Need to talk to other people treating their addiction with Baclofen

[Stevo]

Hi my name is Steve,I am from Australia and have been on Baclofen for about 8 months now with great results.I am coming up to 2 years without getting drunk and have just gone 12 months clean and sober on the 30th of January.
I am very interested in talking to other people who are using Baclofen as a form of treatment as I don't know of anyone else in Australia doing it.I have quite a few questions,the Dr. that is prescribing for me doesn't know much about it being used for alcoholism and drug addiction and doesn't seem to be interested in finding out either.
Anyway I am very glad that I have found this forum and look forward to getting to communicate with like minded people.

[neophyte]

Fellow Aussie here in Sydney been using baclofen successfully since 2013. Where are you located?

[Stevo]

I am in Lismore northern NSW,it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.Do you know of any other people using Baclofen in Australia?

[Stevo]

Very cool to be able to talk to other people who are in Australia.I had a massive journey to get someone to prescribe Baclofen for me and when I finally found a doctor I was told that he was a top D and A specialist and I would be his test case and that we would be doing this in conjunction with a psychiatrist who was the leading advocate for Baclofen treatment for alcoholism in the country(I actually thought that I was the only one here).None of this eventuated and the doctor actually became quite nasty so I decided to walk away from him and now I am being prescribed Baclofen from a local GP but he knows nothing of its application for alcohol.He does know that this is why I am using it but told me recently that I am on a higher dose than is recommended by MIMS and he would like for me to start coming off of it.This scares the crap out of me as I have been an alcoholic most of my life and the Baclofen is working so well.

[kronkcarr]

Steveo,

My initial dr also didn't understand baclofen for alcoholism. He let me go to 80 mgs and then told me I had to start coming down and perhaps he'd put me on antidepressants. I found another dr here in the states that scripted huge amounts of bac for me. I used liquid baclofen also and am nearing the end of my supply. The dr that scripted so many is no longer practicing so it's time to get a new dr. I'm only taking 40 mgs a day so hopefully I'll find a dr who sees my 2+ years on bac and believes in what I'm doing.

I understand your fear.

[Spiritfree]

Hi Steve - two other members that come to mind -that are in Australia are Bleep and Guitarista. Also, there is some new advanced research being conducted in Australia regarding baclofen and other new medications. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3706258/

Huge congrats to you regarding your 12 months Jan 30!!!

[Colin]

Also, there is some new advanced research being conducted in Australia regarding baclofen and other new medications. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3706258/

Oops.
PMC3706258 was written in the US, not OZ.
It is not new;
"Though data are inconclusive, there is some suggestion that baclofen 30–60 mg daily may be safe and effective for the treatment of alcohol-dependent individuals with normal renal function, with or without advanced liver disease, who have not been diagnosed with a psychiatric illness and do not carry a history of seizures."

It is neither advanced nor research. It is a survey of original literature collected by searching for papers with a few keywords (eg baclofen).

Although the following 2 papers are written by Frenchmen (what they?) they describe new, advanced research.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3540966/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193236/

Add this and you will have all you need to convince any doctor (even an ozzie) that high dose baclofen is a great idea.

http://www.sciencedomain.org/abstract.php?iid=315&id=12&aid=2459#.Uu_tzD15OSo

[neophyte]

I had the same problem finding a doctor, I order overseas and do it myself. Though I see a psychiatrist who is aware of baclofen for alcoholism and knows I use it. So I could potentially get a script from him. That said, have a look for psychiatrists that specialise in addiction. You might have better luck.

[terryk]

Hey Stevo-

Welcome to the forum. I've been on Baclofen for almost 5 years - indifferent and sober for more than 4. I can't say enough good things about the Prescribing Guide..., and if you need further proof of the safety profile of long term, high-dose Baclofen, you can can print out these medical journal articles to give to your doctor: Clinical and pharmacokinetic aspects of high dose oral baclofen therapy & High-dose oral baclofen: experience in patients with multiple sclerosis

-tk

p.s. Bleep is indeed on Baclofen, a great guy to talk to, but is in Zimbabwe - not Australia.

[Stevo]

