The safest way to begin recovery. Medically managed around the clock, from the very first hour.
طبی نگرانی میں محفوظ ڈیٹاکس، چوبیس گھنٹے
Every patient who walks through our doors carries a story. These are a few of the stories that walked back out, rebuilt, restored, and renewed. Names and details shared with full consent.
Dr. Kifayat Ullah
MBBS, PhD (Public Health), MPH
0330 1454321
Most people who reach out about detox are not afraid of quitting. They are afraid of what quitting will feel like, of what might go wrong, and of facing it alone. Those fears are reasonable. For some substances, stopping suddenly is genuinely dangerous. For almost all of them, an unsupervised attempt ends within days.
A medical detox program takes that fear out of the equation. At Federal City Rehab Clinic in Bani Gala, Islamabad, every patient is assessed before withdrawal begins, supervised by medical and nursing staff around the clock, and supported by consultant psychiatrists throughout. Medication assisted options are available where clinically indicated. And detox is never treated as the whole story. It is the first phase of a complete program of care.
Whatever the substance, however long it has been used, and whatever has been tried before, safe detox is possible. FCRC is here to deliver it.
A medical detox program is the clinically supervised process of letting the body clear a substance while the withdrawal symptoms are actively managed. It is not simply waiting for the substance to leave.
When a person uses a substance regularly, the brain and body adapt to its presence. Neurochemistry shifts. Sleep, mood, heart rate and temperature regulation all recalibrate around the assumption that the substance will keep arriving. When it stops, that adaptation reverses, and the result is withdrawal. Depending on the substance, the length of use and the person’s physical condition, withdrawal can range from uncomfortable to life threatening.
Medical detox means a clinical team assesses the risk in advance, treats symptoms as they appear, watches for complications, and keeps the patient physically and psychologically safe from admission until they are stable.
It also helps to be clear about what detox is not. It is not a cure, and it is not the same as rehabilitation. Detox clears the body. Treatment changes the pattern. A patient who has been safely detoxified is physically ready to do the deeper psychological work that produces lasting recovery, and that work always follows detox at FCRC.
You do not need to be at a crisis point to ask for a clinical opinion. These are common signs that a supervised detox is the safer route:
If you or someone close to you drinks heavily every day, or takes sleeping pills, Xanax, other benzodiazepines or pregabalin regularly, please do not stop suddenly at home. Speak to a clinical team first. For these substances, abrupt cessation can cause seizures.
The need for supervision varies by substance. For several of the most commonly misused substances in Pakistan, it is not optional. It is a clinical requirement.
Alcohol withdrawal is one of the most dangerous withdrawal syndromes in medicine. In dependent patients, seizures and delirium tremens, a state of severe confusion, hallucinations and unstable blood pressure and heart rate, can develop within 24 to 72 hours of the last drink. Without medical management these complications can be fatal.
Medications such as Xanax, Valium and clonazepam carry comparable risk. Abrupt cessation after regular use can provoke seizures, which is why a supervised, gradual taper is the only safe approach.
Withdrawal from heroin, tramadol and similar drugs is rarely life threatening in healthy adults. But the muscle pain, vomiting, insomnia and distress are severe enough that most unsupervised attempts collapse within days. Clinical management is what makes completion realistic.
ICE withdrawal is first of all a psychiatric emergency. Profound depression, exhaustion, paranoia, intense cravings, psychosis and suicidal thoughts can all appear, and they require continuous psychiatric monitoring.
For every substance, supervision improves both safety and the likelihood that the patient finishes detox and moves on to treatment.
FCRC provides medically supervised detox for all major dependencies seen in Pakistan.
Managed with evidence based medication protocols designed to prevent seizures, control withdrawal symptoms and keep the patient physically stable. Thiamine and nutritional support address the deficiencies that commonly come with long term drinking. Monitoring is continuous from the first hour of admission.
A tailored protocol addresses both the physical and psychological sides of opiate withdrawal. Medication assisted options are available where clinically indicated, and the clinical team manages comfort and safety throughout.
ICE detox needs a level of psychiatric oversight that sets it apart from most other withdrawals. FCRC’s consultant psychiatrists are directly involved in every ICE detox, monitoring for psychosis, suicidal thinking and severe mood disturbance and intervening immediately where needed. See our ICE addiction treatment page for the full program.
A carefully structured taper reduces the dose gradually under supervision so the nervous system can adjust safely. Abrupt stopping is never attempted. Each schedule is built around the specific medication, the dose and the duration of use.
Tramadol dependence is one of the fastest growing problems in Pakistan. The protocol manages the physical withdrawal and the distress that comes with it. Read more on our Xanax and tramadol addiction treatment page.
