The isolation and treatment of protracted withdrawal symptoms

Although adolescents and young adults who have problems with drug and alcohol use receive considerable assistance to break free from its damaging effects from Family Recovery Specialists' well-qualified addiction counselors in Miami, the recovery process can nonetheless be a difficult one. One recurrent condition for many recovering addicts in the detox phase is protracted withdrawal syndrome, or PAWS, with its symptoms that test their resolve to avoid a relapse.

While post-acute withdrawal syndrome or PAWS and its symptoms are more than familiar to addiction counselors in Miami, there is less awareness of the condition among many addicts and the public. It only increases the importance of appropriately educating addicts about the lingering effects of substance abuse as part of their relapse prevention efforts.

PAWS is defined as various post-acute symptoms of recovery from dependence on barbiturates, benzodiazepines and ethanol; opiates; and in some cases, antidepressants. Examples of benzodiazepines that can be frequently abused include Xanax, Ativan and Valium, while addiction counselors in Miami also often deal with the abuse of such opiate drugs as OxyContin, Vicodin and heroin.

Common PAWS symptoms include general cognitive impairment, anhedonia (the inability to feel pleasure from anything other than use of the drug), mood swings akin to an affective disorder, an extreme craving for and obsession with drugs, insomnia, anxiety and panic attacks, depression and thoughts of and actual suicide. Such symptoms generally peak around four to eight weeks after quitting, and are testament to the brain's slow healing process.

In the body's progress towards homeostasis, there is a need for it to recalibrate and reach a 'new normal'. However, withdrawal symptoms can be prolonged for some people, making them feel worse rather than better in recovery. Many addicts are able to instantly identify the symptoms of PAWS when informed of it by addiction counselors in Miami, but may not have previously had a name for it.

Indeed, it is the addiction counselors in Miami of an intensive outpatient program like Family Recovery Specialists that addicts are advised to contact as a first step to overcoming what can be fairly serious acute and post-acute withdrawal processes. By receiving suitably tailored detox assistance encompassing specific treatments, those experiencing PAWS symptoms can better tough out the difficult times en route to a sustainable recovery.

Such symptoms can frequently resemble depression, but there is also the need to treat co-morbid depression and anxiety that may exist independently of the drug abuse, if the risk of relapse for the recovering individual is to be minimized. Cognitive behavioral therapies, mediation, yoga and aerobic exercise can all be useful in tackling depression and anxiety, alongside any antidepressants that may be prescribed.

Above all, recovering addicts must be aware that their difficulties that necessitated the services of addiction counselors in Miami will not disappear overnight, but that PAWS symptoms are nonetheless temporary and only increase the need for patience as the body heals, eventually leading to better feelings for the recovering person.  

Editor’s Note: Family Recovery Specialists (http://www.familyrecoveryspecialists.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.