Hey Youz Guyz

[brightlite]

Just giving a shout out to some of our long term Baclofenists....

Please give an update if you will:

Zen, Zman, Lusus, Bill P, Bill B, Bernard (although I think I remember you are advocating for someone), Andy, others that I don't know or have forgot to mention.

My update is; due to my work and driving schedule, I can't seem to get higher than 80mg. Although I don't drink as much as I used to, I probably drink every 3rd night a bottle of wine. I actually think that is more psychological than a huge craving. If I can only move past the 4th or 5th night, I may have progress. So stressful....work, moving, lonliness, kids (albeit they are practically adults) still very needy. I almost wish this drug had been around when things were going well...when the economy was good! It may have been easier, but that's probably a rationalization. Anyway, would love to hear how others are managing this far down the road.

[bernard]

Hey Youz Guyz

Update for Bernard's baclofenist, a middle-age female of average size: Now in 10th week on bac; steady at 160 mg/day; no side effects and she had no trouble with the rapid up-titration; alcohol consumption is generally under good control, but when she socializes with her alcoholic circle of friends it gets worse but far better than before; anxiety and stress are greatly diminished on bac.

Overall impression: bac is every bit the silver bullet that Ameisen describes.

[beatle]

Hey Youz Guyz

Bright -- this is a good idea. I was thinking about starting a thread like this.

And you are me... practically.

And Bernard, you (or your friend) are me... practically.

My update is not much different, but here it goes:

I don't drink as much as I used to (like Bright), I do drink every night (unlike Bright), I do think it is more psychological than physical (like Bright) and I'd really like to hear how others are doing (like Bright).

[Lusus Naturae]

Hey Youz Guyz

Long term baclofenists? You talkin' to me?!? I started taking bac 7/21/09.

LiteBright, I've had another song lodged firmly in mind inspired by your nick: Stolen Car by Sting. I hadn't looked up the lyrics 'till now - I thought the lines "drive into the night" were "drive into the light".

33 days alcohol free. Wow. That ended yesterday. Good timing, this thread. I checked this board today, Monday (actually it's Sunday evening, but it's Monday for me, more about that later...)

To recap, I started taking bac 7/21, titrated up rapidly, and ended up in the 250 mg/day range. My switch flipped unexpectedly long before that, but curiosity drove me to crank it up to that level. Somewhere around 8/10 I just didn't go to the store to buy more alcohol. It just wasn't important enough to do, so I didn't. 33 wonderous alcohol free days later, and I'm down to 200 mg/day and heading south.

During those 33 days, I forced thoughts of alcohol, and just couldn't get up any kind of enthusiasm. I had always had a goal of moderating, but somehow that simply vanished. I just didn't want it anymore. That came completely out of left field.

During that time, I contemplated tempting fate (I know, you're screaming don't do it Lusus! Why scew up a good thing!) by attempting moderation. So yesterday (which is today) I went to the store in the AM, bought some beer and 1.75L of vodka, and went about my latest speriment.

I started with the beer. It was one that I liked, so I figured I would still. Odd, it didn't taste good. I swear I felt the effects after a few sips. I definitely felt it after half a bottle, and by the time I finished it an hour later, I was really feeling it, and could have stopped there, fully satisfied. But I had a speriment to pursue.

I made up a strawberry daiquiry mix (using vodka, a full 8 oz worth), and slowly drank that over the next few hours. I have some interesting notes taken during that time. I was fully buzzed. Before going al free, that would have barely scratched the surface.

I went to bed around 3 PM, and woke up at 8 AM. Aargh, late for work (at least for my new self). I thought it was 8 AM. I was preparing for work, and I noticed it was still dark. It should be light at this hour, but it's dark. That alcohol had totally screwed up the fabric of spacetime. Applying Occam's Razor, I came up with a novel solution to the apparent problem: it's actually 8 PM, not 8 AM. Whew, spacetime disaster narrowly averted.

