Work out first whether it's safe for you to stop on your own. If you drink most days and wake up shaky or sick, don't stop suddenly without medical advice. Ring a GP or a free alcohol service today, then pick one support route you'll actually use. The rest of this page is how.
Read this before you pour anything away
Alcohol is unusual. For some people, stopping is more dangerous than carrying on for one more day.
The UK clinical guidelines tell clinicians to ["advise them that stopping suddenly or substantially reducing their alcohol use too quickly can lead to severe complications and can even be fatal"](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/8-harm-reduction). The NHS says the same thing in fewer words: ["It can be very dangerous to stop drinking suddenly if you're dependent on alcohol."](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/alcohol-misuse/treatment/)
So the honest answer to "can I detox at home tonight" is "it depends", and here's how to tell.
The NHS gives the timing: ["Withdrawal symptoms begin within 6 to 12 hours of your last drink, and usually last from 3 to 7 days."](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/alcohol-misuse/treatment/) The window that matters is the first night and the two or three days after it.
**Call 999 now** if you have ["severe symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, including: hallucinations, severe tremors, seizures or fits"](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/). Don't wait to see if it settles.
First, count what you actually drink
Most people underestimate this, and not on purpose. Measures at home are bigger than a pub optic.
[One unit is 10ml or 8g of pure alcohol](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/calculating-alcohol-units/). By NHS reckoning, a 175ml glass of 12% wine is 2.1 units, a 750ml bottle of 13.5% wine is 10 units, and a pint of 5.2% beer is 3 units. The UK guideline is not more than 14 units a week on a regular basis, spread over three or more days.
A bottle of wine most nights is around 70 units a week. Write your number down. The triage below runs on it.
If you're not sure the drinking is a problem yet, [start here instead](/guides/alcohol/is-my-drinking-a-problem).
The honest triage
The guidelines sort people by daily units and by a score on the Severity of Alcohol Dependence Questionnaire, or SADQ. A service scores the SADQ with you, so you can't self-diagnose it. The unit figures still give you a usable read tonight.
| Where you are | What the guidelines say | What to do first | |---|---|---| | Hallucinations, severe tremors, seizures or fits, right now | Emergency | Call 999 | | 15 to 30 units a day, or SADQ 15 to 30 | Moderate dependence, usually a [community medically assisted withdrawal](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/11-community-based-medically-assisted-withdrawal) with a prescriber | GP or local alcohol service. Don't stop on your own first | | Over 30 units a day, SADQ over 30, or past withdrawal seizures or delirium tremens | [Specialist inpatient withdrawal](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/12-specialist-inpatient-medically-assisted-withdrawal) | GP or alcohol service. Say "withdrawal seizure" if it's happened | | Pregnancy, untreated psychosis, severe depression or suicidal thoughts, chronic liver disease | Also listed as reasons for inpatient care | Same call. Name the condition when you make it | | Below that range, no morning shakes, no withdrawal history | Assisted withdrawal is reserved for moderate and severe dependence, so you may sit outside both groups | You can likely start now. Tell a GP so someone knows |
Two caveats. That bottom row records the absence of a red flag, and only a GP can turn it into medical clearance. And between 15 and 30 units a day, "can I do this at home" is often still yes, with a prescription and someone checking on you. That's a real NHS route. It isn't the same as doing it alone.
Route one, a GP
The NHS is blunt about where to begin: ["A good place to start is with a GP. Try to be accurate and honest about how much you drink and any problems it may be causing you."](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/)
Say the real number, not the one you'd give at a dinner party. They've heard worse this week, and the amount decides whether you get medication or a referral. Book it as a routine appointment. You don't need to have stopped first.
Route two, a free community alcohol service
You can refer yourself. No GP letter, no cost.
We Are With You provides ["free and confidential support to adults and young people facing challenges with drugs, alcohol and mental health"](https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk/help-and-advice/) across England and Scotland, with a webchat if you can't face a phone call.
