Baclofen in the UK?

[chopden]

Hi - I'm considering using baclofen after reading lots of posts on here and other forums.
Has anyone got any advice about sourcing the drug from the uk? My GP has told me there is no help available in terms of anti- craving drugs. This might mean internet purchase? Can anyone give any advice?
Thanks
Chop

[caro]

Baclofen in the UK?

Hi Chopden,

Welcome.

Your GP is incorrect there is a DR in Scotland who will prescribe, you do not need a referral from your GP.

In the UK there is a Prof Chick who would prescribe baclofen.

He is based in Edinburgh, but also has occasional clinics in London too.

If you can possibly afford it I would strongly recommend you see him first. As I recall the appointment was ?250.

I originally got a supply of baclofen from the internet with no difficulties, however, if I had my time again I would have gone to Prof Chick first. If at all possible try and have medical support.

He will not prescribe over 80mg (I think) but he does not think more is needed. What would really help if you do get a stash of baclofen is to titrate up very slowly and to try not to drink! You would probably reach indifference sooner if you did not drink, but of course that is really difficult to do.

Also he will not inform your GP unless you want him to. However, if you will agree for your GP to be involved he will write to her/him suggesting the dose the GP should prescribe.

Baclofen worked for me. I won't go into my story here, but I recently posted on the abstinence thread if you want any background on me. I have been over seven months AF, never in a million years would I have been able to do that without baclofen.

You could get his details from putting his name in a search engine. If you get stuck post again and I can dig out more of his details, phone number etc.

I wish you the very best of luck.

Caro

[terryk]

Baclofen in the UK?

Cassander;1532699 wrote:

United Kingdom and Ireland

Professor Jonathan Chick in Edinburgh has prescribed Baclofen and works with general practitioners in the UK and, apparently, Ireland. Here is his Internet contact information:
Professor Jonathan Chick Psychiatry Consultant, Edinburgh, private hospital specialist.

A member, chelsea98, also reports that Dr Chick will see patients in London and he can be contacted via email at: jonathan.chick@gmail.com. chelsea98 further reports: "When I first saw him a few years back I think the fee was ?250 but my most recent appointment with him was when he was in London on Harley Street for a day. He saw me for half an hour and the fee was ?100" .

It has also been reported in this forum that Dr. Susan Cooper of Fenwick Road Surgery, Giffnock, Glasgow, prescribes Baclofen for alcoholism and that The Royal Alexandra Hospital and the Dykebar Hospital in Paisley treat alcoholism with Baclofen.

In Liverpool, an mwo member, Robbiel, reported that he was prescribed Baclofen through the Alcohol team (LCAS) at the Liverpool Royal Hospital.

An mwo member, Longshot, may have information regarding Baclofen treatment in Ireland.

I believe he prescribes up to 100mg/day, the "recommended maximum" in the UK
-tk

[chopden]

Baclofen in the UK?

Thanks

Many, many thanks for your help.....
I'm hanging in there, but struggling greatly at only day 14....

[Otter]

Baclofen in the UK?

I want to clarify about the Scottish situation. Baclofen is being used by the gastorenterology department at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for liver disease so if you come within that catchment area you can get a referral there for tests on your liver and the doctors there will then work with your GP. Fenwick Road surgery is not a good idea for baclofen but doctors nearby at Williamwood Health Centre in Clarkston have used it successfully and know how to use it in a program including other drugs. I would say that is the best treatment you will get for severe alcoholism anywhere right now. The attitude they took was to try everything until it worked, including HDB, coming to the house, combining other treatments until they got rid of the problem. I suspect that any GP can get in touch with them via the NHS email systems and get advice rather than having to go to Dr. Chick, unless you want to keep it out of your medical records. Having said that, if you have problems arising out of alcoholism, it is a good idea to go through the NHS because you can then use your treatment record to show to various "authorities", that you are getting better and are doing something about your illness and they will have to "back off" and let you get on with your treatment.

[thomas m]

Baclofen in the UK?