The idea of sleeping 'till 8 AM from 3 PM wouldn't be entirely unexpected. I've had a strange but welcome side effect from bac. for the last week or two I've had no more than four hours of sleep per night, often as little as two, with none of the negatives I expected due to lack of sleep. I've always had a desire to be one of those people who need little sleep, but all previous attempts (and yes, I did attempt) were disasters. When researching a paper in high school, I had read that Ben Franklin had adopted a polyphasic sleep schedule, and I had always fancied that notion, but it never worked for me. Here it was, completely unintended or anticipated. Like going al free, it just happened. With the somnolence, I sometimes just give in at any hour of the day, and take an hour or so nap - thus the polyphasic sleep thing.

So here I was, ready for work at 8 PM Sunday evening, so I came to work. Strangely, no one else is here. This is the only place I have access to this board, so I figured I'd have a look, and looky here, there's a thread with my nick in it.

So it's Monday for me, but officially Sunday, and I'm posting this tomorrow.

I now have lots of alcohol in the house, eleven beers in the fridge, and 1.75L (minus 8 oz) of vodka. It'll be interesting to see how this unfolds...

With all that extra time, I've been finding great ways to spend it. Here's a suggestion for other baclofenistas who find more and more al free hours in their daily account: Richard Feynman lectures. Feynman was a physics legend. Watch the first lecture. If you're anyting like me, you'll be hooked. I've been hooked for many years. Decades, actually. How about you, Bill.P.?

From WikiPedia:

"He was also known as a prankster, juggler, safecracker, and a proud amateur painter and bongo player. He was regarded as an eccentric and a free spirit. He liked to pursue multiple, seemingly unrelated, paths, such as biology, art, percussion, Maya hieroglyphs, and lock picking."

...

"Feynman has been called the "Great Explainer". He gained a reputation for taking great care when giving explanations to his students and for assigning himself a moral duty to make the topic accessible. His guiding principle was that if a topic could not be explained in a freshman lecture it was not yet fully understood."

.

[tiptronic_ct]

Hey Youz Guyz

Day 25 AF here. A bump here and there while I'm titrating down from the 240mg when I hit the switch. The bumps co-incided with a change in brands (mentioned on the Progress thread as well). The Fedex deliveries from Inhouse (Pacifen) right to my desk are slightly cheaper and more convenient than the snail-mail, to-be-collectred-from-the-post-office-schlep with 4RX (Bacmax). I'm now at 160mg, with future orders going through 4RX only.

I'm still only sleeping for about 4 hours a night, but coping well with that, with the exception of the car accident I caused last week... (I had had only 2 hours sleep the night before and fell asleep in rush hour traffic).

[cowgal]

Hey Youz Guyz

haha!!

I guess your speriment went well! Mine had too........ I have "had a few" since on baclofen, but only 1 or 2 beers as opposed to 6. For the most part that is excellent for me!! I have been on baclofen for one month as of today, went up to 120mg and now back down to about 70-90(extra prn if needed) and the anxiety is GONE!!! I am so happy w/ my progress!

Just my little update, great idea Brite!!!!

MA

[billyb]

Hey Youz Guyz

I've been using baclofen successfully since January.

I was "cured" at 150mg, and settled in at 100mg.

Recently I began drinking moderately, and slipped into having a beer every evening. While a single beer was much better than my previous alcoholism, and while I felt no desire to have more than one drink, I did start to have a creeping feeling that I was becoming psychologically dependent again.

So, I stopped buying alcohol for the house. I now only drink modrately in social situations.

This is much better for me - I actually think the anti-anxiety effects work a whole lot better when I don't have a beer in the evenings. I don't know why this should be, but that's been my observation.

This also leads me to go over to zen's side of the argument about reducing alcohol intake as a way to make baclofen more effective while titrating up. I had resisted believing this, since it had worked really well for me even though I was still drinking while titrating up. However, my recent experience has me convinced that baclofen is more potent when you aren't drinking (maybe there's a cross-tolerance here? If you are drinking then you have an increased tolerance to baclofen as well, so it isn't as potent?)

