How Long Does It Take to Detox from Xanax (Alprazolam)?

As a Xanax addiction builds, the brain and body change. They begin to expect the drug. They adjust so that using Xanax becomes “normal.” This is tolerance.

As you continue to use, Xanax begins to feel less effective. You begin to take more and more to get the desired effects. When you stop taking Xanax, you feel ill mentally and physically. Physical and mental dependence keep you locked in a constantly escalating cycle of drug abuse. This escalation can be slow or fast, but without treatment, it ultimately leads to addiction. Addiction requires treatment for lasting recovery. This treatment begins with detox.

Laurie’s Story

“I started abusing my meds. I was prescribed Xanax and Ambien at the time, and I used these excessively to deal with my anxiety and insomnia. I always would lose track of how much I took though, one pill would suddenly turn into 10…I couldn’t deal with my reality so I started abusing the pills more heavily. I would binge on them; all 60 pills would be gone in a matter of days. Every time I would refill the prescription, this was always the case.”

Xanax Detoxification and Withdrawal Symptoms

Xanax is a benzodiazepine. It is a sedative drug. It slows electrical activity in the central nervous system. When you become tolerant to Xanax, it means your body is speeding up some processes to combat this effect. When you stop using Xanax, the body needs time to readjust. Everything will be firing faster than it should at first. This over-activity only lasts for a short period of time, but during this time, you will experience withdrawal symptoms.

BMC Psychiatry found that among Xanax users, “Withdrawal was perceived to be a difficult, complicated, and highly unpredictable process.”1 While withdrawal will be different for everyone, choosing medically supervised detox services takes away many unknowns. Medical professionals will be available 24 hours a day to offer care and answer questions. What seems unpredictable is often part of a normal, varying timeline.

Over the course of detox, you will likely experience some or all of the following:

  • Nervousness
  • Insomnia
  • Confusion
  • Agitation
  • Aching, twitching muscles
  • Dizziness
  • Fast heart rate

When and if these symptoms appear depends on your unique body chemistry, drug use history, and current environment. It depends on whether or not you choose treatment.

Do I Need Treatment for Xanax Detox?

Detoxing in treatment means many symptoms can be bypassed or addressed through as-needed, non-addictive medications and alternative care. It means the overall withdrawal experience is safer, faster, and more comfortable. Detoxing in treatment also means you get coordinated mental and physical health care.

Addictive Behavior2 explains, “Psychosocial factors play a role at different stages of the [benzodiazepine] withdrawal process and could be targeted in treatment.”3 If you try to detox at home, you do not get the integrated support you need for recovery. You are more likely to immediately relapse. You are more likely to face long-term struggles to stay clean. Ending Xanax abuse and addiction will ultimately take longer and require more effort, pain, and money.

Choose medically supervised detox services. Follow this detox care with comprehensive treatment and therapy. Detox addresses the early physical aspects of ending Xanax use. Therapy offers support and answers for long-term recovery.

Where Do I Find Support for Detox and Recovery?

At Black Bear Lodge, we do all we can to keep you comfortable as your body readjusts. We will never rush the recovery process, but we do make sure it is as efficient and effective as possible.

We offer customized, integrated care. We make your transition from detox to treatment seamless and simple. Call 706-909-9811 to learn more about what we offer. Call for a free initial assessment and immediate professional support.

Continue Reading

How to Detox or Get Off Xanax?

Xanax (alprazolam) is a highly addictive benzodiazepine drug. People who immediately stop using Xanax after prolonged use may experience uncomfortable or dangerous withdrawal symptoms. People who are deeply entrenched in a Xanax habit may experience great difficulty when they decide to quit using benzodiazepines.

Xanax is considered a remarkably difficult drug to detox from, even for people who have relatively weak cases of addiction, as the process can take weeks to complete, and there are serious medical complications that can begin as the adjustment period moves forward.

Franci’s Story

“I was always a troubled child. I began numbing myself by smoking pot when I was 13 years old. By the time I was 19, I had a baby, and then I met Xanax. I had found a utopia in the form of a pill– I would take one and it would give me an escape from reality. Nothing really mattered when I was on that drug. (…) Today, in recovery, I’m the director of a program in Kentucky. We help people get a spiritual foundation and get their foot in the door to recovery. We provide meetings and help getting into detox or rehab.”

—Franci M., Heroes in Recovery

Mild to Moderate Symptoms of Xanax Withdrawal

As detox begins, brain cells that have remained sleepy and sedated for months or even years are allowed to awaken and trade electrical activity at a normal level. Sometimes, electrical signals spin out of control, and people develop signs of psychosis.

Some of the uncomfortable symptoms of Xanax withdrawal include:

  • Interrupted sleep or insomnia
  • Rage
  • Nightmares
  • Anxiety
  • Intrusive thoughts
  • Homicidal thoughts3

These symptoms can be managed in a safe and structured detox program through therapy, adjusted medications, and support. It can become difficult or even dangerous to go through these symptoms at home as many people lack training to handle these unusual reactions, and they might even harm themselves or others as they attempt to heal.

Is Xanax Withdrawal Life Threatening?

While the symptoms listed above might sound serious, Xanax withdrawal has also been associated with problems that could prove life-threatening. Sometimes, the electrical activity in the brain becomes so intense and so pervasive that the brain’s typical regulatory patterns are interrupted and seizures develop.

These sorts of seizures could quickly develop in someone attempting to detox at home, as a person like this might not have access to a tapering schedule or replacement medications that could help, but a case report in the journal Texas Medicine demonstrates that even people who are going through formal detox can be subject to seizures and death.4

Help for Xanax Addiction

Since Xanax is associated with serious and even life-threatening withdrawal complications, it’s vital for people who have an addiction or abuse history to get help from a formal treatment program. Once there, they also need to be honest about the symptoms they feel as the healing unfolds. Describing their symptoms clearly and honestly can allow providers to catch symptoms of serious withdrawal and provide appropriate medications to stop the progression before the symptoms become life-threatening.

If you’d like to find out more about how detox from Xanax can be controlled in a formal treatment program, please call us at Black Bear Lodge. We provide a medically supervised detox program that can help, and we’re happy to answer any questions you have and soothe your mind so you can get started.

Please call us at 706-909-9811 to find out more. We can even schedule an intake appointment for you right over the phone.

Continue Reading

Sources

Substance Abuse Side Effects and Treatment

Ready to Begin Healing?