bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

[Fred_The_Cat]

After hitting my switch (for the second time) around 5 months ago, I have been on 75 mg of bac a day for maintenance.

In the past month I've made some major life changes, namely getting a girlfriend who doesn't drink and moving out into the country where there are no bars within walking distance.

This has dramatically reduced my alcohol consumption. Whereas previously I would still drink 2-3 units of alcohol per night after the switch dose, I have gone down to about 1 occasional drink per night- and a peculiar side effect has come in.

When I was titrating up I had the usual bac side effects- a weird taste in my mouth, somnolence, a "hollow" feeling in my head, but they went away with time. Now I've noticed them coming back- particularly today when I slept for 4 hours and felt like my muscles were really limp. This has not happened for a LONG time. Could it have to do with the reduced drinking?

I theorize that whatever neurotransmitter deficiencies caused by alcohol have been corrected by the bac and my brain has started healing itself in the meantime- meaning I am now taking bac in excess of what I need to feel normal.

Tomorrow I'm going to dial down my dose a little bit and see what happens. Has anyone else experience this?

[Lo0p]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

So then...what's the cat's name?

Don't let an ass like me discourage you. I do this on purpose to compel others to provide constructive input.

[Xadrian]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Lo0p;1532322 wrote: So then...what's the cat's name?

Jack's father has three sons.

Huey, Dewey and..........?






.... Jack

[Lo0p]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

I'm actually heavily interested in the neurochemical and neurobiological aspects of HDB (High Dose Baclofen) treatment and have researched it for years. That's not very high dose.

I love the fact that you're thinking about it in those terms and trying to be objective. Every case is unique. I'd like to hear some responses before I weigh in.

^^The above might give the illusion that I have a clue about what I am talking about. Although all of it is 100% true. I wouldn't trust any contributions of mine if I were say...a cat.

There's something about 5 cups of coffee that makes me strive toward fulfilling the projection of myself that I had when I chose my online name circa 2004ish

[Xadrian]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Fred_The_Cat;1532319 wrote: Could it have to do with the reduced drinking?

I can't tell, but I also switched for the second time and currently 30 mgs above my supposed maintenance dose.

In general, I have no SE's but today I was a little weak in the legs and some nights, I need a lot of sleep.

I drank my last beer on June 20, so in my case i blame it purely on the baclofen.

By the way, those for hours of sleep. Were they during the day time? And if so, have you slept before during the daytime?
Could have something to do with that.

Or maybe you slept too short?

Last week, my son woke me up at 3:30 AM and I couldn't sleep anymore, so I woke up and went working.

In the morning I had a light feeling in my head and after noon I felt like a zombie.
I went to sleep at 8 PM and woke up at 8:30 AM.

And all of this, because I did not sleep long enough.

[Fred_The_Cat]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

This was a comatose flaccid kind of sleep like I haven't experienced for months- something is definitely up. I'll keep everyone posted on whether I can dial down my dose successfully or not.

[skullbabyland]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Fred- do keep us updated. I'm on a similar dosage level and am interested to hear your findings.

Even if these SE's are due to your bac, it sure beats drinking like a drunk, huh? Hope you feel that way too.

All the best!

[bleep]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Hi Fred,

Whose head are you sitting on?

I have found the same thing happen to me occasionally, after being on baclofen for years. A random patch of SE's, that fade away after a short time. Same brand, same dose, just a patch of minor SE's. I have no idea what causes it. Mine fade away after a short time, I couldn't tell you how long, because I've never really paid much attention.

Something to be alert for is have you moved to a different bottle of pills? Different brand?

Also, I think it's worth experimenting with your dose anyway, there is a fair chance you will be able to come down anyway. Do it slowly, and give a few days between each decrease. You will know you have gone too far when it suddenly becomes a good idea to make that walk to the pub, and they have to kick you out at closing time.

[Fred_The_Cat]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Second day in a row of intense exhaustion in the late afternoon. I cut my dose (3 X 25mg) by 12.5 mg this morning with no ill effects yet. Drank 1/3 of a beer but had no interest in finishing it.

If the anxiety steps up or the cravings come back I'll up my dose, but if my hunch is correct the maintenance dose could be a function of time as well as alcohol consumption- you drink less you need less.

Has anyone else played with their maintenance dose like this? I've read at least one case on here of someone who quit completely and therefore was able to taper off of baclofen completely with no lingering cravings.

[spiritwolf333]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

I just got to chime in here. Did baclofen help you and Fred with the hair growth? -lol- I would not know what the hell to do with that much hair -go into shock I guess (I am partially hair challenged).

For me, I know that the addition of ANY alcohol into my personal protocol now can change my reactions for a day or two, both mental and physical. Though I have only experimented three times now, I realize how baclofen and alcohol can mal-adjust my system. Baclofen alone is challenging enough. Both drugs are powerful and I respect them both.

[Fred_The_Cat]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

LOL! I wish I could still wear my hair that long- that was back in college where workplace dress standards weren't there to be enforced.

And yeah, baclofen and alcohol mixing is a terrible idea. My rule of thumb is if you drink enough to get hung over on bac, you're really in for it. I haven't been temped to cross that line in a very long time.

[Xadrian]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Fred_The_Cat;1532803 wrote: baclofen and alcohol mixing is a terrible idea.

You're right. A bac-bac (bacardi-baclofen) doesn't seem very tasteful to me

[Fred_The_Cat]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

So far so good- I am down 12.5 mg with no ill effects to speak of. I am also cutting down on my zoloft dosage, which I plan to be done with by the end of next month. There has been some mild anxiety, probably due to the zoloft cutback, but no balls to the walls baclofen withdrawal terror so far. I will hopefully be able to level off to 50 mg as a maintenance dose.

[Fred_The_Cat]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Feeling much better- I think I will stay at 62,5 mg this week and try permanently leveling off at 50 from then on.

[spiritwolf333]

bac side effects intensifying after reduced drinking?

Dang Fred, I liked the other avatar pic. I never was able to find an AD that I could begin to tolerate. However, with baclofen, I found my extreme anxiety go to almost zero and this reduced my depressive states. However, I still have those days when I wake up and wonder just what the hell is going on. I feel a total disconnect from the world and wonder if the past good days were just a joke. Then, two or three days later, this senseless, useless dread and doom lifts. It just seems like pure hell sometimes. My memories from childhood were very similar in nature -I just thought that was par for the course. Any thoughts?