So, there are some little nuances to figure out, but with all physical dependence utterly gone, this poses very little problem at all.

In sum, like Bernard, I still fully believe that baclofen is indeed a magic bullet.

[bloggy]

Hey Youz Guyz

I started at the same time as Zen...I think it was in July.

I messed about with my dose- I struggled to titrate due to a strong intolerence to all meds and my current work situation.

I am now at 25/30 mgs a day, and cravings are mostly ignorable but sometimes stronger depending on what is going on- I am having lots of stress as I am losing my business that I have struggled to keep going all year, but inspite of this I am managing to keep my drinking at moderate levels.

Sometimes I take 15mgs of naltrexone along with the bac if I feel things might go badly- together they have kept me in control.

I have good vibes about titrating up to 40mgs at the end of the week, I think that might be my cut off point, and will update then.

[Bill.P.]

Hey Youz Guyz

Hey Lusus and everyone.
Well I have been super busy with my wife coming over. Interestingly I didnt want to drink whatsoever after my complete loss of craving in March except for when my wife came over and drove me nuts haha! But that wouldve made her hop the first flight back to Australia so there is no way I can drink now. Even a few times I have gone to the shops by myself I have been greeted with her best impersonation of a sniffer dog. She likes to argue, for example, I just used to use plastic spoons and forks to eat (when you drink alot, the last thing I wanted to do was wash dishes). She freaked out about that and can yell for an hour b/c I ate one of othe omelettes I made with a plastic spoon. I cant eat like a bachelor anymore she yells. Sometimes I cheekily threaten while she's busting my chops, I say fine "I am going to go get a beer". That really cranks her up but gives me a slight smile as I have no intention of doing so

Cravings: The cravings I have noticed come when I was lax on my baclofen regimen and after the heated exchanges, so then I get strict on my dosing every few hours and the cravings are once again, nonexistant. THat's pretty damn amazing for me! Before baclofen, a craving always won out. When we go to the shops, I always make sure to take 30mg before the trip (if I dont and I maybe behind in my dosing for the day, I tend to gravitate towards the beer aisle without noticing it lol).

So all is good here alcohol is out for sure. Her moving to the states with no friends and leaving her family and friends behind take alot of reassuring and work, thats why Im not online. Troubles didnt melt like lemon drops a way upon the chimney tops where bluebirds fly etc... But lots of positive stuff.

Filling the void: I now work out pretty much every day. I lost quite rapidly 50 pounds since I quit drinking but put a bit back on in the form of muscle as I have a lot of muscle memory from weightlifting before the alcohol became too predominant an activity. I expect to have a six pack of abs and less than 10% bodyfat by the new year.

Dosage: Super rapid titration up to 120mg in a little more than a week to 2 weeks and havent drank since. Currently 30mg morning, 30 around noonish, 30mg around dinner (if I remember) 30mg at bedtime. I am for around 100mg. Stressful days I add more.

Sleeping: Sometimes really great, especially in the beginning. Other times my insomnia returns. So then I take nytol (diphenhydramine) 50mg. Which combines with the baclofen to really knock me out. Its great. The drawback is a bit hungover as its still in my system and so the morning baclofen dose, knocks me back a bit too much so I only usually use if its a few nights of racing thoughts keeping me awake

So all is good, just very busy. Because I am lax about taking baclofen from time to time, there have been cravings BUT the Sword of Damocles is over my head with my wife around and not able to work because of the citizenship hoops we are going through. So even if I wanted to, this chap is AF for as long as I a married, which I dont plan on choosing alcohol over my wife.

Cheers all
Bill.p.

[Anna B]

Hey Youz Guyz

I've posted a lot about my specific experiences with baclofen elsewhere, so I'll keep it brief.