Thanks guys for all your replies,at this stage I don't need to find a new doctor but will have to soon I am assuming.I have a D and A detox and longterm outpatient treatment centre just up on the corner from where I live.I went in there to talk to them a week or so ago and they have told me about a doctor in a suburb not too far from here who I have actually heard is quite savvy with treatments for alcoholism and addiction from other people previously,I will be making a visit to him soon to see what he has to say.
It is interesting to hear that research is being done in Australia even if it is old,this gives me a little hope.I believe that I have reached a place of indifference at 142.5 mg a day coupled with head full of AA.It is a bit of a worry for me that the tests done suggest that Baclofen is safe for people who don't have any diagnosed psychiatric disorders as I have very well documented PTSD and I actually feel that the Baclofen is helping to eleviate the extreme anxiety that I have lived with for most of my life.My psychologist knows that I am on Baclofen though and I believe that he sees it as positive thing.Last time I saw him he said to me that whilst I was feeling so good there was no point in me coming in to see him as this will just waste the allotted free appointments that I have under a Mental Health Care Plan provided by the government here.He is a very forward thinking kind of a guy and told me that if I need to see him to just call and he will fit me in.When I first started seeing him I was still drinking and an anxiety ridden mess haha.
I am just going to throw this out there,I have read in Dr. Ameisens book that it is possible to have a few drinks on Baclofen,I am very interested in this and am considering giving it a try.I lost everything when I came back into recovery this time(friends,social life,ability to work in the industry that I work in and in general the pride that comes with providing for my family and having an active social life)therefore being able to have a few drinks with friends and getting some normality back into my life would be a wonderful thing.
Can anyone here please relate to me their own experiences with drinking on Baclofen whether they be positive or negative?PM me if you feel that these things are private,or if my asking this question has overstepped the boundary of what is acceptable in this forum.Obviously I am quite fearful that if I do have a drink and I can't stop I will be back at square one.I would also like to say that as good as AA has been for me I have some issues with the attitude that to drink is to die and I very recently saw my best friend take his own life rather than pick up a drink(he was 8 years sober)including him I know of 3 people who have suicided in the fellowships in the last 6 months.This has left me questioning the culture of the fellowships of AA and NA,I am not trying to discount the great work that these groups do I just think that for me there could be another way.

[Lostinspace]

Hi Stevo. Welcome to the forum. I’m so sorry to hear about your best friend. That's an extremely painful way to lose someone. I would agree that 12-step programs can often produce a detrimental mindset. They seem to help some people really well, but can make others worse off in many ways. I won’t comment on social drinking while on baclofen - I still haven’t reached indifference yet myself, so I have no wisdom to share.

But I will say that the warnings against taking baclofen if you have a psychiatric condition do not apply to any kind of anxiety, or PTSD specifically. In fact, there’s some evidence that baclofen treatment is helpful for people with PTSD (even in non-alcoholics). Here’s an abstract for at least one of those studies that shows some efficacy for PTSD: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12921495.

There’s a potential for baclofen causing anxiety as a side effect when you get into the really high doses, but I don’t think you have to worry about that at the dose you’re on. Most people, much like you, find that their anxiety is lessened by baclofen.

Anyway, that’s great to hear that you’ve found indifference with bac, and that you’ve been sober for so long I wish you the best as you look for another doctor to help you continue with it.

[Stevo]

Big thanks to Lostinspace for clarifying about psychological conditions and the link to the trial with Baclofen and PTSD.
It is great to see these things are being done and as I said before both my psychologist and myself seem to think it is having a positive effect on my PTSD too.

[Stevo]

Oops.
PMC3706258 was written in the US, not OZ.
It is not new;
"Though data are inconclusive, there is some suggestion that baclofen 30–60 mg daily may be safe and effective for the treatment of alcohol-dependent individuals with normal renal function, with or without advanced liver disease, who have not been diagnosed with a psychiatric illness and do not carry a history of seizures."

It is neither advanced nor research. It is a survey of original literature collected by searching for papers with a few keywords (eg baclofen).

Although the following 2 papers are written by Frenchmen (what they?) they describe new, advanced research.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3540966/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193236/

Add this and you will have all you need to convince any doctor (even an ozzie) that high dose baclofen is a great idea.

http://www.sciencedomain.org/abstrac...9#.Uu_tzD15OSo

Thankyou so much for this Colin.

[kronkcarr]

Steveo,

My goal with bac was to be able to have drinks with friends here and there. In the past I've gotten sober with AA and RR. RR says we don't drink because the results cause us problems. I didn't like the all or nothing pressure I felt in AA.

I did really well having drinks with friends every few weeks until almost 2 years in when I decided to have a couple glasses of wine a night. I wasn't acting like an ass or irritating anyone so I thought it was ok. What I learned is that I don't feel as positive at the start of the day if I have wine the night before. I did get drunk after Thanksgiving and I was surprised and angry with myself. I drank, visited friends, ate, drank more and never even thought about how much I was drinking. It wasn't like AA says. I didn't go down the tubes. I didn't lose everything. I just took my bac and made a vow to think when I drink. Long story short: I'm back to drinks here and there with friends and I'm good with that.

[Stevo]

Thankyou Kronkcarr for your response,what you have described is exactly what I would like to do.The last thing that I would like is to become what I have been previously again so I am very aware of the possible consequences if I allow myself to go too far.It is very encouraging to have read your story.I too believe that AA has an all or nothing approach that doesn't sit comfortably with me.Honestly the last 2 years have been a bit of a nightmare with AA,whilst I am grateful to be sober I have watched just about everything else slip away.
I have no interest in drinking everyday and am glad that you related your feelings about this.A few drinks of a weekend with friends without having a compulsion to continue drinking is what I am looking for.A chance to unwind and share a laugh with people that I enjoy being around.
I would still like to hear about other peoples experiences with drinking on Baclofen whether they are positive or negative so I can make the most informed decision about this as possible.
Thankyou so much again Kronkcarr,you have definitely brought a smile to my face today.