Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

[Zanzibar Christmas]

I started chaotic alcohol and drug use in my early 30s. I'd always drunk socially, often heavily, smoked hash and had the odd line of coke but always turned up for life. In my early 30s I began drinking really heavily, smoking crack and eventually using heroin and valium. The poo hit the aircon as it does. I lost everything...relationships, jobs and my mental health was in a dreadful condition. I didn't want to die but suicide was becoming a real option as a way out. I'd tried not drinking and using more times than I could remember. I'd always end up feeling like one of those unfortunate people you see on the TV in third world/eastern European mental homes rocking backwards and forwards. I never actually rocked backwards and forwards but I wanted to. Sobriety was as unattractive as drinking. I ended up in AA/NA after someone lent me the AA book. I remember my heart sinking after reading about being powerless over the first drink...it was true.....NA/AA turned my life around. I have nothing bad to say about them but after 5 years the magic that had given me a degree of happiness, freedom from anxiety and confidence disappeared. I didn't want to use or drink. It had, like NA promised, given me freedom from active addiction, but the NA book stresses that ultimately that is all it promises. I started to feel panic, anxiety, chronic worry; I started to cry a lot again over things that didn't warrant crying over. I formally did the steps again and nothing changed. I felt like I was withdrawing from a drug but there were no drugs in me. I started taking citalopram which is frowned upon by some NA members. That helped but didn't take away the screaming inside of me. The song by Pink Floyd 'Comfortably Numb' has a line: '...Just a little pin prick, There'll be no more aaaaaaaah!' just before the heroin starts to sooth his anguished soul. This describes the state of my mind, body and spirit...in abstinence and with no compulsion to use or drink. I didn't know how long the freedom from active addiction would last though. I felt, for the very first time that I really might drink again, not through compulsion or desire to drink but through desperation to be free of this gut churning, fingernails scraping down the blackboard anxiety. I did a substantial amount of therapy with no positive results. All the issues I spoke about had already been dealt with in AA/NA.

I was offered Valium by my GP and knew that I couldn't go down that route...I've had two valium withdrawals and they make heroin withdrawal feel like with withdrawing from sugar. I tried pregabalin which worked to some degree but I felt 'drugged' and tired and it just didn't hit the nail in the head as far as anxiety and 'The Scream' went.

One day I put 'muscle relaxant' and 'addiction' in Google. Olivier Ameisen's book came up and a load of stuff about baclofen. I immediately got the book from the library, read it cover to cover and ordered some baclofen online. I started on 5mg three times a day and am now on 100mg a day. I'm grateful that baclofen is not a 'nice' drug, no euphoria apart from when increasing the dose. I don't crave it at all. It takes away anxiety. I don?t feel drugged, just more normal...without ever previously having known what feeling normal meant. The chronic disabling anxiety has 50% left me...I?m only on 100mg after all but am going to up it in a few days.

The twelve steps and AA obviously work...but it is hard work and the underlying anxiety doesn?t go. For me the desire to drink went which is all that?s promised. AA/NA is a part of my life...I?ll never leave...it teaches me how to live. Baclofen though gives me a quality of life which means that the social phobia, the fear of the unknown, the need to isolate which are the result of physical anxiety which just has no cause are drastically reduced.
It?s a criminal state of affairs that alcohol related use of baclofen which is so cheap to prescribe is virtually unknown by GPs and those in community drug and alcohol services (the one in my town had never heard of it). It?s because, like Dr Ameisen says, there?s no money to be made by any drug companies. If baclofen was a new drug millions more would have heard of it.

If you?re thinking about trying baclofen I strongly recommend reading Dr Amisen?s book and reading the posts on this site and giving it a go. All the best

[baclofan]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

:thanks: for sharing!

To those preaching for steady benzo use especially xanax...

Zanzibar Christmas;1355877 wrote:

I was offered Valium by my GP and knew that I couldn't go down that route...I've had two valium withdrawals and they make heroin withdrawal feel like with withdrawing from sugar.

Zanzibar, the reason I've decided to quote the above is that there are certain long term members of this forum encouraging newcomers that xanax is a perfect long term solution for high dose baclofen induced insomnia...would you please do me a favour and explain to them...how much more addictive xanax could be over valium...?

