Crack Cocaine Detox
Crack isn’t always the only substance involved. You may also be drinking, using opioids or taking prescribed medication. At Abbington House, we ask about all of it before admission, along with your physical and mental health and what happened the last time you tried to stop.
01438 583222
What coming offcrack involves
Why we assess you before admission
We’ll assess you before you come to Abbington House.
We'll ask what you've used, how much, how often and when you last used it. We'll also ask what happened when you tried to stop before.
We'll need to know about alcohol, prescribed medication, tablets bought elsewhere, your physical and mental health, any pain you're living with and any immediate concerns about your safety.
Two people who both say they smoke crack may need very different treatment. One may use crack on its own. The other may drink heavily each day, collect methadone from a pharmacy or take opioid painkillers for a long-term condition.
Bring an accurate list of your current prescriptions. Tell us about anything you've taken on the day of admission, including alcohol, heroin, methadone, buprenorphine, painkillers, benzodiazepines or sleeping tablets.
We're not asking to catch you out. What you've taken and when you've taken it can affect what the prescriber can give you safely.
The addiction assessment helps the admissions and clinical teams decide whether Abbington House is the right place for you and what needs to be arranged before you arrive.
Sometimes you’ll need a different service or a setting with more medical support first. If that’s the case, we’ll tell you.
If crack isn't the only thing you're using
Using alcohol, heroin or medication alongside crack will affect your treatment plan.
If you're drinking as well
- If you're dependent on alcohol, you may need a medically assisted withdrawal. Don't stop drinking suddenly before admission unless a clinician who's assessed you has told you to.
- The level of support you need will depend on how much you're drinking, what previous withdrawals have been like, your physical and mental health, any other drugs you're using and the support you have at home.
- Using cocaine during alcohol withdrawal can cause further concerns about your blood pressure and heart rate. Residential care, or another setting where you can be monitored closely, may be safer than trying to manage it at home.
- Our alcohol detox information explains how we approach that part of treatment. You can also read about using cocaine and alcohol together.
If heroin, methadone or painkillers are involved
- If you're dependent on opioids, we'll assess that separately. We'll ask what you've taken, when you took your latest dose and whether you have a prescription through a GP or pharmacy. We'll also need to know if you're stable on methadone or buprenorphine.
- We won't cancel or change a current prescription without checking it. The prescribing arrangements must be confirmed and transferred safely.
- Tell us if you've used heroin or other opioids on top of your prescription, including anything you've used on the day you're due to arrive.
- If you take opioid painkillers for a medical condition, we can't ignore the pain they were prescribed for. The prescriber will consider why you started taking them, your current tolerance, other ways to manage the pain and what can be done safely during and after your stay.
- We can't promise that you'll be pain-free or that you'll stop every medication during one admission.
- Your tolerance to opioids will fall after detox. If you return to an amount you previously used, you're at greater risk of overdose. That risk is higher if alcohol or benzodiazepines are involved. We'll discuss this with you as part of the detox plan and make sure it's covered in your plans for leaving treatment.
- Rapid opioid detox won't automatically be suitable. UK guidance says precipitated rapid detox shouldn't be offered routinely. Ultra-rapid detox under general anaesthetic or heavy sedation shouldn't be offered.
- Any opioid reduction at Abbington House will be assessed and planned for you. You can read more about opioid detox.
Why therapy starts early
Support through the first few days is part of residential cocaine treatment.
You don’t have to complete a separate crack detox before therapy can begin. Once you’re well enough to take part, you can start looking at what happened before you used and what made it difficult to stop.
It may have started with a message from the same person, money arriving in your account or drinking before you bought crack. You may have planned to smoke once before going home, then stayed out for the rest of the night.
Treatment includes CBT, DBT, trauma-informed work and a 12-step structure. Sound therapy, art therapy and Reiki are available as complementary therapies.
You’ll work with the team to identify the situations that usually lead to crack use and practise different ways of dealing with them.
The cocaine rehab page explains how Abbington House treats powder cocaine and crack. You can also read about life in residential rehab, including what happens between formal therapy sessions.
Can you come off crack at home?
Whether that will be suitable for you depends on your health, what else you're using and what's happening at home.
if the clinical and mental health risks are low, you don't need an alcohol or opioid withdrawal, your home is stable and you have reliable support from a local drug and alcohol service.
if you've tried to stop in the community before and started using again, if several substances are involved, if your physical or mental health needs closer support, or if people or drugs at home make it harder to stop.
may be available in some cases, but there isn't a standard short-stay crack package.
if you have a specific withdrawal need that can be managed safely during a shorter admission and there is a clear plan for continuing treatment afterwards. We assess this individually and can't promise it during an initial call.
Our guide to whether you need detox or rehab explains the difference in more detail. You can also compare residential and outpatient treatment.
If you've tried tostop before
Common questions about coming off crack
01 : Can you die from coming off crack?
Crack withdrawal doesn’t usually carry the same direct physical withdrawal risks as alcohol or opioid dependence. The main serious concern after stopping is a severe drop in mood, including thoughts of self-harm or suicide.
We’ll assess your mood and immediate safety. If you’re also using alcohol, opioids or other drugs, they may bring separate withdrawal risks that need their own assessment.
02 : How long does it take to come off crack?
There isn’t one timeframe that applies to everybody. Our cocaine withdrawal guide explains the usual symptoms and timings in more detail.
03 : Do I need detox or rehab for crack?
Crack use alone doesn’t usually require a substitute-drug detox. Residential rehab may still be suitable because you’ll need more than help getting through the first few days.
If you’re dependent on alcohol, opioids or medication, you may also need a medically supervised detox. We’ll decide that after assessing you.
04 : What if the person won't agree to treatment?
You can call us and explain what’s been happening. We’ll tell you what Abbington House can offer and what would need to happen before the person could be assessed.
They’ll still need to agree to treatment themselves. Trying to corner or diagnose them is unlikely to help.
05 : Can I arrive if I've used crack today?
Don’t hide same-day use and don’t travel to Abbington House without speaking to admissions first.
Tell us what you’ve used, how much and when. We’ll also need to know whether alcohol, opioids or prescribed medication were involved.
The clinical team will decide whether your admission can go ahead safely or whether you need another assessment first.
06 : How much does treatment cost?
Abbington House charges a single fixed fee for your stay. We keep the current figure on the costs page so you aren’t given different amounts on different pages.
Talking it through
Call Abbington House on 01438 583222 to tell us about the crack use, anything you’re using alongside it, your current prescriptions and what happened when you tried to stop before.
We’ll use that conversation to decide whether residential treatment here may be suitable and what needs to be assessed before admission. If Abbington House isn’t the right place for you, we’ll tell you.