I am also at 5 months like retread! Started October 7th. Been drinking everyday for over 20 years. Started with over 50 units per week and dropped to under 40 immediately and it was very noticeable. The feel was different and once I had 1 or 2 beers I did not want the next. This was VERY odd for me because generally it was quite the opposite, after 1 or 2 it was hard to stop! I went down to around the magic 24 units (and less) and I am happy with that. I have had only 5 AF days since starting, hoped they would come easier. I just want that 1 or 2 beers now, everyday. Everything about my drinking has changed for the better and is never out of control anymore but my life and everything I do for fun includes drinking. I really think I am only fighting the habit and way of life now and not the addiction and if away from drinking I would probably stop or drink way less.

My biggest concern is taking Nal everyday for the rest of my life because I am happy with what Nal has done for me and where I am at. And I worry that my brain may figure out a way around Nal.

Blownaway - what is the 'magic 24' number ? And as long as you follow the golden rule, your brain will not find a way around Nal - it is you that has to decide what is craving and what is habit - I know some of mine now is definitely habit - although that first one each day does seem still to be a craving ....

Anyway glad it is working for you .... post more and let us know how you are doing,

Hugs, Maggie xx

You only have to take naltrexone every day if you drink every day, and who knows what's going to happen.

hello blown away,

very happy to hear your great progress, I can see where you are coming from, but my thoughts are as follows:- If I get to the stage where af days are easy why would I want to take a drug that numbs my natural happy hormones? I don't think your mind will be able to by pass the Nal, as its a blocker not an acting drug as such, so once its blocked the receptors you cant get the buzz no matter what.. that's why you don't need to ever vary the dose.

I am on a day after an af day, so I haven't taken nal now for nearly 48 hours, and you know what life feels good, sun is shining, spring is in the air, and I can feel a natural buzz that I don't have when I am Nal'ing all the time... thing is I am also thinking that tomorrow I'll have a drink... habit or weakness??

Thanks for your replies! I never take Nal without drinking, I drink 1 to 3 beers every night, vacation or weekends I will drink more but over a long period never getting drunk or hangovers anymore. Sometimes I open the second beer and think I want it but really never finish it. The magic 24 units is what I have read is what someone should be drinking less than a week or is considered "safe". I am happy when I am under 24 units a week. The thing is, I no longer feel the effects of Nal. It used to make me feel a little down or not interested in things but it does not seem to bother me at all now, I feel great and am super happy with everything. I exercise regularly and have a bunch of energy, I even sleep great. One of the major reasons for me to take control of my drinking was because I could not sleep anymore and it was really bad.
Bottom line is I am "blown away" with how well Nal has worked for me and it is effortless! Just follow 1 rule and drink as much as I want, which is very little now!

In the UK we have a magic 21 units. Bear in mind that UK units are different to US units.

A couple of years ago I did look into this, and found that actually the 'recommended' units are actually not safe, they are actually a level under which you are deemed to be at no 'increased' risk of health consequences.

I will try and find some links.

Ok this is cut and pasted from http://www.ias.org.uk/Alcohol-knowledge ... lines.aspx

UK low risk drinking guidelines

The current advice from the Department of Health regarding alcohol consumption is that, in order to minimise the risk of health harms associated with drinking:[3]

Men should drink no more than 21 units of alcohol per week, no more than 4 units in any given day, and have at least 2 alcohol-free days a week
Women should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week, no more than 3 units in any given day, and have at least 2 alcohol-free days a week
Pregnant women or women trying to conceive should not drink alcohol at all. If they do choose to drink, to minimise the risk to the baby, they should not drink more than 1–2 units of alcohol once or twice a week and should not get drunk
Children should not drink alcohol at all, but if they do, they should be at least 15 years old, never drink more than once a week, supervised by a parent or carer, and never exceed the recommended adult daily limits (3–4 units of alcohol for men and 2–3 units for women)


As you will see it states 'minimise the risk'. I don't interpret that as saying it's safe.

And here's a link to an explaination and definition of UK units;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_of_alcohol

And I found this on that page;

Recommended maximum
Main article: Recommended maximum intake of alcoholic beverages

From 1992 to 1995 the UK government advised that men should drink no more than 21 units per week, and women no more than 14.[12] (The difference between the sexes was due to the typically lower weight and water-to-body-mass ratio of women[citation needed].) The Times reported in October 2007 that these limits had been "plucked out of the air" and had no scientific basis.[13][14]

This was changed after a government study showed that many people were in effect "saving up" their units and using them at the end of the week, a phenomenon referred to as binge drinking.[citation needed] Since 1995 the advice was that regular consumption of 3–4 units a day for men, or 2–3 units a day for women, would not pose significant health risks, but that consistently drinking four or more units a day (men), or three or more units a day (women), is not advisable.[15]

An international study[16] of about 6,000 men and 11,000 women for a total of 75,000 person-years found that people who reported that they drank more than a threshold value of 2 units of alcohol a day had a higher risk of fractures than non-drinkers. For example, those who drank over 3 units a day had nearly twice the risk of a hip fracture.

Education! I need more of that. So I was thinking 1 beer = 1 unit, wrong. More like 2-3 units it looks like. I still have a lot of work to do. I am around 60 units a week now and was above 100 when I started. Thanks for the links.

Gosh your units have really gone down Blownaway! I know when I first started posting I was confused about UK units and USA units - I think most of us here post in USA units now .... which seems less.

Hugs, Maggie x