[StuckinLA]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

I don't believe anyone is encouraging long-term benzo use. What I do hear being encouraged is using it as a tool to reach indifference.

I've not yet gone down this road, and hopefully won't have to, but the way it's been presented is that you take it just like medicine. Not in the middle of a panic attack, not in the middle of the night when you can't sleep, but regularly in the morning and evening. This counteracts the bac anxiety and insomnia, and allows you to reach indifference--at which point you begin coming down off the bac to a maintenance dose that isn't causing the anxiety or insomnia, and can thus cut the benzos.

This, at least, is the proposition that's being made regarding benzo use and bac. The reasoning behind this, and the reason it's only being suggested to people on HDB who are trying to reach indifference, is that it's pretty much impossible to create new addictions while on HDB. Once you're indifferent, you're indifferent.

May not agree with it, but there is a reason behind these suggestions, as well as plenty of anecdotal evidence.

I would be more concerned about the doctor who'd offer valium to a person with a known history of addiction--and thank God he had the sense to avoid it.

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

The original post has a couple of very thoughtful points in it about 12 step programs and the disease. It is possible, of course, to get sober, be relatively happy and continue on with life in 12 step recovery. (I couldn't do it, but I have seen some people who did.)

But that doesn't mean it treats the disease of addiction itself. The disease of addiction itself has been actually shown on MRIs and CT scans and other fancy diagnostic equipment. We know it to be fact, now, though we don't understand what that means exactly. (We don't even know for sure if it pre-dates addiction or is a function of being addicted!)

I can only imagine the result of taking a possibly addictive medication when one is in the throes of that active addiction. It doesn't matter if we call it anxiety or call it craving. It IS a function of a brain chemistry imbalance and the only medicinal tools we had (before baclofen) are highly ineffective and/or benzos. That's it.

You misunderstand, baclofan, my suggestions related to xanax. You also misunderstand my understanding of the medication and what it can (and should) be used for. Benzos are incredibly useful drugs. But I do not recommend them lightly. I will point out that I don't recommend, have never suggested, and would not (probably) suggest that someone use them long term. On the other hand, it might be what a person needs to get and stay well. And they might become dependent on them (just as I am on baclofen and perhaps you are too) but that doesn't mean that the person will become addicted.

I have been around here long enough to know that I don't know what will work for someone else. Antabuse is a good example. It doesn't work. According to the research. But I know several people, some of them quite well, that are using it as a tool to stay away from alcohol. The same can be said of campral. I know of three people from MWO who used campral to get sober, and they have remained sober and happy about it. Naltrexone only works for some people, and then not very often. But once again, I know of people who have used it to the same end.

So please, let's not assume that because the research (or for that matter, the "news") says something it is true for an individual. Nor should we assume that because it worked for one of us, it will work for all of us. And it would certainly be wise to read what has been written before you assume that someone is saying (or writing) something, lest you get it completely wrong. I am much more reasonable than I used to be, but I still get annoyed when someone misquotes me. I'm sure you can imagine!

So. I'll finish up what I've started, in terms of the usefulness of xanax. And then, perhaps, we can leave it to individuals to make their own decisions about what they need in order to get well. Certainly it's important to have a complete picture and all of the information. Right? And not bull shit spewed off of a cursory search of the web, or the latest headline from YahooNews. (see, I told you I can still maintain a state of annoyance. Which is annoying. For everyone. So let's move on, shall we? And do what we do best, which is support and supply information.)

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

:welcome:
Thanks for your really great input, Zanzibar. I have a lot of love for the 12 step programs, but also really lament the limitations of them. I am very glad and heartened by your experiences so far with baclofen and hope you'll keep us posted.

baclofan;1356097 wrote: :thanks: for sharing!

To those preaching for steady benzo use especially xanax...


Zanzibar, the reason I've decided to quote the above is that there are certain long term members of this forum encouraging newcomers that xanax is a perfect long term solution for high dose baclofen induced insomnia...would you please do me a favour and explain to them...how much more addictive xanax could be over valium...?

I do not recommend xanax (or anything, actually, other than baclofen) for long term use.

I do not encourage newcomers (ever!) to take a benzo. (Or really anything else, other than baclofen. And that ONLY if they are interested in baclofen. I do not reach out, much less proselytize any medication or approach to recovery.)