Drinkline is 0300 123 1110, weekdays 9am to 8pm and weekends 11am to 4pm. In the middle of the night, Samaritans is 116 123.
Route three, a group of people doing the same thing
Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain is 0800 917 7650, 24 hours. SMART Recovery UK is 0330 053 6022 and runs closer to structured self-management. Both are free. Plenty of people try one, hate it, and get on fine with the other.
Neither replaces medical withdrawal if you're physically dependent. That part comes first. [We've written up the difference between the routes](/guides/alcohol/aa-smart-recovery-or-gp) if you'd rather choose before turning up anywhere.
What medically assisted withdrawal involves
["Benzodiazepine reducing regimens are the standard pharmacological treatment to manage withdrawal from alcohol"](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/10-pharmacological-interventions), stepped down over days. The same guidance says everyone undergoing assisted withdrawal should be given thiamine, which guards against a serious vitamin B1 deficiency.
Then there's medication for staying stopped. Acamprosate and naltrexone are named as ["first-line options"](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/10-pharmacological-interventions) for relapse prevention after withdrawal. Ask about them. You're allowed to raise it yourself.
Stopping completely, or cutting down
The guidelines ["recommend abstinence as the appropriate goal for most people with moderate or severe alcohol dependence"](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/5-psychosocial-interventions). They also say someone who makes an informed choice to aim at low risk drinking instead should be supported in that goal.
So nobody gets to refuse you help because you won't say the word "never". Pick a goal you believe in this month and revisit it.
What to do in the next ten minutes
- Count last night in units using the figures above.
- Match that to a row in the table.
- Make the call that row points at, or book the GP appointment online if the phones are shut.
- Tell one person what you've just done.
Then get through tonight. [That's a separate problem with its own answers](/guides/alcohol/getting-through-tonight-without-a-drink), and it bites at about 7pm. Longer term, [a written plan for the risky moments](/spaces/how-to-prevent-relapse) beats resolve.
Some people keep the daily count and the person they text in one place. That's what [the recovery side of Renovyn](/my-recovery) is for. It tracks and it nudges. It doesn't treat anything, and it's no stand-in for the GP appointment.
Common questions
**Is it dangerous to stop drinking cold turkey?** It can be, and the risk is highest for people who drink daily and heavily. The NHS says stopping suddenly can be very dangerous if you're dependent, and the clinical guidelines say complications can be fatal. If you get shakes or sickness in the mornings, get medical advice before you stop.
**Can I detox from alcohol at home in the UK?** Often yes, with a prescriber involved. The guidelines put people drinking roughly 15 to 30 units a day into community medically assisted withdrawal, which happens at home with medication and regular contact. Over 30 units a day, or any history of withdrawal seizures or delirium tremens, points to specialist inpatient care instead.
**How long do alcohol withdrawal symptoms last?** The NHS says symptoms begin within 6 to 12 hours of your last drink and usually last from 3 to 7 days. That's the physical part. Evenings stay difficult for longer than the body does.
**I drink a bottle of wine most nights. Is that dependence?** A 750ml bottle at 13.5% is about 10 units, so most nights puts you near 70 units a week against a guideline of 14. Dependence turns on withdrawal symptoms rather than volume alone, and a GP can tell you in one conversation.
Sources
- [NHS, Alcohol misuse treatment](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/alcohol-misuse/treatment/), for the danger of stopping suddenly and withdrawal onset at 6 to 12 hours lasting 3 to 7 days.
- [NHS, Alcohol support](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/), for the 999 symptoms, the warning about stopping overnight, and starting with a GP.
- [GOV.UK, UK clinical guidelines for alcohol treatment](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment/8-harm-reduction), for the fatal-complications warning and the linked chapters on withdrawal settings, medication and goals.
- [We Are With You](https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk/help-and-advice/), for free and confidential self-referral support in England and Scotland.
