The Complete Guide to Alcohol Addiction Treatment

A tranquiliser called chlordiazepoxide is usually used for this purpose. How and where you attempt detoxification will be determined by your level of alcohol dependency. In mild cases, you should be able to detox at home without the use of medication as your withdrawal symptoms should also be mild. Residential treatment programs typically include licensed alcohol and drug counselors, social workers, nurses, doctors, and others with expertise and experience in treating alcohol use disorder. The three-step road map outlined in the NIAAA Alcohol Treatment Navigator offers expert guidance to focus and support your efforts.

Well-controlled clinical trials do not support an association between disulfiram use and reduction in alcohol consumption Jonas, et al. 2014. A meta-analysis showed that disulfiram effectively improved consumption outcomes in open-label trials (no blinding for participants or researchers) but not in blinded randomized controlled trials Skinner, et al. 2014. For serious alcohol use disorder, you may need a stay at a residential treatment facility.

Medications

Alcohol recovery isn’t a single event, but rather a sequence of clearly defined phases. Each phase has its own daily rhythm, specialized team members, and short-term goals that build toward lasting sobriety. A 2024 randomized trial found tele-AUD services boosted engagement by 50 percent over usual care, expanding access, reducing stigma, and letting clinicians monitor progress between sessions. Alcohol treatment is most successful when starting with the highest level of care necessary, and then slowly working down to lower levels as treatment progresses. These red flags signal physiological dependence and heightened medical risk. Take the NIAAA’s brief Rethinking Drinking self-check and share the results with a physician or addiction counselor.

“Isn’t taking medications just trading one addiction for another?”

Tolerance (needing more drinks for treatment for alcohol the same buzz) and withdrawal (shakes, anxiety, even seizures when you stop). This biological tug of war explains why willpower alone often isn’t enough to quit drinking. Let’s explore how alcohol rewires the brain and why some people slide from casual use to deeper dependence.

Acamprosate

MI, MET, CBT, and other approaches have been incorporated into many interventions for AUD treatment. Variables in studies of behavioral interventions for alcohol use make it difficult to compare and interpret the evidence and extrapolate it to “real-world” settings and individual patients. Most clinical trials examining pharmacologic treatment include a psychological component (e.g., MI or CBT for all treatment groups). Frequent follow-up visits allow clinicians to provide support and encouragement and monitor treatment response, adverse effects, medication adherence, and signs of continued alcohol use or return to use.

International Patients

The goal is to change the thought processes that lead to alcohol misuse and to develop the skills necessary to cope with everyday situations that might trigger alcohol misuse. For daily or heavy drinkers, home detox can be dangerous, and even deadly. Withdrawal seizures and delirium tremens may strike within 24 to 72 hours after quitting drinking. Hospitals and licensed detox units provide 24-hour monitoring, IV fluids, and medications such as benzodiazepines or phenobarbital to prevent life-threatening complications.

• Ideally, individuals treated for alcohol withdrawal syndrome in the outpatient setting are assessed daily until their withdrawal symptoms decrease, and the medication dosage is reduced and eventually discontinued.
• Contact your primary care provider, health insurance plan, local health department, or employee assistance program for information about specialty treatment.
• They can be particularly useful in locations with few addiction health professionals.
• Staying local keeps family close and eases the transition to aftercare, while traveling can add privacy and a fresh start.
• When asked how alcohol problems are treated, people commonly think of 12-step programs or 28-day inpatient treatment centers but may have difficulty naming other options.

Step Programs

Further studies are needed to confirm the benefits of these treatments for AUD. Food and Drug Administration has approved a prescription CBT app for use as an adjunct treatment for alcohol and other substance use disorders Maricich, et al. 2022; FDA(a) 2017, but availability is uncertain. This mobile system includes a patient app and a clinician dashboard and is intended to be used in conjunction with outpatient therapy and a CM system.

Learn more about private insurance coverage for alcohol rehab and see what coverage is offered by your provider. Nurses monitor vitals every few hours, score withdrawal symptoms, and give comfort meds, hydration, and sleep support so your body can clear alcohol safely. Dual diagnosis care treats alcohol addiction and co-occurring mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and PTSD in one coordinated program. 12-step programs and other peer support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous and Women for Sobriety provide a free treatment alternative that gives members accountability, practical coping tips, and a sober social network. Acamprosate (brand name Campral) is used to help prevent a relapse in people who have successfully achieved abstinence from alcohol.

What Medications Are Available for Alcohol Use Disorder?

• If your provider suspects that you have a problem with alcohol, you may be referred to a mental health provider.
• A medically supervised detox lasts an average of 3 to 10 days, residential rehab usually runs 30 to 90 days, and outpatient care can extend several months past that, depending on your needs.
• Evaluate the coverage in your health insurance plan to determine how much of the costs your insurance will cover and how much you will have to pay.
• Clinicians and patients should discuss, agree on, and review AUD treatment goals regularly.

Evaluate the coverage in your health insurance plan to determine how much of the costs your insurance will cover and how much you will have to pay. Ask different programs if they offer sliding-scale fees—some programs may offer lower prices or payment plans for individuals without health insurance. Outpatient and intensive outpatient programs (IOP) schedule therapy in evening or daytime blocks so you can keep a job or attend classes. The Americans with Disabilities Act protects you from job loss if you seek treatment before performance issues escalate. A medically supervised detox lasts an average of 3 to 10 days, residential rehab usually runs 30 to 90 days, and outpatient care can extend several months past that, depending on your needs. During tours or calls, ask about staff-to-client ratios, how treatment plans are individualized, and the extent of family involvement.

Treatment for Alcohol Problems: Finding and Getting Help

Three medications are currently approved in the United States to help people stop or reduce their drinking and prevent a return to drinking. These medications are prescribed by a primary care provider or other health care provider and may be used alone or in combination with counseling. Of the 3 medications, only disulfiram is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for AUD treatment. Other alternative treatments for AUD, including baclofen and varenicline, have been investigated, but the evidence of their efficacy is mixed Agabio, et al. 2023; Bahji, et al. 2022; Fischler, et al. 2022.

For adolescents, family or systemic therapy brings parents and siblings into the process, teaching coping skills and challenging drinking thoughts. Some reduce cravings (naltrexone, acamprosate), others act as aversive agents (disulfiram), and some serve as substitutes for alcohol during withdrawal management (benzodiazepines). Emerging therapies, such as GLP-1 agonists, are more experimental but show promise. When appropriately selected, each can play a valuable role in patient care. The treatment plan promoted by AA is based on a 12-step programme designed to help you overcome your addiction. The steps include admitting you’re powerless over alcohol and your life has become unmanageable, admitting you’ve acted wrongly and, where possible, making amends with people you’ve harmed.

Some people are surprised to learn that there are medications on the market approved to treat AUD. The newer types of these medications work by offsetting changes in the brain caused by AUD. 12-step facilitation therapy is an engagement strategy used in counseling sessions to increase an individual’s active involvement in 12-step-based mutual-support groups.

Most residential treatment programs include individual and group therapy, support groups, educational lectures, family involvement, and activity therapy. Just like any other medical condition, people with substance use disorders deserve to have a range of treatment options available to them. Scientists are working to develop a larger menu of pharmaceutical treatments that could be tailored to individual needs. Cognitive–behavioral therapy can take place one-on-one with a therapist or in small groups. This form of therapy is focused on identifying the feelings and situations (called “cues”) that contribute to heavy drinking and managing stress that can lead to a return to drinking.