And I certainly don't need another story about a person who is in the throes of active, untreated addiction to tell me why he or she made the extremely wise decision to not use a benzo. (Or anything else, other than...you guessed it! baclofen.) (Or the other meds that might help them get out of addiction, not into it.)

What I actually DO, and have written about repeatedly here, is find the legitimate information and pass it on.

I also get a little cranky and out of sorts when people misquote me, or make assumptions without reading what I've actually written. Or pass along incorrect information.

So. Can we get back to a place where we let people make their own big-boy and big-girl decisions and get healthy?

Peace out!

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

By the way, it really is okay to refer to me by name. There are only about 10 or 12 (? I haven't really counted :H) on here right now. Since I'm the only long term member who has suggest to people who are on high dose baclofen that xanax is a useful tool, I've gotta assume you're referring to me. What's more, I read every single thread, every single day (talk about a habit!!!) and have for at least 18 months. I'm very likely to respond.

Generally I welcome the opportunity to have a reasonable discussion about things I say or do. I really appreciated your input, baclofan, on the other thread, and corrected the errors related to what I'd written.

[Zanzibar Christmas]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Valium and other benzos

The effect of benzos are wonderful, they take away that rigid anxiety, the 'wired' feeling alcoholics often experience in sobriety. I have no experience of very high dose baclofen...I'm just over the 100mg a day mark at the moment, thus cannot comment on their specific use to counter the anxiety experienced by those who are on high doses....

The reality of benzo addiction..ie taking a prescribed amount every day and getting a physical dependence to them is that one day you're probably going to want to stop taking them. When drug addicts with a benzo habit go to rehab they have to go to special detox wards for benzo withdrawal. You can swallow your tongue and have seizures. Alcohol and benzos can both kill if stopped suddenly. Even slowly reducing the amount taken results in very unpleasant sensations. And as alcoholics/addicts we want to feel good all the time.

My experience of Valium withdrawal from small amounts has been horrific. Paranoia, the chronic anxiety which we all run from, crying, feeling physically and emotionally in pieces. I asked my doctor if even 5mg Valium a day, equivalent to .25mg of Xanax, would be habit forming and result in withdrawal and he said yes. The minimum realistic effective dose would be 15mg a day. From what I know of Xanax which is almost impossible to get in the uk, it's more addictive than Valium.

I'm in no position to say whether a person should or shouldn't start taking benzos, especially when faced with chronic anxiety and the reality of maybe drinking. I have however 'been there and done that' and would strongly suggest that they are to be avoided. If baclofen is causing such massive anxiety when the object of taking it is to reduce the anxiety which causes drinking surely reducing the baclofen to a level which stops causing anxiety would be more appropriate than beginning to take a highly addictive, habit forming substance.

As far as a doctor not prescribing benzos to someone with a substance abuse problem...alcohol abuse is just another form of substance abuse. A doctor shouldn't be prescribing benzos any more freely to a problem drinker/ex problem drinker than someone with a history of heroin abuse or a history of benzo abuse.

[Greg]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

My opinion on benzos these days is way different to what it was a few years ago. I used to be annoyed with some doctors for being so reluctant to prescribe them, but now I can better understand what a lot of the fuss is about. I have had a lot of trouble becoming completely free of benzos (after years of daily prescribed use of Xanax), and have only managed a few days completely off them a couple of times, before going back onto low doses due to insomnia becoming unbearable. Severe insomnia, anxiety, and tinnitus were among my worst withdrawal symptoms.

I personally would urge anyone taking (or intending to take) benzos to only take them for a short period of time (e.g. 3-4 weeks) and also try and only take them on some days, rather than daily. Of course, it would be even better to not take them at all, if possible. If sleep is the main reason someone wants to take a benzo, and non-medication options are not effective, then I'd urge serious consideration of other sedating medication types, like a short-acting antihistamine (e.g. doxylamine) and the short-acting sedating antidepressant trazodone (which sedates via 5-HT-2A and possibly alpha-1 receptors not H1 histamine receptors). A melatonin approach could also work for some people, whether it be melatonin itself (preferably sustained release), ramelteon, or a large dose of L-tryptophan with vitamins B3 and B6 (tryptophan is said to help sleep via conversion to melatonin, plus it may be sedating in itself). Such options could be rotated with a benzo, to keep the benzo use from being a daily event.

