Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

[gratitude]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

jj and uk,
what brand BAC are you using? have you explored the possibility of another brand of BAC. several others have had success this way. grat

[spacebebe01]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

Sorry to hear your not doing well on bac, I hope to be starting on bac soon when my delivery comes, I just wanted to say that without bac at 4 1/2 weeks AF I am having quite a yuccy time. I am full of anxiety, depressed, snapping at family and dont want them around me, cant concentrate, exhausted craving a drink, ect.ect.
I would like to hear more about this PAWS as I think its early sobriety. (at least I hope so). I cant wait to start bac and dissapointed every day when the postman comes without it.

[Bruunhilde]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

It seems clear to me that we all have different body/mind environments, each of us is different and introducing any drug into each person's body will possibly have a slightly - or majorly - different impact. We have so many systems that may be out of whack due to AL but other issues, like hormones, are huge. Looking at Coalfire's thread about how each of us started a little differently with some being similar, shows that we have different chemical, mental/emotional and physical makeups.
We have AL and it's damage in common, and many have other things in common too like gender or ancestry or previously existing disease processes. Hormones and other chemicals are impacted by all these things. There's no way to explain away any one person/group's reaction if it differs from another. Too many variables, and the systems involved are too complex - i.e., even endocrinologists don't really understand the endocrine system, truly. There are too many other systems in the body/brain that impact it and the reactions can be mapped but not proven causally without fail because often there are primary/minute variables not taken into consideration. Think of the research done only on men for heart attacks, and so many other conditions - generalized to women but incorrect in many situations. Consider that women who have borne children are statistically less likely to develop breast cancer, another variation within a gender. There are many many more examples out there.
An example of an overgeneralized assumption here based on only similarities between UKB and JJ could look like this: There could be a dopamine insufficiency due to adrenal stress caused by life events (stress)/biology/etc which caused AL reliance to self-treat symptoms or which are exacerbated by AL damage which in itself can cause abnormal levels of adrenal hormone. Here's some info I found on the web to add to the dopamine discusssion. Note these are metabolic "cascades" which may be one causing the other and on down the line. Hope this isn't too jumbled a read. I apparently am having a very rare reaction to HCG which was completely unexpected and means I'm supposed to discontinue it and I'm traveling at great speeds in my mind and shock, had a heart flutter which is cause for curtailing the HCG according to the HCG doctor. Hmmm, like my baclofen reaction only very different. My BP is low. Anyways:

Adrenal Hormone production, includes:
1. Cortisol
2. DHEA
3. Progesterone
4. Testosterone
5. Pregnenolone
6. Adrenal cortex hormone production - particularly Cortisol - promotes energy production
7. etc.

DHEA:
1. Increases Dopamine production in the brain
2. Promotes insulin sensitivity
4. Has antiinflammatory signaling functions
5. Deficiency of DHEA can result in anxiety.
6. etc.

[Isolde]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

I'll preface this by repeating what Bruun said, "We're all different".

To respond to your question, JJ, I am truly happy on bac. Aside from freedom from AL, bac has given me back so much that I was missing. I've been prone to periods of depression for as long as I can remember, have always been very introverted and somewhat anti-social. I'm different now. I've had people point it out recently, saying that I seem brighter and happier. I go out of my way to talk to people more, I'm generally more optimistic about life, etc. Don't get me wrong, I can still get the blahs on occasion, but that's normal for everyone.

Bac has truly been a great fit for me, and a gift.

[redhead77]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

PbarE;1087928 wrote: I am glad to see someone mention PAWS, which is very real and a major pitfall on the road to permanent sobriety. It is actually a topic worthy of its own thread (assuming there is not one buried out there somewhere). What do you think, red?

By the way, PAWS = Poat Acute Withdrawal Syndrome. The treatment centers spend about an hour on it in your typical 30 day stay. Its a shame, because this what ultimately does most of us in.

I would say it needs to be recovered from these threads. I will also post a link from wikepedia on it.

Post-acute-withdrawal syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[_serenity_]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

"What baclofen does is stimulate the GABA-B receptors, and you see the release of dopamine and glutamate is slowed, so the reward system is normalised," says Ameisen.

-- from this article in the Guardian:
The little pill that could cure alcoholism | Society | The Observer

I've been struggling with the happiness aspect too. I've been trying, almost hysterically, to get my life back, but I'm still really having to come to terms with loneliness, isolation, etc. I feel, in a lot of ways, like my old joie de vivre has disappeared. I don't feel as much excitement as I used to.

