Does Lorazepam help with Alcohol Withdrawal?

Robert Gerchalk

Robert is our health care professional reviewer of this website. He worked for many years in mental health and substance abuse facilities in Florida, as well as in home health (medical and psychiatric), and took care of people with medical and addictions problems at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. He has a nursing and business/technology degrees from The Johns Hopkins University.

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What Lorazepam Does for Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms

Drinking too much alcohol can cause anyone to experience side effects that negatively affect their physical and mental health. When you stop drinking alcohol or significantly reduce the amount you consume after a prolonged period of drinking, you may go through withdrawal symptoms. While receiving treatment for your alcohol withdrawal symptoms, you may be given lorazepam or a similar benzodiazepine. Before taking this drug, learn why it’s effective at treating alcohol withdrawal. 

What Is an Alcohol Use Disorder?

While consuming alcohol is legal, it’s possible for someone to develop alcohol use disorder (AUD) if their body has become dependent on the substance. This condition makes it more difficult for the affected individual to control their drinking. If you develop AUD, you may need to drink more to obtain the same effects. 

You can also experience unhealthy side effects because of binge drinking. This type of drinking involves consuming a lot of alcohol in a short period of time. The risks associated with binge drinking include the following:

  • Sexually transmitted diseases
  • Unplanned pregnancy 
  • Violence
  • Unintentional injuries from car accidents, alcohol poisoning, and falls
  • Cancer
  • Chronic diseases like heart disease and high blood pressure
  • Memory issues

If you notice that the amount of alcohol you drink is causing you to experience problems in your everyday life, it’s possible that you have AUD. This condition can be anywhere from mild to severe regarding the side effects it causes. The number of symptoms you develop determines how severe the disorder is. AUD symptoms include the following:

  • Finding it difficult to stop drinking alcohol
  • Feeling strong urges to consume alcohol
  • Spending a large portion of your time drinking
  • Being unable to meet family, work, or school obligations
  • Avoiding your usual hobbies or social activities
  • Drinking alcohol even if you know that it’s causing problems
  • Consuming alcohol while you swim or drive
  • Suffering from withdrawal symptoms
  • Increasing tolerance to alcohol

Causes of AUD

Your risk of developing AUD depends on how often you consume alcohol and how much you drink each time. From heavy alcohol use to binge drinking, misusing alcohol increases your risk of AUD. You also have a higher risk of developing alcohol use disorder if your family has a history of the condition. A few additional causes include if you have already been diagnosed with a mental health condition, if you have a history of trauma, and if you started drinking when you were younger than 15 years old.

Alcohol Withdrawal and Its Symptoms

If your body is dependent on alcohol, you’re more likely to go through the withdrawal process. Alcohol is known to slow down a person’s brain functions and create issues with how messages are transmitted between their nerves. Because of how alcohol affects the brain, your central nervous system may eventually become used to it being in your body consistently. 

When your alcohol consumption stops, your body will react with withdrawal symptoms when trying to regain balance. The symptoms that occur during withdrawal can range from mild to severe. The seriousness of these side effects depends on how long you’ve consumed alcohol and how much. Around six hours after you have your last drink, you might notice some mild symptoms, which include the following:

  • Insomnia
  • Headache
  • Anxiety
  • Vomiting
  • Tremors in hands
  • Nausea
  • Sweating

Some of the more serious side effects can develop within 12-48 hours after you stop drinking. These effects might include seizures and hallucinations. You might also believe that you’re seeing or hearing things. Symptoms tend to be at their worst within 48-72 hours after your last drink. For example, you might develop delirium tremens, which can lead to delusions and hallucinations. Other severe symptoms extend to:

  • Quick heartbeats
  • High blood pressure
  • Serious confusion
  • Heavy sweating
  • High fever

What Is Lorazepam?

Lorazepam is a medication that people often use to relieve their anxiety. It’s also effective at treating cases of insomnia that are caused by temporary situational stress or anxiety. This specific medication belongs to a category of drugs known as benzodiazepines. Just like alcohol, Lorazepam slows the activity in your brain. This effect is beneficial for people who suffer from anxiety because it helps them relax. The medication is available as a tablet or an extended-release capsule. 

How Lorazepam Helps With Alcohol Withdrawal

Lorazepam is considered to be a short-acting benzodiazepine, which means that the effects of the drug only last for a few hours. While lorazepam is effective at reducing the severity of withdrawal symptoms, there’s a risk that the symptoms will reappear because of the short duration that the drug remains in your system. To keep withdrawal symptoms from returning, the healthcare professionals who provide these drugs might gradually taper doses before stopping them altogether. 

There are several different regimens that can be used when administering lorazepam to clients who are going through alcohol withdrawal, which include a fixed tapering dose regimen, a symptom-triggered regimen, and a loading dose regimen. The fixed tapering dose regimen provides the same doses at scheduled intervals regardless of how severe the symptoms are. This specific technique is mainly used with clients who are unable to receive close monitoring in an inpatient facility. 

