Total Force Team

A substance abuse crisis can occur in two main ways:

1.     When the excessive consumption of alcohol or use of an illicit drug has caused impaired verbal and motor performance, confusion, disorientation, auditory or visual hallucinations, increased aggressiveness, rage, or short term memory loss. Beyond these dangerous behavioral changes, certain amounts of alcohol or the use or psychoactive substances including : 

• Heroin
• Cocaine
• Ecstasy
• LSD
• Amphetamines
• Barbiturates
• Tranquillizers
• Anabolic steroids
• Inhalants

 …could result in a serious medical injury to the liver, brain, or respiratory system up to and including death.

2.     A substance abuse crisis can also occur when significant physical withdrawal occurs. Some common symptoms include:

• Sweating          
• Racing heart
• Palpitations
• Chest pain
• Difficulty breathing
• Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea
• Grand mal seizures
• Heart attacks
• Strokes
• Hallucinations
• Delirium tremens (DTs)

Alcohol and tranquilizers produce the most dangerous physical withdrawal. Suddenly stopping alcohol or tranquilizers can lead to seizures, strokes, or heart attacks in high risk patients. A medically supervised detox can minimize your withdrawal symptoms and reduce the risk of dangerous complications. Every person's physical withdrawal pattern is different, so please seek professional help.