Pregabalin withdrawal can bring severe anxiety, insomnia and physical discomfort. It is managed with a supervised taper and supportive treatment.
Cannabis withdrawal is not medically dangerous, but irritability, anxiety, poor sleep and strong cravings are real and respond well to clinical support.
The clinical team also assesses and manages detox for opium, Nalbin (nalbuphine), codeine and cough syrup, sleeping pills, ketamine and combined use of several substances. If your situation is not listed, call the admissions team. Complex and mixed presentations are a normal part of the assessment.
FCRC’s detox program follows a clear clinical framework, personalised to every patient.
A call to the admissions team is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The first conversation is confidential, with no pressure and no obligation. The team listens, answers questions, explains the process and, if the family decides to go ahead, plans the arrival. If transport is needed, we arrange it.
Everything important is settled on the day of admission. Complete documentation is done. The tests the clinical team requires are carried out. Substance use history, physical health, mental health and current medication are reviewed together. From this, the team decides the detox protocol, the medications, the monitoring level, the expected length of the program and the right level of care. Nothing is left to guesswork, and the family is told what the plan is.
Baseline observations are recorded and the protocol begins immediately. For patients who arrive already in withdrawal, stabilisation is the first priority. From this point the patient is never without clinical oversight. Medical and nursing staff are present around the clock.
Vital signs, mental state and symptom progress are monitored continuously. Medication is adjusted as the patient responds, and complications are caught early. Nutrition, hydration, sleep and comfort are managed alongside the medical protocol. Detox is demanding. It is not meant to be punishing.
Every patient receives regular psychiatric assessment during withdrawal. For ICE, alcohol and benzodiazepine patients it is a daily clinical activity. Co occurring conditions such as depression, anxiety or psychosis that appear or become clearer during detox are identified early and built into the treatment plan.
Detox is complete when the clinical team confirms the patient is medically and psychiatrically stable. The patient then continues without a gap into the inpatient rehabilitation program or, where appropriate, the outpatient program, with a treatment plan already in place.
Where it is clinically indicated, FCRC provides medication to make withdrawal safer and more bearable. That can mean medication to prevent seizures in alcohol withdrawal, a structured taper for benzodiazepines and pregabalin, medication to ease opioid withdrawal symptoms, and treatment for the sleep, anxiety and mood problems that surface during ICE and cannabis withdrawal.
Medication is prescribed and adjusted by the clinical team after assessment, never given by default and never taken without supervision. It is a tool to protect the patient and to give them the best chance of finishing detox, not a replacement for the treatment that follows.
There is no fixed length, because detox is a phase of care, not a standard number of days. How long acute withdrawal lasts depends on the substance, how long and how heavily it was used, and the person’s health. For many patients the most intense symptoms settle within the first week or two, although sleep, mood and cravings can take longer to normalise.
What the family can plan around is the length of the admission. Stays at FCRC usually start at 30 days, and 60 or 90 days and longer are recommended where the assessment shows they are needed. The clinical team sets the length for each patient and reviews it as the patient progresses.
This matters because detox on its own rarely changes long term outcomes. The National Institute on Drug Abuse describes medically assisted detoxification as only the first stage of treatment and notes that most people need at least three months in treatment to make a lasting change. That is why detox at FCRC leads straight into therapy rather than ending at the door.
is offered for carefully selected patients with lower severity dependence and strong support at home. Patients attend FCRC for daily clinical review and medication management while living at home. It is used only where the clinical team judges it safe, and the team will tell you plainly if inpatient care is the better choice.
FCRC offers medical detox through both residential inpatient and structured outpatient formats.
is strongly recommended for moderate to severe dependence and is essential for alcohol, benzodiazepine and ICE withdrawal. Patients stay at the Bani Gala facility under 24/7 clinical supervision. The residential setting gives the controlled, safe environment that medically significant withdrawal needs.
Substance use and mental health conditions often travel together. Anxiety may have started the drinking. ICE may have triggered psychosis. Depression may surface only once the substance is gone. Treating one without the other tends to fail.
FCRC’s consultant psychiatrists see detox patients from the start, which means a co occurring condition is picked up during withdrawal rather than months later. Our dual diagnosis treatment approach brings both into one plan. Families dealing with a mental health condition alongside addiction can read more on our mental health and psychiatry page.
We do not publish a fixed price for detox, because two people using the same substance can have very different needs. The cost is set individually after the assessment, and it depends on a small number of clear factors:
The admissions team will give you a clear, personalised answer, with no obligation to proceed. Call or message in confidence and ask. For a fuller explanation of how to think about price and how to compare providers, read our guide to detox cost in Pakistan.
Recovery goes better when the family is part of it, and FCRC encourages that. Family members can visit during the program by coordinating with the team in advance, so that visits are arranged around the patient’s clinical stage and well being. Before admission, the team will explain what to expect, answer the questions families usually have, and help them understand how to support recovery at home afterwards.
