As many people choose to reduce their alcohol intake or stop drinking altogether as part of the Sober October initiative, medical professionals are urging those with an alcohol dependency to seek help to detox, highlighting the dangers of alcohol withdrawal if someone gives up cold turkey.

Gloria Shaw is team manager for the Alcohol and Drugs Service in the Southern Sector of the Western Health and Social Care Trust which covers the Omagh and Fermanagh areas. She has worked in the addiction team since 2016 and within the Trust for over 37 years.

She explained that the alcohol and drugs team are a tier three service, which provides support for people who are more dependent and have a higher level of addiction.

“People who are referred to us may have had support from their GP, which is a tier one level. The GP may have been trying to work with the person with their addiction. Then there is tier two which is the community and voluntary support services, so people may have availed of those organisations first.

“Then we are the tier three service, so we are the next level up, for people who alcohol is starting to have a real impact on their life and they are starting to become dependent,” she said, noting how her team provides assessment and a counselling support service, as well as signposting on to other appropriate services.

Gloria went on to highlight how within the alcohol and drugs team there is a community detox service and an in-patient service for complex detoxes, which are based in the Aisling Centre, Enniskillen and the Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital, Omagh.

“Our community detox service would provide support for people who have consumed a lot of alcohol and they want to stop drinking but the problem is when we’re talking about the physical effects of alcohol, when it is consumed over a long period of time on a daily basis, the person will experience withdrawal symptoms, so physical withdrawal symptoms which can be quite dangerous when they stop suddenly,” said Gloria, who went on to highlight how important it is for someone with an alcohol dependency to seek professional help and support, and not to quit drinking alcohol suddenly.

“If someone stops drinking they can experience a lot of sickness, stomach problems, vomiting, nausea, sweating, they can perspire a lot and feel very clammy and have the shakes. Their whole body can be shaking if it’s really bad,” noted Gloria, continuing to outline the impact of alcohol withdrawal.

“Then mobility, it can affect how they walk and their gait. There’s a number of chronic conditions, they can experience brain damage as well. The long term effects of alcohol can be quite significant,” she said, adding: “Therefore it is really important that if someone wants to stop drinking after a period of time drinking on a daily basis, it’s important [that they] seek support through their GP and get referred in for a detox.

“The detox nurse will complete an assessment and they can do home visits as well.”

Liam Dunne, Head of Adult Mental Health Services in the Western Health and Social Care Trust echoed Gloria’s advice.

He said: “If someone tries to stop drinking on their own without support, that can be a very dangerous thing to do and that’s actually termed a medical emergency and requires submission to an acute hospital for treatment and management.

“I think that is something that the general public don’t understand that well.”

He went on to acknowledge how some people with alcohol dependency may make the decision to stop drinking without support: “Whether that’s due to embarrassment or not wanting to go to their GP or want people to know. The likes of alcohol misuse can be a very private thing.”

However, he does not encourage this.

“They may think that they don’t need anybody else to help them. As a service we would not encourage that. We would encourage people to seek help. Going it alone can be a very dangerous thing to do.

“Withdrawal from alcohol is an acute medical emergency, it can cause systems in your body to close down and can lead to death,” he told The Impartial Reporter.

Reiterating that there are various services available for those with alcohol dependency, including the community detox service and the in-patient services, Liam added: “The Western Trust are the only Trust in Northern Ireland to have a home detox service, where a GP can lift the phone and call the service [on behalf of their patient].

“We have specific staff that work within that part of the service, they will make contact with the patient within 24 hours. They would do an assessment with the person to understand what the person has taken up to that point. What they need treatment-wise to successfully manage it in the detox,” he explained.

“A planned detox is [most] effective,” added Gloria: “The more support and more planning, the more effective and the person can do a gradual reduction, they can go from higher strength alcohol to lower strength. Beer rather than spirits.

“There is always a better outcome,” she told this newspaper.