Sadly you'll have a very hard time getting a GP to script you HDB. Above the recommend 80-120mg anyway. They're basically just covering there own back. You could always order online. The UK aren't very strict customs wise when it comes to Baclofen. I was on it a year and never had a problem with a package being stopped.

[Otter]

Baclofen in the UK?

Even Dr. Chick does go above 100 mg a day although he doesn't say so publicly. That cut off point is related to its use for other illnesses so I would press any doctor who tries to stick to it while prescribing baclofen for alcoholism to justify themselves since they are already prescribing off licence and nowhere does anyone say HDB should be limited to 100 mg a day.

[thomas m]

Baclofen in the UK?

I read the book quite a while a go and from memory and Dr Chick was one of the first corresponding that Dr A had contact with.

Dr Chick's refusal to go above 100mg make me wonder if he himself has some concern about doing the whole HDB Baclofen thing into the 200-300s without further testing as others probably do to.

I would have loved to have had a specialist (Specialist NOT GP) to fall back on when I tried. I was stupid and went against all that I'd read on here and decided to go act the hero. I'd seen that Loop (RIP) had went straight to a high dose and had success. At first it worked but ended up a night mare that has put me off trying again for the foreseeable future.

[Wildjaq]

Baclofen in the UK?

Hi

I saved-up and went to see Dr Chick a couple of months ago. As some have already posted he, agrees with the late Olivier Ameisen that Baclofen can not only help with anxiety but also the dependance on alcohol that can result from self-medication. He prescribes Baclofen "off-license" (in that he's prescribing it not for the purpose it was originally licensed.)
The drug has been around for a while and on a private prescription 168 x 10mg tablets cost about ?6/?7 from the chemist.

I'm up to 60mg a day and so far:

I have decreased anxiety
My alcohol craving is beginning to decrease
I'm sleeping better
My partner is happier

The sleepiness that occurs every time you up the dose is difficult but it does pass and I can function at work normally although I'm a bit more forgetful and clumsy than usual!

After trying CBT/SSRI's for many years I'm feeling quite positive about this approach - yes, a private consultation is expensive but then again, so was the alcohol.

Best wishes to you all

[Wildjaq]

Baclofen in the UK?

Hi

Yes, cut down - which is a miracle in itself as until now I've been unable to.

I'm also less interested in stocking-up with large amounts of alcohol for the end of the day. Historically, evenings have been a big source of anxiety and resulting alcohol abuse. The Baclofen gives me a bit of the "Dutch courage" that the booze did but without the bad behavior and the subsequent hangover/withdrawal/self-medication cycle. I'm drinking less at home and not going to the pub.

Will I stop drinking completely or be able to drink "normally?" It's too soon to tell. Perhaps one reason for the reported success rate for alcoholics on Baclofen is that you're not jumping straight into abstinence, which can be a tall order if you have a long drinking history.

On a lighter note, I read a couple of Baclofen forum posts where a member reported a side-effect causing a sudden desire to engage in home DIY projects - yup, me too - weird!

[Wildjaq]

Baclofen in the UK?

Thanks Palladium

I'm up to 80/90mg now and not drinking during the week.

Last weekend I had some wine Friday/Sat/Sun and felt pretty brutal on the following mornings. I'm looking to drink next to nothing this weekend.

I was taking large amounts of "Valerian Plus" tea in the evenings to create a soporific effect (6 x bags per cup - it worked quite well) but I started suffering crushing depression the next day. I've moved onto chamomile now instead.

I'm thinking more about not drinking at the moment and when I do drink I notice that when I look back at the glass it usually still has some wine in it (very unusual!)

I'm confident that I'm on the right course and will post updates as I go

Love to all

[chelsea98]

Baclofen in the UK?

hi wildjaq,

i too saw dr chick who only goes up to 100mg per day. i went over and above up to 240mg per day and am now heading down, currently at 150 and alcohol free for nearly 4 months (i did have a few drinks over xmas socially but had and retain absolute control). i realised something major was going on when it occurred to me i hadn't thought about alcohol AT ALL for a day or two. indifference is the target but mental liberation is the spectacular bonus prize!!!

i wish you all the best in your efforts and continued success!!

