What Is Alcohol Poisoning?
Alcohol poisoning occurs when a person drinks a large amount of alcohol in a short period. Drinking too much alcohol too quickly can affect your breathing and other functions, potentially leading to coma or death. Alcohol poisoning can also occur when a person accidentally or intentionally drinks household products that contain alcohol (ethanol).
If you’re a heavy drinker or know someone who is, you may wonder about this condition and even ask yourself questions like, “How long does alcohol poisoning last?” Here, our luxury drug and alcohol rehab in Palm Beach shares more information about the alcohol poisoning timeline, its after-effects, and how to cope.
Side Effects of Alcohol Poisoning
Otherwise known as alcohol overdose, alcohol poisoning is the result of drinking a large amount of alcohol in a short span of time. Alcohol poisoning often occurs when people are celebrating or in people who struggle to control their drinking. However, it can happen to anyone, whether they have alcoholism or not. People are rarely skilled at knowing how drunk they are. Also, it’s often difficult to determine how much alcohol you’ve consumed when you’re at a party or a club. Alcohol overdose or alcohol poisoning is likely to occur on occasions that include binge drinking or high-intensity drinking. However, it can happen to anyone, whether they have alcoholism or not. Not only is it nearly impossible to determine “how drunk” one is, but it can also be difficult to determine how much alcohol you’ve consumed at a social event. Alcohol overdose or poisoning is likely to occur on occasions that include binge drinking or high-intensity drinking. Simply put, an alcohol overdose occurs when there’s so much alcohol in the bloodstream that areas of the brain that control functions like breathing, heart rate, and temperature begin to shut down. Some common signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning include:
- Severe confusion
- Difficulty staying conscious or inability to wake up
- Nausea and vomiting
- Trouble breathing (fewer than 8 breaths per minute)
- Irregular breathing (10 seconds or more between breaths)
- Seizure
- Slowed heart rate
- Clammy skin
- Blackouts
- Dulled responses, such as no gag reflex (which helps to prevent choking)
- Low body temperature
- Stopped breathing
- Choking
- Severe dehydration
The severity of alcohol poisoning symptoms can be affected by factors like age, sensitivity or tolerance to alcohol, gender, drinking speed, medications, and the amount of food eaten. People who are struggling to control their drinking or suffer from alcoholism can avoid poisoning and safely recover from alcohol withdrawal symptoms with the help of our luxury detox program.
How Long Do Alcohol Poisoning Effects Last?
How long alcohol poisoning lasts depends on factors like age, weight, sex, metabolism, amount of alcohol consumed, whether you’ve eaten, presence of other medications, and your alcohol tolerance level. For example, a person with a lower tolerance to alcohol may suffer from alcohol poisoning symptoms longer than someone with a higher tolerance.
Specifically, however, alcohol poisoning can last for several hours, depending on how much the person drank. Another thing to consider is that women have higher blood alcohol levels than men do even after drinking the same amount of alcohol, meaning women get drunk faster and can experience alcohol poisoning at a lower dose.
Generally speaking, alcohol poisoning effects can last up to 48 hours or longer in cases of extreme consumption. The more they drink, the more likely the individual is to require medical care.
Additionally, how long alcohol poisoning lasts depends on several factors, but consuming more than one alcoholic beverage per hour can initiate the onset of intoxication. As the amount of alcohol consumed increases, so does the risk of alcohol poisoning.
Alcohol Poisoning Symptoms Next-Day
Alcohol is linked to a variety of health problems. The next-day effects of alcohol poisoning predominantly focus on brain damage. Symptoms of alcohol poisoning, like difficulty breathing, dehydration, and irregular breathing, can all affect the brain. When the brain doesn’t get enough oxygen, it can lead to permanent impairment in its chemical makeup as well as in functions like memory and thinking.