As far as the idea of baclofen preventing benzo dependence is concerned, that MAY work for the psychological aspect of dependence, but I'd be interested in seeing real evidence of baclofen being able to prevent physical dependence on benzos and subsequent physical withdrawal if the benzo use became daily for a sustained period (e.g. longer than a few weeks). I'm not a doctor or professional researcher, but I just cannot see how taking baclofen (at any dose) can stop benzos from binding to GABA-A receptors in the usual fashion, or how it could prevent those receptors from having a great deal of trouble returning to normal function after prolonged daily benzo use.

I am happy for anyone to correct me on this, and also my apologies if I sound like I am big-noting myself or speaking as if I am a medical expert.

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Zanzibar Christmas;1356198 wrote:
The reality of benzo addiction..ie taking a prescribed amount every day and getting a physical dependence to them is that one day you're probably going to want to stop taking them.
There is a very big difference, HUGE difference, between addiction and dependence. One difference is that addiction is compulsive, escalating use, despite very negative results. Those people are also dependent on the substance. The other is simply that one must wean off of it, needs it to be okay, and can be with almost anything taken regularly. (Think coffee, antihistamines, even aspirin.)

Zanzibar Christmas;1356198 wrote: When drug addicts with a benzo habit go to rehab they have to go to special detox wards for benzo withdrawal. You can swallow your tongue and have seizures. Alcohol and benzos can both kill if stopped suddenly. Even slowly reducing the amount taken results in very unpleasant sensations. And as alcoholics/addicts we want to feel good all the time.
Agreed. Sort of. It is a terrible disease no matter the drug of choice. But the fact is that people often only have one drug of choice and don't move to another. Unless they are untreated and abstinent from the drug of choice. They are MUCH more likely to use something else in it's place. There are excellent protocols and ways for people to wean off of many drugs that cause dependence. Like antidepressants. A relationship with a good doctor is probably pretty imperative. Let's not leave that out of the discussion.
And I did NOT want to feel good all the time. I wanted to not feel TERRIBLE all of the time. And while drinking alcoholically made me feel terrible, abstinence made me feel worse. Now I don't feel terrible and I sure as hell don't feel good all the time. But I don't reach for a bottle (or a pill) to feel good when I feel bad.

Zanzibar Christmas;1356198 wrote: My experience of Valium withdrawal from small amounts has been horrific. Paranoia, the chronic anxiety which we all run from, crying, feeling physically and emotionally in pieces. I asked my doctor if even 5mg Valium a day, equivalent to .25mg of Xanax, would be habit forming and result in withdrawal and he said yes. The minimum realistic effective dose would be 15mg a day. From what I know of Xanax which is almost impossible to get in the uk, it's more addictive than Valium.

Thank you for sharing your experience.
The rest I'm not so sure is true for everyone. Or even most people. Or even most people who are addicted to something. That's not what the research says, and it's not my personal experience.



Zanzibar Christmas;1356198 wrote: As far as a doctor not prescribing benzos to someone with a substance abuse problem...alcohol abuse is just another form of substance abuse. A doctor shouldn't be prescribing benzos any more freely to a problem drinker/ex problem drinker than someone with a history of heroin abuse or a history of benzo abuse.

And this is where (and why) I am troubled by 12 step programs and the current state of what we call treatment. The prevailing belief that medications, possibly addictive ones especially, are inherently bad is absurd. There is very little in life that we can label "always bad" or "always good". Right? And benzos and many of the other drugs (both legal and illegal!) can have good results for people under the right circumstances. (Think marijuana for cancer treatment patients.)

I'm outta time! (I can hear your sigh of relief!)

Thanks again Zanzibar.

[slim penguin]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Zanzibar Christmas;1355877 wrote:
One day I put 'muscle relaxant' and 'addiction' in Google. Olivier Ameisen's book came up and a load of stuff about baclofen. I immediately got the book from the library, read it cover to cover and ordered some baclofen online. I started on 5mg three times a day and am now on 100mg a day. I'm grateful that baclofen is not a 'nice' drug, no euphoria apart from when increasing the dose. I don't crave it at all. It takes away anxiety. I don?t feel drugged, just more normal...without ever previously having known what feeling normal meant. The chronic disabling anxiety has 50% left me...I?m only on 100mg after all but am going to up it in a few days.

