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**Seethepony** · May 7, 2011, 10:25 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Wow! Great news Penelope!
How often do you have to take Naltrexone? Is it something you have to take daily?

**Greg** · May 7, 2011, 06:40 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

That is great news indeed, best wishes for the future!

**Isolde** · May 7, 2011, 09:17 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Seethepony;1111041 wrote: Wow! Great news Penelope!
How often do you have to take Naltrexone? Is it something you have to take daily?

Never taken it personally, but have heard/read quite a bit about it. I believe you take it every time you're going to drink (and you're supposed to continue drinking while you're taking it), and that it somehow partially blocks the reward centers in your brain. Over time, your brain no longer associates AL with feeling good, and you stop craving it. I think that's the gist of it, but perhaps someone with more Nal knowledge than I will come along and explain it better.

**DiscoBunnie** · May 7, 2011, 09:28 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

My Naltrexone experience is similar to yours Penelope... I read the book defining the Sinclair Method and followed the structure very carefully. I received my Naltrexone the day I was to leave for Vegas for a week long conference. I was so nervous about going with my work colleagues and what kind of trouble I could get myself into with the free flowing alcohol that is customary in Vegas..... You can imagine my delight at having received the Naltrexone. I took 50 mgs the first night and had 1 glass of wine with dinner. Amazingly, I just simply did not want anymore. I wish I could say it was that easy but I still struggled with watching the others drink and be merry. So the Naltrexone helped tremendously, but it also took some talking to myself inside my head. Naltrexone is not a miracle drug, but I would say it is by far the BEST assistive tool I have found in my 10 year struggle with al

Overall, I took Naltrexone 3 times while in Vegas and had a total of 3 drinks in 4 days! For Cinco de Mayo, ordered a Margie on the rocks and didn't even finish it! Last night I took my 50 mgs and did drink about 5 beers.

I wanted to see if it reacted differently with beer as opposed to the stronger stuff. In my case, it did not work so well with beer, which is really interesting since I don't even like beer. My poison has been and is, wine. I have absolutely no desire for alcohol tonight.

There has been some controversial studies (or rather opinions stated) that Naltrexone encourages the continuation of drinking and so some health care providers frown on that part of the "cure". I would highly recommend reading the book if you are going to use Naltrexone. My goal is abstinence and I expect to achieve that goal within 3 months while seeing a decline in my use and dependence on alcohol over that time.

Also, I did notice a bit of numbness and sadness after taking the Naltrexone on the next day. So I am supplementing with 500mg of trytophan morning and evening. At night I am also using the time-released melatonin for sleep. Plus all the mirage of vitamins and amino acids I am taking to help me regain my strength and mentality!

**DiscoBunnie** · May 7, 2011, 09:33 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Correction... =/

Did I say 10 year struggle???? Huge typo! More like 23 years with the last 10 being especially pathetic..... I am estatic over Naltrexone and do not for one minute kid myself that it is a miracle cure, I know it requires a firm commitment and a desire to live well... some days are bettter than others but I am committed to taking Naltrexone on those days when I am working on weaning myself off of al...

**Guest** · May 8, 2011, 04:10 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Hey

This mirrors my experience too. I am still having my usual drinking sessions, but am only consuming a fraction of what I would usually and not carrying it over into the next day. Usually I'd have at least 20 if not 30 units and have not been over 12 units in any one session since starting it. Once or twice I've stopped at 7 and even just 2 drinks (2 units) on one occasion. I'm still worried that I can still have the 12 units, this was drinking alcopops, which are quite weak at around 2.8% and my chosen tipple at the moment. Embarrassing I know!. On the occasion I only had 2 drinks, one of those was a honey vodka - from which I felt zero effect, it was as if the alcohol was completely blocked. So from what I've read here I'm wondering if it works better with strong drinks?I am actually scared to drink vodka properly(that one was in company, and a savoured very expensive drink) because I'm a binger and could drink so much of it in one go that I'd be very ill(think 1 litre in 3 hours). I've gone through wine phases and the thought makes me feel sick, same for speciality ciders. I am going to have to be quite careful but I might have an experiment.

**spuddleduck** · May 8, 2011, 06:02 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

finding this very interesting and hopeful. it does sound like it would help me for my kind of drinking. just one question though. im quite aware i drink for one reason..... the buzz, not the taste or anything. if by taking nal you dont get 'the buzz' do you not feel you want to keep drinking more (in the 'session') chasing the buzz. i would say i get a buzz after a couple of drinks then continue drinking because i want more of the same. how would this work with nal.

**Noelle** · May 8, 2011, 07:55 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

spuddleduck;1111385 wrote: finding this very interesting and hopeful. it does sound like it would help me for my kind of drinking. just one question though. im quite aware i drink for one reason..... the buzz, not the taste or anything. if by taking nal you dont get 'the buzz' do you not feel you want to keep drinking more (in the 'session') chasing the buzz. i would say i get a buzz after a couple of drinks then continue drinking because i want more of the same. how would this work with nal.

