The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) estimates that as of 2007, the most recent year for which data is available, 19.3 million Americans needed treatment for alcohol abuse or dependency, nearly 8% of the U.S. population age 12 or above. Of those millions, about 94% did not seek treatment because they felt they did not need it. Yet many drinkers would be surprised to learn what constitutes “at-risk drinking.” For men under 65, that is more than 14 drinks per week; for women, more than seven drinks per week. One standard drink is equal to 12 ounces of regular beer, or 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits, or 5 ounces of wine.

 
Perceived  Need for and Effort Made to Receive Specialty Treatment for Illicit Drug or Alcohol Use
2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

Alcohol has a cumulative and sustained effect on the human body. For those who do make the life-changing decision to seek treatment for alcohol dependency or abuse, or who involuntarily begin treatment through a brush with the law, treatment will most likely begin with a course of alcohol detoxification to clear the effects of all those drinks from the body. This starts with an evaluation to determine the level of dependency and the course of treatment. The majority of people with a minor to moderate alcohol abuse problem can be treated as outpatients, without the use of psychoactive drugs, but some severe dependencies will require much closer supervision and medical treatment to control hallucinations or deal with other problems related to the abuse and withdrawal.

Per The American Family Physician, about one-third of patients undergoing alcohol detoxification who have no acute medical or surgical problems will develop mild to moderate symptoms of withdrawal, such as tremors, anxiety, even irregular heartbeat. Only about 1% will experience the dreaded “DTs” (delirium tremens), and less than 4% in one study experienced any sort of hallucinations or alcohol-related seizures due to withdrawal. The process of detoxification for alcohol abuse is much more civilized than most alcoholics might imagine, must less to be dreaded or used as an excuse never to start treatment.

While many alcoholics can successfully undergo alcohol detoxification on an outpatient basis, some will need inpatient care. These patients include those with a high degree of dependency on alcohol, patients at high risk of developing DTs, and those with suicidal thoughts or with other illnesses on top of the alcoholism. Because, nationwide, drug and alcohol treatment centers are seeing increasing numbers of people with dual drug and alcohol dependencies, often detoxification involves removing drug toxins as well.

Alcohol detoxification is just the first step on the road to recovery and freedom from the need to drink. The goal is to control the symptoms of Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome (AWS) and to prevent seizures, delirium, or deaths from complications. Successful completion of detoxification allows recovering alcoholics to enter an alcohol rehabilitation program with the residue of alcohol flushed from their bodies and the terrible cravings and physical symptoms of withdrawal behind them.