The after-effects of alcohol poisoning include:
- Brain damage
- Dependence and addiction
- Liver cirrhosis
- Cancers
- Unintentional injuries (including motor vehicle accidents, falls, burns, assaults, and drowning)
Considering the severity of side effects and the challenges of alcohol poisoning recovery, many people also wonder whether you can die from alcohol poisoning the day after. Unfortunately, there is a high risk of death when it comes to alcohol poisoning. This is especially the case if the individual fails to seek medical care, receives care too late, or continues to drink even while symptoms occur.
In the long run, heavy drinking can also increase your risk of addiction, alcohol poisoning, alcohol overdose, and, yes, even death. Moreover, many people who suffer from alcoholism lose their relationships, health, careers, and homes. If you’re in this situation or know someone who is, we can help. We offer luxury alcohol treatment that incorporates medical detox and therapy to help patients physically and mentally recover from addiction.
Getting Help for Alcoholism
Alcohol abuse can lead to alcoholism – a chronic, progressive, relapsing brain disease that can be difficult for a person to recover from without professional help. Alcohol poisoning is one of the many risks of alcohol abuse, a habit that can impact not only the individual but also their loved ones.
If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol abuse, our luxury drug and alcohol rehab in South Florida can help. We offer medically assisted detox to help clients recover from withdrawal symptoms and cravings for alcohol. Detox can also help prevent relapse, as withdrawal symptoms can be highly uncomfortable and difficult to recover from without medical support.
In addition to detox, our alcohol addiction treatment program also provides clients with the opportunity to sit down with therapists and sponsors to cope with the challenges of recovery. No matter how long you’ve struggled with addiction, we’re here for you.
Call Seaside Palm Beach today at 561-677-9374 for more information about our residential addiction treatment in Palm Beach.
Breaking the Paradigm: Integrating Newer Therapies Into Addiction Treatment
The Limits of Conventional Addiction Treatment
Whenever therapies are called “modern” or “alternative,” they carry with them the misconception that these treatments are half-baked or unproven methods designed primarily to make money. The traditional concept of addiction treatment consists of detox withdrawal management and rehab. Rehab itself is usually regarded as a model of care that consists of little more than group and individualized counseling, perhaps with a few added cognitive and trauma-related therapies. As addiction care continues to evolve, the limits of this conventional treatment paradigm become more apparent.
Studies have shown that the “one size fits all” approach to addiction treatment does not work. Just as people are different, so too are their responses to various therapies. The Journal of the American Medical Association found that patients who were matched to therapies based upon their individual needs “stayed in treatment longer, were more likely to complete treatment, and had better post-treatment outcomes than did the standard patients treated in the same programs.” The study went on to report a 30 percent increase in effectiveness when implementing a personalized approach to substance abuse treatment.
Innovation: One Therapy at a Time
It’s critical to remember that patients are people, first and foremost. They don’t forget their needs, interests, fears, and passions when they enter addiction treatment. In fact, this is the point at which many of them tend to cling to the things they love the most.
It’s important, whenever possible, that treatment facilities take the complexity of each patient into account and offer therapies that can appeal to the person the patient is or wishes to be, outside of his/her addiction. More and more facilities are starting to offer different specialty therapies, such as fitness, arts, and spirituality, into their treatment programs; however, many still lack the foresight and resources to integrate them effectively.
A Supplement to Traditional Treatment
Non-traditional therapies are not used to supplant the established style of treatment; instead, they are assimilated into existing conventional therapy programs for enhanced total care. Some of these alternative therapies include:
Non-traditional therapies are part of a holistic approach to addiction treatment that takes into account the patient’s mental and social factors. In the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, it was reported that this inclusive method helps “patients [in substance abuse treatment] develop a stronger sense of self-identity, self-esteem, and self-confidence.”
For more information about our outpatient or residential addiction treatment in Palm Beach, call Seaside Palm Beach today at 561-677-9374 or contact us online, and an admission specialist will connect with you as soon as possible.
Related Reading:
What Is the Point of Non-Alcoholic Beer?
What Are the Signs of Alcoholism?
Signs of Alcohol Withdrawal