Hi Spuddleduck! I had bad anixiety and drank since the early 70s and chased the buzz like you talk about. Drinking helped get rid of the anxiety. Then the drinking took over my whole life.

I don't follow TSM. I take one 50mg naltrexone every day. I don't drink anymore and haven't since I took the first pill on 12/27/10. For me, it has been a miracle.

Naltrexone doesn't work for everyone. But for those who it works for, it works in different ways. TSM works for some people. Total abstinence works for others. I believe it takes away the high/buzz you get from drinking. I recently got prescribed Vicodin for my knee. Vicodin used to give me a great high. Now it only takes away the pain. Hope that makes sense.

**DiscoBunnie** · May 8, 2011, 09:21 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Hey UK!!! I think we've made a discovery about Naltrexone, at least for you and me; it works best with strong drink. My experiment with beer and naltrexone only left me feeling excessively tired and bloated beyond belief. Yeah, not going to try that anymore!

Again, same thing for me. Naltrexone will disrupt the "care-free" attitude I once relished from the effects of al, and now I find myslef thinking of the extra useless calories I am consuming instead of thinking about the next drink! That is huge progress for me. What kind of experiment are you going to try UK?

Spuddle: Naltrexone definitely helped me to diffuse the buzz effect. There is no getting your buzz on wiht Nal. But again, it works differently with everyone. Definitely worth a try; remembering that there is also an effort required by you!!

Noelle, your experience is quite different than mine, I find that very interesting! How do you feel taking Nal everyday? For me, I definitely felt a sense of sadness on one occassion when I used it 2 days in a row. I've read that one of the side-effects is that, because Nal reduces the "good feelings" from seritonin release, taking Nal routinely can also reduce "good feelings" from every day happy events. Just wondering if you have noticed it effecting your affect in any way?

The important thing is that we each find "our way out". Whatever it takes! Sobriety has to remain our number one priority. Please keep posting on this thread so we can continue to learn and be encouraged by one another. Hopefully more will join soon. Thanks for starting this thread Penelope!

**Guest** · May 8, 2011, 09:30 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Hey Spuddleduck

Hmm a very good question. Yes I do chase the buzz with my alcopops, forcing them down at times. It appears nal does require some mental will power too. I think of it as making things easier for yourself, ie you can chase the buzz if you like but nal will help put off the initial buzz thus making it more difficult. I've only gotten drunk the times I absolutely pushed it with nal. The times I said "Well look I can put this drink down, so why not stop here?" have ended my session there and then. I therefore think if you wish to override Nal you can do, but you can make life a bit easier by choosing not too!

If I understand this correctly, nal is all about training your mind to think you aren't going to get much from drinking, so why bother.

**DiscoBunnie** · May 8, 2011, 08:17 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

Question..

What are alcopops? I've not heard that term before. Also, does anyone have a suggestion for a pharmacy besides River Pharm to order Nal from? It takes so long to arrive here in the states..... thanks!

-db

**airam** · May 8, 2011, 08:43 PM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

I have been on Nal for only one week. I also take topiramate. My experience has been very similar. I ve been drinking A LOT less, without effort. I m following TSM.
I ve read there is a period of time they call Naltrexone honeymoon, where people notice their cravings had amazingly decreased, but, unfortunately, honeymoon is not forever

and some people go back to the same levels of drinking. But that is a normal part of the process. TSM considers itself a cure, but it takes 6-12months to have definitive results.

**Guest** · May 9, 2011, 03:19 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

DiscoBunnie;1111616 wrote: What are alcopops? I've not heard that term before. Also, does anyone have a suggestion for a pharmacy besides River Pharm to order Nal from? It takes so long to arrive here in the states..... thanks!

-db

Alcopops are alcoholic fizzy drinks. They are usually around 2.8% in strength and full of bright colours and sweetners. They were developed in the 90s to appeal to younger people, especially females and clubbers. Think lemonade, cherryade(do you have this?) with an alcohol content!

Here's a definition from Wikipedia;

Alcopop is a derogatory term describing certain flavored alcoholic beverages, including:

1. malt beverages to which various fruit juices or other flavorings have been added
2. beverages containing wine to which ingredients such as fruit juice or other flavorings have been added (wine coolers)
3. beverages containing distilled alcohol and added ingredients such as fruit juices or other flavorings[1]

It's a bit embarassing really, I used to be a speciality cider drinker, then went through a wine phase, St Heliers and now alcopops. Oh the shame.

**Rusty** · May 9, 2011, 03:37 AM

Naltrexone SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

DiscoBunnie,

Try Goldpharma, Inhouse, Alldaychemist or 4Rx....you will probably find their prices a lot more appealing as well.

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