bac to relax

[spuddleduck]

ive noticed a few posts describing the relaxing effects of bac when they start on it. does anyone have any thoughts on it being used occasionally just for this purpose. im using nal/tsm and hopefully keeping my drinking at weekly or less so im only taking nal when I drink (or think im likely to drink).
sometimes my reason/excuse for drinking is to 'take the edge off' and I wonder I a low dose of bac would help with this.
any thoughts on this appreciated. thanks

[Cytoskeletor]

bac to relax

I find that because of the necessary titration the beginning doses don't do all that much. I follow what Dr L told me to do and I'm sure others might start out a bit higher than that. Their experience might be different.

[neophyte]

bac to relax

spuddleduck;1608037 wrote: ive noticed a few posts describing the relaxing effects of bac when they start on it. does anyone have any thoughts on it being used occasionally just for this purpose. im using nal/tsm and hopefully keeping my drinking at weekly or less so im only taking nal when I drink (or think im likely to drink).
sometimes my reason/excuse for drinking is to 'take the edge off' and I wonder I a low dose of bac would help with this.
any thoughts on this appreciated. thanks

Baclofen never was like that for me, in the smaller doses it had barely any effect, when i went up in dose it made me sleepy during the day and gave me insomnia during the night. It never was anything like a relaxing benzo type drug.

[Jazi's Mum]

bac to relax

Hi Spuddleduck. I am taking baclofen, and have titrated to 10mg 4 times a day. I find the relaxation is HUGE, and I felt it from the first day when I took my first 5mg.

I'm not sure if it would be useful to take it sporadically or not. You might try it at 5mg several times a day to see what effect you have. From what I can see almost everyone has a different reaction.
JMum

P.S. I'm sleeping like a log now too which is wonderful!

[Yourfriend6116]

bac to relax

Ditto j mum on the sleep-but I've been on it 3 weeks and I only sleep restful if I don't drink.

[thomas m]

bac to relax

Some thing that's its a terrific anxiolytic. I never really got this effect in say the way you would from a benzo.

[spuddleduck]

bac to relax

thanks for your responses. it seems it can affect people quite differently, I certainly don't want anything that would affect my sleep (I love my sleep). think I need to read more about it before I decide if its worth trying for this. I suppose really I should be looking at natural ways to help take the edge of but its always tempting to try a short cut, especially when fighting the bigger demon of al.

[satz123]

bac to relax

spuddleduck;1608287 wrote: thanks for your responses. it seems it can affect people quite differently, I certainly don't want anything that would affect my sleep (I love my sleep). think I need to read more about it before I decide if its worth trying for this. I suppose really I should be looking at natural ways to help take the edge of but its always tempting to try a short cut, especially when fighting the bigger demon of al.

Hi Spud- I'm interested in this - my son uses anxiety as an excuse to keep drinking - I have same bac from when I started here -that he could possibly use.
-keep the thread going and we can get answers from the experts here

[spuddleduck]

bac to relax

satz, yes it is just that AN EXCUSE. how did you find bac as far as relaxing. ive read back over older bac posts and it does get mentioned quite often that it helps to relax, hmm could that be cos its a muscle relaxant, ha.
actually the more im thinking about it the less inclined I am to go down that route. I take enough bloody pills for one thing and another and maybe adding more to the cocktail without medical supervision my not be the wisest thing for me to do.

[skullbabyland]

bac to relax

neophyte;1608085 wrote: Baclofen never was like that for me, in the smaller doses it had barely any effect, when i went up in dose it made me sleepy during the day and gave me insomnia during the night. It never was anything like a relaxing benzo type drug.

For me, it's similar to what Neo states above. Definitely doesn't feel like a relaxer- but a bit more like an SSRI. It does have an anxiety-lessening effect, in its way. But for some, it also has SE's that can lead to more anxiety, if not careful. This seems to have many variables, such as titration schedule, dosage level, drinking or not, SE's such as insomnia which in turn lead to depression/irritability, etc.

None of that should scare you off baclofen, it can all be managed by being smart and respectful of the drug. But if you're looking for purely just a way to take the edge off temporarily, my opinion is that there's other better options.

EDIT- from all my reading, though, baclofen should not be used in a sporadic way- it has withdrawals, if you're not consistent about taking it.

[YouKayBee]

bac to relax

I sometimes take it in the evening when anxious just in case it works but I've not noticed anything and I think it makes me groggy the next morning.

If you do try it don't do what I have a tendency to do which is "Oh it's not working I'll take another, and another, and another, oh look I'm spannered"......when you are spannered on baclofen there's not a lot you can do about it!

[SlipperyPete]

bac to relax

Spud, I wouldn't recommend treating it like a benzo. It doesn't work that way. Sometimes, you can take an extra dose on Monday and you might get that relaxation on Tuesday. Or you might get stressed out on Tuesday. Bac is unpredictable like that. I've tried many different ways with using it to relax, and it's a science, really, but an unpredictable one.

If you want to chill out, I'd choose exercise or maybe a hot shower or bath over baclofen.