[Wildjaq]

Baclofen in the UK?

Hi Chelsea

Still on 80/90mg Baclofen per day. The side-effects are starting to fade, especially the tiredness.

Went out for dinner at the weekend and enjoyed myself despite being the only one not drinking. I was anxious about not being "funny" i.e. drunk but amazingly no-one fell asleep or asked for the bill early.
The bonus was being able to take the car - there's another ?40 saved!

Still feeling low - close to tears at times. I've read a couple of posts where new Baclofen users reported similar mood-changes. I also threw a "whitey" (almost fainted) on Saturday and realised I'm not eating enough. Not drinking means that the body isn't crying out for calories after a binge.

The upside is the feeling that I'm getting free of the sauce and my face is looking less bloated and red. Shaving in the morning has always been a depressing stock-take in the mirror of how bad things have become but I notice that my eyes seem clearer - the whites are actually white. Those old back-pains are disappearing too and, looking-down in the shower, I can see almost all of my feet.

I know that my 80mg a day is small-fry compared to the 240mg doses some of you are taking but I don't know if at that level I could function at work (perhaps a slow titration makes this possible.) However, I'm getting some positive results and will see the good doctor again in a few weeks.

Thanks for reading and posting.

Good wishes to you and all on the forum.

[skullbabyland]

Baclofen in the UK?

Hi Wild, welcome to the board and it sounds like you're starting to experience some good results! Great to hear it... Keep at it and the SE's should diminish over time. The low mood/depression- many of us experience this, it could be the bac SE's or it could just be adjusting to less alcohol intake/withdrawal symptom, either way it should improve over time with less alcohol. That said, keep a close eye on it in case it needs to be addressed more in-depth.

I can relate to being worried about being less funny/charming during social situations once alcohol is removed. I thought that my charm was fueled in large part by my feeling good while drinking. Interestingly, the close people that I've questioned on this said they genuinely prefer my personality when not drinking. I've come to realize that in my case, what I thought was funny charming charismatic guy was actually kind of an overbearing, slightly embarrassing drunken oaf. Not saying that's you, just me, but maybe you'll find your own personality without booze surprisingly enjoyable. Either way, keep it up and best of luck

[chelsea98]

Baclofen in the UK?

just to clarify, from what i know dr chick won't go over 100mg per day. he told me specifically that it was because he had seen people above that dose develop phsycological problems. if he has changed his position since I told him i was at 100mg (a lie) about 2 months ago then thats news to me.

also, i recently had someone inquire in spain for me about buying baclofen over the counter. i was told that it wasn't possible any more and that they were clamping down on it. a real shame as I have people out there who could send me some.

in the meantime, i ordered some from the germany pharmacy. they charge you ?7-8 for a prescription over and above the baclofen cost. you have to tell them why you want it and i put in "supression of alcohol cravings" it was signed off within a day. alas, due to the christmas period it arrived 3 days later than i had hoped so i was almost up the creek without a paddle but i got away with it. i ordered 2 boxes of 25mg tablets, it cost about ?70.

personally, it's a bit easier with the 10mg tablets as i can come down in 10mg at a time. 25mg tabs just make it a tad finicky but i still have a small stash of 10mgs over and above my online order so i mix and match with them.

i've spoken to a few doctors recently about baclofen. the first one i mentioned it to had no knowledge of it for this use and didnt even ask me any questions about it when i told her why i was on it. i dropped her and her hairy top lip like a stone. the second dr at the same surgery was aware of it but not up to the dose levels required (i didnt tell her about my 240mg a day habit) and she thought i should be coming down from 100mg per day until i told her i was keeping that as my maintenance dose. i told another dr, my wifes about it and she was aware of it but said it was used "in conjunction" with other meds. again, she didnt really have a clue. i've even spoken to my local chemist about it, basically, i'm trying to spread the word to whichever medical person I can. In fact, I also started a thread about it over at SAUK, a social anxiety forum (you can find it on google and my post is "baclofen for anxiety") though there seems to be suspicion of me and my reasoning for posting about it.