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This Page was last reviewed and changed on January 10th, 2023
Crack detox
As suggested by the name, the side effects of crack are extremely dangerous, so for your sake and the sake of your loved ones, we highly advise that you carry out a crack detox as soon as you realise that the misuse is happening. This will allow you to focus on recovery with a clear mind and give yourself a better chance of taking control of cravings.
What is crack detox?
Detoxing from crack cocaine is the process of getting the drug out of your system and nursing yourself away from the claws of drug dependency. Essentially, a detox is ridding your body of the drug, but it gets more complicated when you think about what brought about the addiction as well as the mental dependency that comes with smoking crack. Detoxing crack involves mentally acclimating to the changes as well as addressing the core reason for the crack use.
Why is crack detox important?
The importance of a crack cocaine detox comes to be more and more important with the introduction of health-related ramifications of crack cocaine use. The very real and severe side effects of crack cocaine range from psychological ailments to brain, heart, and general organ damage that could last a lifetime.
Fluctuating blood pressure, heart attacks, lung and kidney failures and paranoia are just a few of the ailments that crack cocaine induces. Although crack withdrawal symptoms are unpleasant, the health benefits far outweigh the short amount of discomfort. Detoxing from crack also helps you overcome physical cravings, so you can focus on the underlying causes and address the root causes of your behaviour.
Crack detox symptoms
As crack is a more concentrated form of cocaine that is smoked instead of inhaled, most of the crack and cocaine withdrawal symptoms overlap greatly. These include:
- Restlessness
- Depression
- Fatigue
- General discomfort
- Increased appetite
- Nightmares or bad dreams
- Difficulty concentrating
- Feeling of slow activity
- Anxiety
- Paranoia
However, there are three symptoms to keep a special eye out for when they do arise, as they will be the most intense withdrawals of crack for you or your loved one to undergo:
- Crash/depression: this symptom will breed further psychological difficulties such as the fatigue mentioned above, anxiety and even the feeling of slowed activity.
- Intense cravings: these can lead to a relapse in the crack detox process.
- Suicidal ideation: owing to the nature of crack and the way it affects the mind, coming off the drug, and especially experiencing a crack detox causes the mind to think itself worthless and essentially turn to suicidal thoughts as a solution. These can lead to catastrophic consequences.
Crack withdrawal timeline
As highly inconvenient and dangerous as these crack cocaine withdrawal symptoms are, they will also last for an average of four weeks after the last smoke. The most difficult will be the first seventy-two hours.
- During just the first ninety minutes, you may begin to experience intense cravings.
- For the first twenty-four hours, you may feel extreme paranoia and hallucinations.
- In the first seventy-two hours, the body aches will be extreme, but paranoia and hallucinations will subside after the first day.
- Four to seven days into crack detox, fatigue, irritability, lethargy, and insomnia will set in.
- Seven to fourteen days after the last smoke, intense cravings will once again arise, along with anxiety and mild depression.
- During the third and fourth weeks, symptoms will gradually subside, but psychological symptoms such as mood swings, lack of motivation, and depression will remain.
Crack detox at Primrose Lodge
The care provided in Primrose Lodge for our crack cocaine detox residents is one that ensures safety during the process by providing 24/7 professional support. In addition, the psychological symptoms are mitigated by providing professional therapists and mental health professionals who have been through this before and know the ins and outs of the crack detox process.
We would also like to emphasise the importance of our clients’ wellbeing in our facility. Considering the detox symptoms of crack, highly qualified professionals, a variety of therapy programmes and safety systems in place to keep our residents from harm is always a high priority at Primrose Lodge.
Preparing for crack detox
To begin, you must be aware that the road ahead is difficult. As a crack user, the crack detox symptoms will be hard to endure, and as a loved one, they will be hard to watch. However, persisting through the crack detox process and coming out the other side will enable you to enjoy a healthy lifestyle that is independent of a financially draining drug that causes severe internal damage.
What you can do next
How you wish to handle the crack detox process is entirely up to you. You may wish to undergo this process at home, at a private detox clinic like Primrose Lodge, or at a public NHS detox clinic. Whichever one you choose, we will always be available to support you. Simultaneously, we have every faith in you that you will be able to get through this. Contact us if you want to start your crack addiction treatment journey at Primrose Lodge.