My awesome experience with Baclofen...

[reneesmiles]

I honestly feel that I am cured. My behavior attests to that. I can have a drink or two and stop. I can keep alcohol in my house without drinking all of it in one night. I can have a drink at 5pm on Sunday, go watch movies, and not drink for a month if I don't want to. I can go to a party and if I don't feel like drinking, I don't.

I am only 5'2, 143lbs. I take 40mg of Baclofen each day. I had some weird side effects in the beginning but I am so glad I stuck with it.

[bleep]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

That's fantastic to hear Renee! Also great is that you saw results at such a low dose.

Would you say you are indifferent? It sounds it from your post, but are you using willpower to stop and ignore it, or is it all coming naturally? Great to hear either way.

How long were you taking baclofen to achieve this?

[ignominious]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Congratulations Rene

Love to get some details. Drinking habits, titration etc. Hope it sticks for you. it does feel fairly miraculous doesn't it?

[reneesmiles]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

bleep;1104648 wrote: That's fantastic to hear Renee! Also great is that you saw results at such a low dose.

Would you say you are indifferent? It sounds it from your post, but are you using willpower to stop and ignore it, or is it all coming naturally? Great to hear either way.

How long were you taking baclofen to achieve this?

Hi! I am completely indifferent. I have no mental or physical craving at all. It is strange for me to feel this way and I thought it was a fluke. But, it has been going on for months now, so keeping my fingers crossed!

Actually, I don't know when I started taking Bac. Probably been on it a year.

[reneesmiles]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

ignominious;1104674 wrote: Congratulations Rene

Love to get some details. Drinking habits, titration etc. Hope it sticks for you. it does feel fairly miraculous doesn't it?

My drinking habits prior to Baclofen? A Pint + (up to a fifth) of vodka every single day. Mental and physical cravings like you wouldn't believe. First time in detox? 1996. I stayed sober, through AA, for 10 years and then relapsed HARD. I was worse than I'd ever been. My doctor said I had jaundice and that my liver enzymes were through the roof! I tried to quit, unsuccessfully, by going back to AA. No go. So, I went to detox again in 2009.

After the last relapse, I did not feel AA "fit" me anymore... although I think the program is a lifesaver for some. It was for me for a very long time.

As far as titration... I had to go VERY slow. The side effects I had at first were pretty nasty. Vertigo, cognitive impairment (I just couldn't THINK straight), etc. So, I titrated up using 5mg. increases every other week. Luckily my doctor is prescribing and he knew what he was doing apparently.

Yes, indeed, this feels miraculous! :heart:

[ignominious]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Wow Renee. That is awesome!

Thanks for putting it on here for people to see.

[RudyB]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

yeah, thanks renee. and i'm so happy for you. i'm about to start bac. my drinking has been similar to what yours WAS, tho maybe somewhat less. i oft wonder if there's a connection btwn how long/how much we drank and how bac will work for us. is it all about brain chemistry, and does that depend (i bet it does) on your history? (i've read it's prob not connected to body weight.) i'm truly impressed that you can be indifferent w only 40 mg. maybe there's something to going slowly w the doses, tho it sounds like you had a rough go w the se's, and some experience lessening of those on higher doses.... oh so many questions! so much to figure out. guess i'll let my body -and this wonderful place- be my guides.
your story inspires. thanks for sharing.
rudyb

[Seethepony]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Hi Renee, glad there's someone else getting good results on a small dose! I hit the switch at 75 and am now cruising along on 55/ day. I have had two drinking evenings in the past 6 weeks - three week intervals between them - and I enjoy drinking so little, I am seriously contemplating becoming a teetotler, which is such a freakish concept for me I can't even spell it properly. Before Baclofen I was drinking 3-6 liters strong beer per night, or one or two bottles of red wine if I was feeling classy... so entire weeks AF - with no effort! -- are pretty mind blowing.

