I went through medical detox after 7 years of 1 to 1/2 bottles a night. Even though I was given high doses of serax, I still had w/d symptoms up to 3 weeks afterwards. The night sweats seem to linger on.
Like Melinda, I got to point where I was withdrawing daily. The "jack in the box" anxiety/panic/jumpiness, racing heart and tremors (to name a few) drove me into detox. It was that or start accelerating my drinking to offset to the withdrawals in the morning.