As for the symptom-triggered regimen, lorazepam and other benzodiazepines are given based on the severity of your withdrawal symptoms. This regimen is effective because it often accommodates a shorter treatment duration and less medication. Since a person’s withdrawal symptoms determine their dosage, there’s less risk of over-medicating or under-medicating.

 A loading dose is a higher dose of medication given at the beginning of treatment. The loading dose regimen only uses long-acting benzodiazepines, which means that lorazepam can’t be used. In most cases, a loading dose regimen is applied when a client is at risk of delirium and seizures. 

Combating Alcohol Withdrawal With a Detox Program

Before you take part in one-on-one therapy and group counseling, you can enter a detox program as you go through withdrawal. Detox is often the initial step in a continuum of care that clients can receive during AUD treatment. 

If your body is dependent on alcohol, you may require professional detox to progress through alcohol withdrawal safely. Even though withdrawal symptoms might not be severe, there’s always a risk that they will be, which is why detox programs include 24/7 medical supervision. 

Medical professionals may provide lorazepam and similar medications during a detox program to help the client through withdrawal. These medications ease the more serious symptoms that tend to occur within 24 to 72 hours. There are three main stages to detox, which include an intake exam, detox support, and assistance with additional treatment. 

The intake exam is designed to identify the level of support a client requires. This exam might involve a comprehensive review of the client’s health history, mental and physical health tests, and blood work. 

Detox support is available for the brunt of the program and often includes medicine. The purpose of this program is to assist the client in remaining stable as the alcohol moves out of their system. During the final stage of detox, clients receive assistance in obtaining additional treatment via inpatient or outpatient rehab. 

Inpatient or Outpatient Detox

There are several different forms of outpatient detox, which include partial hospitalization programs and standard outpatient treatment. The primary reason why clients choose outpatient detox is because they get to remain in their own homes while still receiving professional care. 

When considering inpatient detox, this type of program includes a level of professional support and medical monitoring that isn’t available with outpatient detox. If you remain in a hospital or residential facility 24/7 during detox, you’ll receive around-the-clock care from nurses and doctors. 

The most comprehensive level of care is available with intensive inpatient rehab programs, which usually provide detox programs at the beginning of treatment. Once you complete a detox program, you can transfer to outpatient or inpatient rehab. 

Continuing Treatment After Detox

If you wish to obtain treatment after detox, there are several types of rehab facilities at your disposal, which include everything from short-term residential treatment to outpatient treatment. The two types of inpatient rehab programs you can enter include long-term residential and short-term residential options. 

A long-term residential treatment program provides clients with 24/7 care in a residential facility, which isn’t the same as a hospital. The average length of stay is around six to 12 months. During treatment, you’ll communicate with other residents and staff members as you take part in:

  • Individual counseling
  • Group therapy
  • Family therapy
  • Mental health education
  • Addiction education
  • Nutrition counseling

Short-term residential treatment programs often incorporate the 12-step approach to help clients understand why they have misused alcohol in the past and develop skills to embrace a sober lifestyle. These programs can run from three to six weeks and are usually followed up by outpatient treatment. 

Outpatient treatment programs allow clients to continue living at home during rehab. Clients who enter an outpatient program will be required to attend treatment at least two to three days every week. Clients participate in educational courses and therapy sessions during treatment. 

During individual counseling, clients receive care from a mental health professional, which gives them the opportunity to talk about their addiction and the effects of it. If therapy sessions go well, the client might be able to identify their triggers and learn how to cope with them. 

Most treatment facilities have addiction specialists on hand. These professionals customize treatment to suit the specific needs of each client. While many treatments are provided in an inpatient or outpatient program, behavioral therapies are used more often than the rest. Motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioral therapy are two common types of therapy. 

During a motivational interviewing sessions, your therapist might ask you about how alcohol has affected your life or why you’re looking to stop drinking. This type of therapy is designed to help clients feel less ambivalent about receiving treatment by assisting them to identify reasons to maintain a sober lifestyle. 

Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on helping the client identify the negative behaviors and beliefs that play a role in their alcohol use disorder. It also teaches clients how to respond more effectively to the scenarios where they would typically start drinking. Clients often learn coping mechanisms as part of cognitive behavioral therapy. 

When you encounter alcohol withdrawal symptoms, lorazepam may be able to help reduce the severity of these effects. If you are considering a professional detox program, ask a nurse or doctor about the types of medications they might prescribe. Alternatively, if you are contemplating detoxing at home, ask your doctor about lorazepam or other medicines that may help with withdrawal symptoms. When you or someone you love is struggling with alcohol use disorder, you can learn about treatment programs and support groups in your area by calling the Alcohol Awareness hotline at (855) 955-0771. If you have questions about AUD or the symptoms of withdrawal, you can get answers when you contact this hotline.