The twelve steps and AA obviously work...but it is hard work and the underlying anxiety doesn?t go. For me the desire to drink went which is all that?s promised. AA/NA is a part of my life...I?ll never leave...it teaches me how to live. Baclofen though gives me a quality of life which means that the social phobia, the fear of the unknown, the need to isolate which are the result of physical anxiety which just has no cause are drastically reduced.

Hello Zanzibar,

I'm happy to hear baclofen has reduced your chronic anxiety. I want to use this med for the same purpose.

At what dose did you start feeling the anxiolytic effects? One thing that I do not understand is: if you're only taking baclofen for the anxiety, why do you keep on increasing the dose even after 100+ grams/day? Why not just stick to the minimum effective dosage?

[Zanzibar Christmas]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Baclofen working dose

Hi Slim

Although 100mg is working for me I suppose I want to give the higher doses a go. Dr Ameisen's maintenance dose was 120mg so I want to experience that level. 100mg doesn't give me complete freedom from anxiety although it makes me feel a lot more comfortable in the world. There is tiredness and sloth issues so I suspect that if I want to get anything done then more than 120mg will result in a lot of plates and cups waiting to get washed.

It started to work to some degree at 30 mg a day but I wanted to get to the 100-120mg mark like I said above.

I'd give it a go Slim. Have you read Dr Ameisens book? Are you drinking much now?

[Zanzibar Christmas]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Benzos etc

Hi Ne/eva

I agree that just because a medication has abuse potential doesn't automatically mean that it's 'bad'. A lot of rehab/12 step thinking is very anti medication with the perspective that you are not feeling your true feelings if you're taking an ssri for example or that ones addiction will obsess with whatever medication is taken and will want more and more.

I used to be in this camp but now view real quality of life as the most important goal not just blind abstinence, although any med should be avoided if at all possible.

From my own experience active addiction/substance abuse can be combated with spiritual solutions as in 12 step programs - but the anxiety underneath it cannot. Some people are crippled by anxiety - either born that way or due to traumatic childhood or whatever, it doesn't really matter, if they're ever going to be happy the anxiety has to go.

I'm just trying to let people know about getting themselves into a situation benzo-wise which they may find it difficult to get out of. I badly hurt my back a few years ago and was given a Valium in the hospital....I was clean and sober at the time...I loved the peace it gave me and decided that due to where Valium had taken me before I couldn't have anymore and asked for codeine instead...which I took for about a month till my back healed....I remember being annoyed that my back had healed and not being able to take the codeine anymore.... There were minor withdrawals but it's in my nature to cling to a pleasant substance. Benzos would have been a lot lot more difficult to stop taking.

I accept that some people can take them without getting emotionally/mentally/physically glued to them....I'm not one of those people and would like anyone thinking about taking them to be wary of slipping into basically drug addiction.

[spacebebe01]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

My gp does prescribe me valium on a short term occasional basis when I need it. By doing this he has probably saved my skin a few times. Valium is an effective medication which is used to treat a variety of things and as an alcoholic I should not be denied medical treatment. Also because I had had an alcohol addiction it does not mean that I will go and abuse anything else I can given the chance. There was a time when I did but not now.

[slim penguin]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Zanzibar Christmas;1356325 wrote: Hi Slim

Although 100mg is working for me I suppose I want to give the higher doses a go. Dr Ameisen's maintenance dose was 120mg so I want to experience that level. 100mg doesn't give me complete freedom from anxiety although it makes me feel a lot more comfortable in the world. There is tiredness and sloth issues so I suspect that if I want to get anything done then more than 120mg will result in a lot of plates and cups waiting to get washed.

It started to work to some degree at 30 mg a day but I wanted to get to the 100-120mg mark like I said above.

I'd give it a go Slim. Have you read Dr Ameisens book? Are you drinking much now?

I haven't read Ameisen's book. I dont have an alcohol problem, I am simply trying to cure the depression/anxiety I've had since I was a child. Social phobia included. I just received my baclofen and am starting at very small doses. 120mg seems pretty high already. I hope I'll be able to get some anxiolytic effects before I reach such a dosage!

