Drug detox and alcohol detoxification is often a process that someone who has been dependent and addicted to drugs and alcohol must undergo if they stop using these substances abruptly. People who abuse drugs and alcohol can't stop or don't wish to stop abusing drug or alcohol because they know they'll have to detox, which is often very uncomfortable and even painful in some instances. Luckily, treatment professionals in drug and alcohol treatment programs are skilled and experienced with the drug detox and alcohol detoxification process and ways to make this course of action as comfortable and safe as possible. You can avoid certain withdrawal symptoms, make sure they are more manageable, or at least make sure they are bearable while they last which can be typically only a matter of days. Folks who go through drug detox or alcohol detoxification should not stop at this point, and departing rehab after only completing this task makes all efforts to this point mute. This is due to the fact that those who only detox and receive no further rehabilitation fare just as well as someone who never received any rehab to begin with. Detox isn't rehabilitation, so folks who undergo drug detox and alcohol detoxification should commit to an extensive plan for treatment addresses all aspects of their drug or alcohol addiction.