatment, further therapy in the form of outpatient clinics is recommended.
This solution will work for patients who do not want to use the offer of 24-hour centers, and at the same time want a shorter and more intensive therapy than in clinics. However, the therapy requires daily travel to the ward, which is why it will be best for people living in the vicinity of the hospital or center where the treatment is carried out.
24/7 alcoholism treatment center
Anyone who is wondering where to treat alcoholism in South Africa can consider an inpatient treatment facility like Rehab Helper. You can choose from facilities in different cities. Stationary stays are very intense and patients stay here 24 hours a day. The length of therapy depends on individual needs, but most often closed alcohol addiction lasts from 4 to even 12 weeks (on average 6-8 weeks).
Treatment of alcoholism in the statio nary form is well suited for people who:
- they do not have the willpower to stay sober any longer,
- have problems with daily travel to the day ward or clinic,
- want to focus only on the treatment of addiction for a while,
- want to break away from the everyday environment that they associate with drinking (e.g. break contacts with friends “from the glass”),
- want to receive treatment in comfortable conditions (a private alcohol addiction treatment center usually offers comfortable accommodation and an extensive recreational offer),
- in addition to alcoholism, they struggle with additional health complications (they are provided with medical care in a closed center),
- they have already been treated for alcoholism (eg in the form of outpatient therapy) and the therapy has not brought any results.
The drug addiction program depends on a specific personal situation but most often it combines individual and group therapy. Rehab centres in johannesburg greatly expand therapeutic activities, organize interesting workshops, meetings with a psychologist or people active in the AA movement, and take care of the patients’ free time (e.g. excursions, swimming pool, football matches, etc.). This allows you to focus on other activities and think less about craving alcohol. Being with other addicts on a daily basis allows you to see that addiction is not only your problem and it does not result from a lack of willpower. Patients often learn to build healthy and valuable interpersonal relationships (e.g. in place of those based on shared drinking), they support each other.
Stationary (round-the-clock) addiction treatment has a number of advantages:
- allows you to avoid alcohol-related social meetings (in a drug addiction center the temptation to drink is lower),
- provides the Patient with 24-hour care (medical, psychological, therapeutic),
- allows you to focus only on treatment of addiction,
- in moments of doubt, the Patient may use the help of an experienced therapist,
- an addicted person takes part in workshops and classes that help relieve stress, relax and not think about alcohol,
- The patient does not feel assessed or criticized (he is with people with the same problems on a daily basis, therefore he feels understood and supported).