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen, AA, NA and anxiety

Zanzibar Christmas;1356334 wrote: Hi Ne/eva

you are not feeling your true feelings if you're taking an ssri for example or that ones addiction will obsess with whatever medication is taken and will want more and more.
That is a very sad perspective to take. And factually wrong.

Zanzibar Christmas;1356334 wrote: I used to be in this camp but now view real quality of life as the most important goal not just blind abstinence, although any med should be avoided if at all possible.
Avoiding meds for a physical condition smacks a lot of Scientology, doesn't it? Or any religion that believes that we manifest our sins in physical form.
When allergy season kicks in, I take allergy medication. I do not rely solely on allergy medication, I also use a neti-pot. And I tend to avoid places with a lot of the pollen that I'm allergic to. But without the medication, going outside makes me miserable. Have I sinned and earned the right to be allergic?
And if not, where, and more importantly, who draws that line?

Zanzibar Christmas;1356334 wrote: From my own experience active addiction/substance abuse can be combated with spiritual solutions as in 12 step programs - but the anxiety underneath it cannot. Some people are crippled by anxiety - either born that way or due to traumatic childhood or whatever, it doesn't really matter, if they're ever going to be happy the anxiety has to go.

From a different perspective, one based on scientific research, the addiction is active and the steps offer a chance to live peacefully with a measure of serenity and the option of happiness. I love the steps. They are rooted in almost every religious, spiritual and philosophical treatise ever written. What they offer is limitless, and I'm very grateful to have walked them. But they didn't remove my addiction.
Agreed on the last part. But the anxiety, Zan, is the addiction.

Zanzibar Christmas;1356334 wrote: I'm just trying to let people know about getting themselves into a situation benzo-wise which they may find it difficult to get out of. I badly hurt my back a few years ago and was given a Valium in the hospital....I was clean and sober at the time...I loved the peace it gave me and decided that due to where Valium had taken me before I couldn't have anymore and asked for codeine instead...which I took for about a month till my back healed....I remember being annoyed that my back had healed and not being able to take the codeine anymore.... There were minor withdrawals but it's in my nature to cling to a pleasant substance. Benzos would have been a lot lot more difficult to stop taking.

If you weren't an addict you wouldn't be scared of becoming addicted to benzos. Or anything else.
I know this may be nearly impossible to understand, but I am free from active addiction. What I put into my body, and when, is entirely up to me.
That is not to say I am not cautious, and even superstitious, still. To drink daily would be (for me) an invitation back into the habit and that in itself is harder to break than any benzo dependence. And when I think of the wasted years and the fact that I felt hounded and enslaved I still see the horned, scaly, beast that bore me to the ground under her relentless weight.
But the beast is gone and so is the booze. And it certainly has nothing to do with any spiritual work I did. I turned my back on spirit and God the last time I drank after an AA meeting. I didn't revisit that, those lessons, the gift of spiritual connection, until I was sober because of baclofen. When I woke up willingly sober on Feb 5 I was full of resentment, financial insecurity, wounded people around me, and I've never made an amend. (They would probably just roll their eyes since it would not be the first time.) When my father found out I was sober and that it was because of baclofen, his comment to my husband was that I would relapse. And he added that this is what we do (meaning my father and I) we get sober, then we relapse. It's been 18 months. I drink when I want. (rarely!!!) No relapse yet. And even more profound, my father did not know that my husband is also free--with baclofen.

Zanzibar Christmas;1356334 wrote: I accept that some people can take them without getting emotionally/mentally/physically glued to them....I'm not one of those people and would like anyone thinking about taking them to be wary of slipping into basically drug addiction.

Those some people would include me, my husband and many of my friends. It will include you, too, if you take enough of the pills for long enough.
I will always be wary. I hope you will be too. After having worked so hard for our freedom it behooves us to be cautious. It also is (according to the Big Book and one of the founding tenets of AA) imperative that we share the information if we are actually practicing these principles.

I hope as part of your 12th step, you are sharing with others in your meetings that you take baclofen to aid what you call anxiety and we call addiction. It may save someone's life. It gave me mine.