Back in my first attempt at sobriety, people loved being around me. I was really quite charming. Now I wonder if I've lost something. I'm not depressed per se, but I just feel a little "flat." When I went to the concert a couple of weeks ago, I didn't get excited or really have that much fun...I spent more time babysitting my drunk friend than I did enjoying myself.

I've had so many positive things happen this year, and I don't intend on giving up. I have begun slowly reducing my bac dosage in the hopes of reclaiming that exuberant self. I was at 120 mgs, but as of yesterday I've been dipping my toes in the 100 mg range.

[Chi]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

_serenity_;1088286 wrote: "What baclofen does is stimulate the GABA-B receptors, and you see the release of dopamine and glutamate is slowed, so the reward system is normalised," says Ameisen.

-- from this article in the Guardian:
The little pill that could cure alcoholism | Society | The Observer

I've been struggling with the happiness aspect too. I've been trying, almost hysterically, to get my life back, but I'm still really having to come to terms with loneliness, isolation, etc. I feel, in a lot of ways, like my old joie de vivre has disappeared. I don't feel as much excitement as I used to.

Back in my first attempt at sobriety, people loved being around me. I was really quite charming. Now I wonder if I've lost something. I'm not depressed per se, but I just feel a little "flat." When I went to the concert a couple of weeks ago, I didn't get excited or really have that much fun...I spent more time babysitting my drunk friend than I did enjoying myself.

I've had so many positive things happen this year, and I don't intend on giving up. I have begun slowly reducing my bac dosage in the hopes of reclaiming that exuberant self. I was at 120 mgs, but as of yesterday I've been dipping my toes in the 100 mg range.
Serenity, remember when you wrote this:

I was going to wait and write this on Friday. But I am absolutely positive, after today, that the switch has truly occurred. I'm crying as I write this. My whole life is beginning. I can't fucking believe it. (Warning: lots of gratuitous cursing in this post!)

When I realized that it had happened yesterday, I was so dumbfounded and joyful that I couldn't find words to express it. When I did find the words, they came to me in the form of a Pulp Fiction quote, and Jules was talking to me:
We should be fuckin' dead now, my friend! We just witnessed a miracle, and I want you to fucking acknowledge it!

Nothing flat about that, and to tell you the truth your post was and remains an inspiration for me.

I'm realizing more and more that as the bac helps me remove alcohol from my life, it is up to me to replace the alcohol with normal, healthy coping mechanisms when life gets stressful, boring, etc. Due to the circumstances in my life lately I can clearly see that even without physical craving for AL (thanks to bac) my coping mechanisms suck in certain situations and I'll be at a loss as to how to cope. Leaves me feeling kind of flat with thoughts of missing AL as a means to cope. The thing is I don't really want the AL.... it's just that for many years it was my "relief" so I never had to cope like a normal person.

My goal is to rewire my brain. It's going to take awhile.... but I accept that. After all I didn't turn into a raging alcoholic over night, so I don't expect a quick fix back to normalcy. Something else, I've been a heavy drinker since my early 20's... so in many, many ways I am 48 with the coping mechanisms of somebody in their 20's. Kind of a scary thought, but it is what it is. At least I desire CLARITY now, that is the main thing. I see that life is short, and anything that takes that clarity away is robbing me of what life I have left.

[JohnR]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

I have had success with bac and that in itself makes me happy becauase if I can carry this on long-term, it means I get a longer life which is just about the happiest thing I can think of. Unfortunately, I can also identify with feeling "flat" along with the other SE's. After 6 weeks, I am only up to 45mg, super slow titration but it is the best I can do. It may mean I never find what some refer to as a switch but with only 2 bad slip-ups, with bac I have been able to mod at 1-2 drinks per day which is more how a "normal" person drinks and has never happened in my life.
I can say I am truly happy about a tool that can help me to achieve this.

I say keep your eye on the prize because, in the end, are we all better off with bac and little or no AL? The answer is a huge YES!!!
:happyheart:JR

[bleep]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

It's good to hear from you again John, it had been a while.

Glad to hear you are doing well.

[JohnR]

Anybody truly happy on Baclofen?

Hi bleep! Hanging in there, so far so good.
Hope you are doing well too.