I made an interesting discovery - I've started drinking alcohol-free beer occasionally. It seems to me that some of what I liked about beer wasn't just the alcohol, it was the calories... I used to think of AF beer as the dumbest thing ever invented, but now I can quite happily go to pub, drink a few "beers" and feel not the slightest inclination to drink the real thing. I think AF beer + baclofen is an unbeatable combo!

Anyway, I'm jolly glad your doing so well on such a low dose. You sound happy! That's the main thing!

Rudy, why it pans out so easily for some but offers only misery to others is a mystery to everyone... unfortunately the obvious factors such as body mass/ shoe size/ star sign etc don't seem to help much, so it probably is just the way we're wired. What a lazy expression. But there it is. Anyway, good luck to you and everyone else looking for a way out of this boozy mess. Baclofen really is the bee's knees, or the dog's bollocks as they say at the BBC...

[alexan]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Time vs. Dosage

reneesmiles;1104917 wrote:

Actually, I don't know when I started taking Bac. Probably been on it a year.
reneesmiles;1104923 wrote:
As far as titration... I had to go VERY slow. The side effects I had at first were pretty nasty. Vertigo, cognitive impairment (I just couldn't THINK straight), etc. So, I titrated up using 5mg. increases every other week. Luckily my doctor is prescribing and he knew what he was doing apparently.

Yes, indeed, this feels miraculous! :heart:

I wonder if it has something to do with the amount of time you're on it, rather than the dosage (?)

[Lo0p]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

That's awesome reneesmiles! But...what happened to the Vivitrol? I counted you as one of the only two people that I have ever heard of that experienced a massive anticraving effect from Naltrexone without using TSM (Noelle being the other one).

I remember you added the baclofen, and said you felt great then as well. What happened? Why did you switch to baclofen alone?

[spacebebe01]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Sounds great Renee, I want to know more, even though you went up slowly and on such a low dose when did you get the SE's, was it at the beginning when going up or for longer?
Glad things are working so good for you

[reneesmiles]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

RudyB;1105056 wrote: yeah, thanks renee. and i'm so happy for you. i'm about to start bac. my drinking has been similar to what yours WAS, tho maybe somewhat less. i oft wonder if there's a connection btwn how long/how much we drank and how bac will work for us. is it all about brain chemistry, and does that depend (i bet it does) on your history? (i've read it's prob not connected to body weight.) i'm truly impressed that you can be indifferent w only 40 mg. maybe there's something to going slowly w the doses, tho it sounds like you had a rough go w the se's, and some experience lessening of those on higher doses.... oh so many questions! so much to figure out. guess i'll let my body -and this wonderful place- be my guides.
your story inspires. thanks for sharing.
rudyb

What I have learned is that it is a physio-biological brain disorder. What Baclofen, or other anti -craving drug does (whichever works for you) is block the receptors that make you crave alcohol. And if you drink, the medication also blocks the pleasure centers in your brain so you don't feel the effect you once felt.

I don't think they are in operation anymore, but Google "Integrated Neuro-Science." It's fascinating and that place saved my life.

[reneesmiles]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

Lo0p;1105143 wrote: That's awesome reneesmiles! But...what happened to the Vivitrol? I counted you as one of the only two people that I have ever heard of that experienced a massive anticraving effect from Naltrexone without using TSM (Noelle being the other one).

I remember you added the baclofen, and said you felt great then as well. What happened? Why did you switch to baclofen alone?

Because I hadn't had a shot in 3 months and I felt the exact same way... cravings? POOF! I DO have one back up supply of Vivitrol (if you refrigerate it, it stays good for a year).

I feel happy and scared that it won't last... Anyone get me on that one?

[reneesmiles]

My awesome experience with Baclofen...

spacebebe01;1105254 wrote: Sounds great Renee, I want to know more, even though you went up slowly and on such a low dose when did you get the SE's, was it at the beginning when going up or for longer?
Glad things are working so good for you

I honestly feel my answer would be "longer." Not at the beginning, no.