For families who need to start a difficult conversation, our guide on how to talk to a family member about getting addiction help is a good place to begin.
Getting a reluctant or unwell person to a facility is often the hardest step. FCRC provides transportation for anyone who needs it, and the admissions team coordinates a discreet, professionally managed arrival. For patients coming from other cities, full transport coordination is available.
Nothing about a patient is shared without explicit written consent. You can enquire anonymously, ask questions and decide at your own pace. FCRC is accredited by the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority (IHRA).
آپ کی رازداری ہمارے لیے مقدس ہے۔
FCRC runs a dedicated female rehabilitation program for women who need a gender specific care environment. Women and their families who need detox can speak to the admissions team about this program. See our female rehabilitation page for details.
Detox is where recovery starts, not where it ends. The patient moves directly into the therapeutic program, which includes individual therapy, family work and relapse prevention, built on a treatment plan prepared on day zero. Because cravings, mood and sleep continue to settle for weeks after the last dose, the structured weeks that follow are where much of the real recovery happens.
Families can read more about what happens after treatment in our guide on relapse prevention and staying sober after rehab.
Whichever provider you consider, these are fair questions to ask:
Our guide to how to find a safe rehab in Pakistan covers this in more depth.
Because trust, experience and results matter most.
(اس لیے کہ اعتماد، تجربہ اور نتائج سب سے اہم ہیں۔)
Patients Treated
Expert Care
Always Available
Qualified psychiatrists and addiction specialists, with medical and nursing staff on site around the clock.
Bani Gala’s clean air and mountain calm give detox a quiet, private setting.
Nothing shared without your written consent.
Round the clock monitoring from admission to discharge.
Detox flows directly into treatment, with the plan ready from day zero.
FCRC provides medical detox for patients from across Pakistan, and regularly admits patients from Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Lahore, Multan, Karachi, Swat and other major cities. For out of city patients, the admissions team arranges transport and a discreet arrival.
It is a clinically supervised process in which the body clears a substance while a medical team manages the withdrawal symptoms, watches for complications and keeps the patient safe. At FCRC it is the first phase of a complete treatment program, not a standalone service.
Yes. Alcohol withdrawal can cause seizures and delirium tremens within 24 to 72 hours of the last drink in dependent patients. These are medical emergencies. Professional supervision is essential.
There is no fixed length. Acute withdrawal often settles within the first week or two, but it depends on the substance, the length of use and the patient’s health. Admissions usually start at 30 days, with 60 or 90 days and longer where the assessment recommends it. The clinical team sets and reviews the length.
On day zero, complete documentation is done, the required tests are carried out, and the clinical team reviews the patient’s history and health. The detox protocol, medications, monitoring level and program length are decided that day, and the family is told the plan.
Yes, where clinically indicated. This includes seizure prevention in alcohol withdrawal, structured tapers for benzodiazepines and pregabalin, and medication to ease opioid withdrawal. All medication is prescribed and supervised by the clinical team.
Yes, for carefully selected patients with lower severity dependence and strong support at home. Patients attend daily for clinical review and medication management. It is offered only where the team judges it safe. Inpatient detox is recommended for moderate to severe dependence and is essential for alcohol, benzodiazepine and ICE withdrawal.
For alcohol and benzodiazepines, home detox is dangerous and should never be attempted without supervision. For other substances it is less likely to succeed and carries real risks. Supervised detox is strongly recommended for anyone with moderate to severe dependence.
Yes. Visits are arranged by coordinating with the team in advance, so they fit the patient’s clinical stage and well being.
Yes. FCRC provides transportation for anyone who needs it, including full coordination for patients travelling from other cities.
The cost is set individually after assessment and depends on the substance and severity, the length of stay, inpatient or outpatient care, medication and monitoring needs, any co occurring condition, room category and transport. Our admissions team will give you a clear, personalised answer with no obligation. You can also read our guide to detox cost in Pakistan.
No. Detox is the essential first step, but research consistently shows that detox alone leads to very low rates of lasting recovery. At FCRC, detox is always followed by a full therapeutic program.
Completely. Nothing is shared without explicit written consent, and you can enquire anonymously. See our FAQs page for more on confidentiality.
You do not need to have everything figured out. You do not need to be certain. You only need to take one step, a conversation with our admissions team, and we will guide you from there at whatever pace feels right.
The team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. There is no pressure, no judgement and no obligation.
پہلا قدم صرف ایک فون کال ہے۔
0330 1454321
federalcityrehabclinc@gmail.com
Our location
House No. 1, Raja Azam Town, Main Korang Road, Bani Gala, Islamabad
