Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

My intro...

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    My intro...

    I?ve been lurking about here for a couple of weeks and I figure it?s time to jump in. Always with the hope that anything I share resonates with someone else and is helpful (hello fellow lurkers. I know you are out there!)

    I have two bottles of Baclofen waiting for me at home. Ordered online (of course) and want to get a few AF days before I start. So very grateful for a friend who pointed me in this direction and for the good info here! I?ve been drinking for 10 years with increasing levels of consumption. Early in my marriage I got tired of fighting my husband?s drinking and said ?Eff if. If you can?t beat them, join them? And boy did I. A family history of Alcoholism (whatever that really meant) kept me from drinking much at all until my late 20?s.

    Now, my husband and I are both daily drinkers (and have been for some time) Every time I manage to maintain a period of abstinence (increasingly shorter ones) the power this poison has over my mind is increased when I drink again. And it scares me. I?ve tried AA (which was a no-go for me. I already have a spiritual community and that's not what I need) and obviously read a hundred blogs/memoirs/support group information, so I am well versed on what COULD happen, but have felt powerless to stop the slide. My current levels of drinking are upwards of two bottles (or equivalent) of wine per day. Usually spirits of some kind mixed with whatever is around. I no longer get true hangovers. Just feel tired and not "sharp" in the mornings. Not helpful for my job in financial admin.

    Not drinking yesterday was the easiest it has been for me in a long time. I stocked up on some favorite candy and such thinking I?d be fighting cravings, and I didn?t. (just a bit of the usual habit-driven thoughts) Very strange. I can only think that it?s partly to do with my upbeat attitude because I know in a couple of days I get to start working on what appears to be a cure for the obsession I am so sick of fighting. I want my real self back pretty badly.

    That all said, I am VERY nervous about SE?s. I plan to titrate up very cautiously (esp since I am doing this w/out a doctor). I know what the recommended schedule is and I intend to be even slightly more cautious at first. Hopefully not drinking for 3 days before hand and abstaining another day or two (or as long as I can manage) will cause me to hit indifference more quickly?

    Anyway, sorry for the novel and here goes everything?.

    #2
    My intro...

    Thanks for your post.

    Baclofen works for me. 3 years now. No real side effects.

    25mg X 3/day.

    Good luck.

    Comment


      #3
      My intro...

      Hi BeckyT -Glad to see your post and glad to see ya give Baclofen a go.

      It really does not matter how or why you got to the point where you are with alcohol. If your are imprisoned by the poison and in pain, Baclofen is one of tools to help you out of jail.

      Comment


        #4
        My intro...

        spiritwolf333;1657968 wrote:
        It really does not matter how or why you got to the point where you are with alcohol. If your are imprisoned by the poison and in pain, Baclofen is one of tools to help you out of jail.
        Spirit, hi and thanks. And yes, this is true. I constantly feel the need to explain, mainly because I still can't believe I got snagged up like this. It makes me mad. But yes, end point is what it is. Time for big change! :thumbs:

        Comment


          #5
          My intro...

          Hi, beckty,

          Welcome. Your story is familiar to mine--especially the lack of hangovers and yet that meh feeling each morning. I started baclofen in 12/12 and am still on it (50 mgs maintenance dose). I continue to be indifferent to alcohol. I titrated up slowly because of my dr. I had SEs but they were manageable. You'll probably be pleasantly surprised at the changes in your life. Good luck and keep posting.

          Comment


            #6
            My intro...

            Hi Beckty, welcome to the forum and here's wishing you the very best. Keep us updated!!

            Comment


              #7
              My intro...

              Hi Becky, thought I'd chime in and welcome you to the group! Glad you're jumping in and posting. Many of us do it regularly or even daily and find it helps to keep on track and focused.

              I share(d) your worries about SE's big time and I too titrated really slowly, and I am glad I did. Yep, SE's were annoying and I did need to watch that I didn't drive during my drowsiest times. But they did go away after a few months.

              Another thing that most people seem to agree on is that the more you drink while on bac, the more pronounced and protracted the SE's will be. Also, the hangovers can become more intense, sometimes much more so. For these reasons many try to give an extended AF time while letting the bac do its thing. This is what I did- I committed to 30 days AF for this reason (assisted with antabuse to keep from acting on the habitual thoughts). It did help greatly with SE's and I just stayed AF just cuz of the momentum, going on 6 months now.

              My "Skullbaby's Progress" thread has lots more thoughts and details that some people find interesting, including thoughts on SE's etc. Check it out if you're so inclined.

              Either way, welcome and best of luck to you. This CAN be done, and baclofen (combined with some focused effort) is a powerful tool.

