Looking at Sweating Out Substance Abuse and the Detox Process
Saunas have many health benefits and can provide comfort for some health issues. But, does a sauna detox drugs and alcohol? Its effectiveness for alcohol/drug detox is unproven. The sauna may help with removing toxins and heavy metals by promoting sweating.
However, supporting liver and kidney health and treating psychological symptoms are necessary when quitting drug use once and for all.
The Purpose Healing Center treatment team views sauna therapy as complementary to evidence-based medical detoxification in a professional setting, like our Joint Commission-accredited detox center in Phoenix, Arizona.
Detoxification is safest and longest-lasting when left to treatment professionals who can oversee the process while eliminating withdrawal symptoms.
Keep reading to learn how medically supervised detoxification helps set you up for long-term recovery and how infrared saunas can offer supportive benefits during rehab.
Medical Detox Provides More Health Benefits than Sauna Therapy
While a sauna may help release muscle tension and support blood flow during detox, the relief is usually short-lived, lasting only a short while after the body heats up from the sauna. The blood vessels dilate from the steamy, high heat.
You’ll enjoy improved circulation that lessens the pain for a short time. Blood flow returns to normal shortly thereafter, and acute symptoms and various aches return to the body.
Medical detox is important for sustained addiction recovery. The safe, supportive environment of a professional substance abuse treatment center provides these benefits:
Medical Detox Helps Manage Withdrawal Symptoms
Drug and alcohol abuse change the brain. In early use, substance abuse reduces activity in your sympathetic nervous system, leading to relaxation or enjoyment. That encourages further use and can lead you to use or drink alcohol again. Continued, long-term substance abuse begins changing the dopamine pathway and restoring your body’s natural reward system.
In other words, you may no longer feel happy when sipping a mug of hot cocoa or hearing your favorite song. Instead, your brain perceives the substance as the most satisfying reward. That keeps the cycle of abuse in place and causes the firm hold of addiction.
That’s why quitting without guidance from a treatment professional becomes dangerous. The brain panics when it realizes it’s no longer receiving the anticipated drinking of alcohol or drug use. It signals distress to the rest of the body, manifesting as withdrawal symptoms.
Not everyone has severe withdrawal symptoms, and they are often specific to the drug of choice.
Frequent Withdrawal Symptoms
Common signs that can appear as the drugs leave your bloodstream and metabolize include:
- Sleep disturbances
- Muscle pain or weakness
- Headaches
- Sweating
- Slowed or rapid heart rate (depending on the substance)
- Confusion and lack of mental clarity
- Lack of focus and reduced cognitive function
- Stomach pain or nausea
- Mood swings and decline in mental wellness
- Paranoia or delusions
The physical pain of withdrawal symptoms is real for those trying to break free from a substance use disorder. Professional treatment options include prescription medications that can curb the discomfort of withdrawal and keep you safe during drug or alcohol detox.
Medical Supervision Ensures Physical and Mental Health
A drug and alcohol detox center provides continuous monitoring not only of your physical health but also of your mental and emotional well-being. The things you do to get through detox will help set you up for success in the rest of your treatment.
Here are some ways we can support your success as the drug and alcohol toxins leave your body:
Providing Compassionate Emotional Support
The Purpose team has worked with countless clients and understands the challenges of detoxing. We’ll take a compassionate approach to the detox process.
Lower Risk Factors in a Medical Setting
We monitor your well-being, staying alert to any risks that develop during the process of releasing toxins. For example, throwing up increases the risk of dehydration and causes unnecessary stress on the body. A quick response will likely mean administering nausea medication to avoid liver damage or an uncomfortable sore throat resulting from vomiting.
We’ll also be proactive in your care, offering nutritious meals supporting alcohol recovery. Besides that, we will ensure you drink plenty of fluids to assist the kidneys and endocrine glands as they facilitate your metabolic processes.
Medical Detox Integrates with Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT)
Quitting cold turkey at-home or in a sauna instead of under the supervision of a professional detox clinic can be life-threatening to those in withdrawal from an opioid or alcohol use disorder. Withdrawal symptoms from these forms of substance abuse can mean seizures, delirium, or loss of consciousness.
To avoid such dangerous withdrawal symptoms, opioid and alcohol addiction treatment often relies on MAT.
Does a Sauna Detox Alcohol and Drugs: What Is MAT?
MAT is a science-backed approach that replaces alcohol and opioid drugs with a longer-lasting, less harmful medication that patients take for several weeks or months, stepping down doses as the brain becomes less reliant on substances.
MAT may start during the initial alcohol detox; it carries over into the extended treatment plan and integrates with behavioral therapies and psychological counseling.
Infrared Sauna Therapy May Complement Medical Detox
A sauna may support wellness during drug or alcohol detox, although it is not a substibute for a professional assessment and treatment plan.
Possible Benefits of Sauna Use in Drug Detoxification
Here are some reasons people enjoy sauna bathing:
- The heat reduces inflammation, which relieves pain in the body. This could comfort muscle aches during withdrawal.
- Studies have found regular sauna use to strengthen the immune system by releasing toxins, which is often weakened during addiction.
- Using a sauna can help the body relax and enjoy a better night sleep. Sleep disruptions are common during recovery, so this could provide a good solution.
- Sauna bathing integrates well with exercise and may even enhance results – essential when returning the body to its peak state after addiction.
- Studies have shown that sauna use is good for the heart as a prevention strategy against heart disease or hypertension by preventing stiffening of the arteries.
These benefits are worth considering to enhance drug and alcohol detox. For most clients, they are at least worth a try.
Harvard Warns That Sauna Use Can Endanger Heart Patients
Harvard Health explains that an infrared sauna works by creating an environment of dry heat at a temperature of approximately 185°F. It raises the body temperature to around 104°F within a short time. Most patients begin sweating quickly, which is the mechanism that may release some toxins.
How much sweat does a sauna session generate? Up to a pint. So be sure to drink water to replenish the body after sauna bathing.
While many infrared sauna manufacturers claim you’ll enjoy better circulation, Harvard warns that increased circulation does not necessarily mean a healthier heart and body.
Most of the extra blood flow the sauna stimulates benefits the skin and is directed away from the organs that support detoxification. Moreover, the increased blood circulation can actually endanger people with high blood pressure or heart disease diagnoses.
Harvard concludes that spending time in a sauna is probably safe and beneficial for a healthy heart for most people. However, consult with should see your doctor before you try if you have one of these risk factors.
Purpose Offers Safe Drug and Alcohol Detox Support
Are you ready to restore your life and rid your body of dependency on alcohol or drugs? Sweating away alcohol is not likely to happen and quitting without medical professionals to manage the process brings considerable risks.
Contact Purpose Healing Center in Phoenix – your call is confidential. We’ll guide your detox safely to achieve long-lasting results.
480-579-3319