I'm at ~100mg/day depending on the kind of week I'm having. More stress/anxiety, more bac. Most days of the week (4-5 of 7) I don't drink anything at all. When I do drink, it's a glass of good wine with dinner and sometimes I don't even finish it. No more drinking alone. No more hiding booze in my office or closet. No more drinking at work. No more drinking before parties to "take the edge off." No more shamefully buying the cheapest bottles of nasty vodka on a daily basis. No more hangovers. No more making an ass out of myself in public and pissing off my husband. No more anxiety. You get the picture.

Here's what I do have now: Peace, serenity, happiness, patience, love, a feeling of calm, and most importantly, HOPE.

(oh, and I've also started running again. I'm at 5 miles a day. I've lost 6 pounds so far.)

[brightlite]

Hey Youz Guyz

Hi All,

It sounds as if everyone is still doing fairly well. Some have experimented without going overboard. That's good. Lusus, I always enjoy reading your posts...you are hilarious! Bill B sounds like you have a good plan now, and one that I should make my own once I am to the "switch off" point. That sounds like the plan for Bernards partner and Anna too. Wouldn't it be nice if we can all just drink socially...hopefully I'll get there.

Tigger..your post scared me because my biggest fear is that I will fall asleep while driving in that I have to drive 1 1/2 hour each way, three times a week. I didn't know if you posted about your accident, but I'm glad you are ok. Other than that, I would say that 25 days AF is Awesome!

Beatle, hang in there girl...we will get there!

[brightlite]

Hey Youz Guyz

Forgot to say hi to Cowgal and Marbella. You guys are doing great too. All in all, taking Bac has definitely improved my drinking and put me on the path to eventually being AF. Once I hit that switch, I never want to go back to that pit of despair again.

[beatle]

Hey Youz Guyz

Oh, I Know We Will!

brightlite;715673 wrote:

Beatle, hang in there girl...we will get there!

I am hanging in there, no doubt about it. My life has gone from barely survivable to pretty good. I'm going for great.

A couple minor incidences scared me, so I have been going way slow in titrating up. But now I'm ready to pick up the pace. Today 90 for the first time (I've been at 60-80 for about a month).

[bloggy]

Hey Youz Guyz

brightlite;715673 wrote: Hi All,

It sounds as if everyone is still doing fairly well. Some have experimented without going overboard. That's good. Lusus, I always enjoy reading your posts...you are hilarious! Bill B sounds like you have a good plan now, and one that I should make my own once I am to the "switch off" point. That sounds like the plan for Bernards partner and Anna too. Wouldn't it be nice if we can all just drink socially...hopefully I'll get there.

Tigger..your post scared me because my biggest fear is that I will fall asleep while driving in that I have to drive 1 1/2 hour each way, three times a week. I didn't know if you posted about your accident, but I'm glad you are ok. Other than that, I would say that 25 days AF is Awesome!

Beatle, hang in there girl...we will get there!

That has been my fear- I never know when I might have to get in the car to get stuff for the shop. Hence my barely there titration!

However, today I shut the shop, so I will now be able to stay home if I feel tired, and will titrate up to 40 mgs. I know for most people that sounds really low, but I have an incredible low intolerance for all meds, so I guess it is akin to 80 or 90mgs for 'normal' people.

[Mare]

Hey Youz Guyz

Mare's Progress

Hi all,

I too was thinking about posting something like this.

This is my 3rd week on Baclofen. Monday I started 40 mgs/day, spaced out evenly.

I have had 3 AF days since I started Baclofen. Other than those days, I have been drinking daily. This week I have only been able to get 2 glasses of wine down each night. I just "can't" drink more than that. This is down from 6 (or more) glasses every night, so Baclofen is definitely working!!

Tomorrow, Friday, I am going to 50 mgs and will try not to drink at all. That's tough, because weekends for me have always been prime drinking time.

I'm feeling some minor cognitive "glitches", but really no worse than when I had a hangover, and certainly not enough to make me think about stopping.

This is just amazing!!