              Comment


                #8
                My intro...

                skullbabyland;1658833 wrote:
                My "Skullbaby's Progress" thread has lots more thoughts and details that some people find interesting, including thoughts on SE's etc. Check it out if you're so inclined.
                Thank you for the welcome! And yes, I've checked out quite a bit of your thread. So helpful and encouraging!

                So, I tried VERY hard to be totally abstinent this week before I started the Bac today. I failed last night. But I didn't go crazy. Had 3 beers. Not drinking tonight and going to try very hard to be cautious this weekend. I haven't committed to AF, but I've committed to cutting way back and if/when I start to feel any kind of "meh" attitude toward Alc, I am ROLLING with that and not drinking past it.

                I've waffled back and forth on whether I am really addicted but my fight to not drink last night and the relief I felt at having a couple of beer's (my last choice of drink. my drink wasn't in the house for good reason) was pretty telling for me. I just want to shut that voice up. The one that starts whispering around 2 pm and by 5 is hollering more loudly than all other sensible "you don't want to drink" voices in my head. Makes me feel a little crazy.

                So, I did start on 5mg this morning. Taking the other 2 5mg doses at 1pm and then 6pm or so. I just have to get past 8 or 8:30 every night.

                Would I feel ANY sort of something from 5 mg? I feel pretty chill this morning (those 3 beers weren't enough to effect me on waking up) and almost like I have some kind of "sensation" in my hands and feet(subtle and neither pleasant or unpleasant. just there). Maybe I am just imagining it?

                Comment


                  #9
                  My intro...

                  beckty;1658899 wrote: Would I feel ANY sort of something from 5 mg? I feel pretty chill this morning (those 3 beers weren't enough to effect me on waking up) and almost like I have some kind of "sensation" in my hands and feet(subtle and neither pleasant or unpleasant. just there). Maybe I am just imagining it?
                  When I started at 5 mgs, 20 minutes after I had a slight headache for approximately half an hour or so. It felt something like I heard a high-pitched sound.

                  From te beginning of the titration upwards, I had a weak feeling in the upper part of my legs.

                  So it's quite possible, you experience light SE's at very low doses.
                  Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    My intro...

                    I too experienced slight sensations at low-ish doses- kind of like tingles or ants crawling. Just a little and went away after a while. Yep, could be some slight SE's at low doses.

                    How'd you do yesterday after your other doses, Becky?

                    Comment


                      #11
                      My intro...

                      Oh I drank. I did. I didn't go crazy, but still....

                      I have a 5K to run tomorrow morning so I'll work hard to ignore the voice/obsession tonight. I'll try to remember I have a new tool to use (even if it's a slight placebo effect, I'll go with it) Maybe go to the bookstore and have a coffee and a new book. Stay away from my usual routine which leads to at least a bottle of wine or equivalent.

                      I did notice that I was not as easily irritated and I had a lot of energy yesterday. I had to work a 10 hour day and then do a big shopping trip. Normally that would've made me crabby and angry and I'd have gone home and hit the drinking immediately. Instead, I felt upbeat. Glad to get a big chore out of the way. And so I didn't even have my first glass of wine (which tasted bad'ish at first?) till a little after 8 pm.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        My intro...

                        beckty,

                        It sounds like you have a good plan for tonight. Keep taking the pills and posting. Good luck on your run tomorrow.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          My intro...

                          I felt a little loopy and chill the first time I took 10mgs, but that might've been in my head more than anything.

                          Welcome and glad you jumped in Becks. Take things easy and try to go easy on the drinking, and posting here helps too, just to be around others in the same boat and to vent or whatever. Bac does work. Not always easily, but drinking ain't exactly easy either.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            My intro...

                            StuckinLA;1659362 wrote: I felt a little loopy and chill the first time I took 10mgs, but that might've been in my head more than anything.

                            Welcome and glad you jumped in Becks. Take things easy and try to go easy on the drinking, and posting here helps too, just to be around others in the same boat and to vent or whatever. Bac does work. Not always easily, but drinking ain't exactly easy either.
                            Thanks so much! Loving the support community and knowledge here so far.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              My intro...

                              Hi Beckty,

                              I'm at a similar place to you - also doing it off my own bat. Docs in the UK less likely to prescribe off label - so had to resort to ordering on line and also inventing leg cramps to get at least a starter pack from my doc

                              I'm currently on 30mg spread over the day (3 x 10mg) so far, finding side effects minimal. May go up to 40mg after the weekend.

                              I am certain this is the way to go. As a very experienced poster on here put it, its a way of being 'happily sober'. I can 'do' sober, but never happily - always felt angry and resentful. Hoping this will get me to the place where I can pass on the daily bottle of wine (or two) without wanting to punch the door in!

                              Good luck to you, Jules

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X