Wow, last night and today was hectic. I had half a tablet, first one and drank wine and beer to my usual level, about 14 Australian standard drinks....I think.. cant remember getting to bed. I am a bloody winner, ain't I?
Woke up this morning and I swear I was still drunk and had to call in sick as I felt it was irresponsible to drive... and I thought
I probably would have smelled of it too. I have never not gone to work because of a hungover. I am curious what today brings...

Keep at it, Nadine! TSM is very up and down, but hang on and keep working the conscious/mindful aspect. It can take a while for that to start developing.

I also felt drunk the next morning after I first started TSM. It was the strangest thing ever. I was totally used to waking up hungover, but still drunk? That was a bit weird for me! It was only the once, as I recall.

yes, this is what happened. scary. I am home tonight and still had 1.5 bottles of wine and I am feeling scared and lonely... But I had my Nal and I am more accepting that there is no more ETOH in the house,,, I would have been more upset previous days. I am just so fucked. is this really it? I cannot reverse myself? I love alcohol and have had the most amazing interactions happen, but also the most bad things, why??? what is it in me that wants to come out? why is it there? why do I behave the way I do when I drink? the irony is that I really think, all I look for is connection... hence the drunk texts the drunk calls.... i want to fix the source of my spiritual desperation.

There's a part of your brain associated with a survival mechanism, it's called the "Reward System". It makes you run from pain and run towards pleasure. It's an unconscious part of the brain and it's very powerful. Alcohol programs that part of the brain (for that ~7% of the population that has Alcohol Use Disorder) and causes you to crave alcohol, compels you to drink. TSM slowly erases that association. One of the tools you have to forward your cause is your conscious mind, but alcohol numbs that. Beyond a certain point, alcohol even stops you from creating new memories (that's what blacking out is about).

You're just getting going with this, Nadine. It's a minimum 3-4 month journey and many take 6 months or longer. There are people here that have been at it a couple of years, but they've seen enough of an improvement that they want to stick with it. You're very early days yet, so hang in there.

Hey thank you, I really appreciate you taking time talking to me. I just feel so raw and silly to be in this spot in the first place. But the genetic component makes sense. Alcohol does this to me. my brain screams more! more! even when I should know i had enough. As a medical professional i understand the principal of this method. And I like it. I like seeing claudia from the TED talk holding her head hi. I hope that will be me one day...

" I hope that will be me one day..."

It will be, Nadine.

Keep on checking in with us, some check in on a daily basis, some weekly. Whenever you run into a problem, throw it out to the community and people will let you know what worked for them.

As you drink, keep on listening for the conscious part of the brain to tell you it's had enough, then act on that and put away the bottle for the night. In general, slow the process down and start stretching those drinks out. You might even take steps to put the glass elsewhere between sips, so you upset the mechanical/habit part of drinking. One trick that I used was to put my beer back in the fridge after the first sip or two, then get to some small task that I could scratch off the list. Just 10 or 15 minutes worth, then I'd go back and take another sip and repeat the process. Even surfing the net just to give your brain something else to do, as long as you don't have your drink by your side.

the best part about Nal for me is that it took away that "rush" of needing the second,fourth, sixth etc drink. the first week your body just has to get used to the drug. it's very likely you'll have a very different experience in the next few days. good luck!

Hi guys, sheer disbelief here. 2.5 beers last night. yes you heard me right. 2.5. could not sleep due to excitement... and had a valium, which my GP gave me alongside the Nal. I think its fair enough for maybe a week or so. But no longer. But 0.5. I left it!! my question here is, it worked on half a tablet. If i take half again tonight and it works again, would you still updose?

Dr. Sinclair figured that 50mg was the right dose to block the opioid receptors for the required length of time, so if you get along ok with 50mg, go with that. If you just can't handle that much, then keep it at 25mg.

Benzos and TSM have a kind of checkered past, but there are no studies that confirm this. If you find you're not making much progress, then consider asking the doctor for a replacement.

That being said, 2.5 is a great number! Keep listening for a "meh" response to the next drink from the conscious part of your brain. You want to acknowledge and act on that by switching to something non-alcoholic. Keep on encouraging that part of your brain to speak up, it's an important part of TSM that wasn't covered in the book.

Hey Joe, thanks for your reply. I dont know if I tolerate 50 or not, as I have not tried. I am just so surprised at the swift response on 25. Yesterday I had 2.5 beer. Its now almost 10 and I am on beer number 2. I had 25 mg Nal at 4pm and my first Beer around half past 5. I know you have all been talking about the honeymoon phase, but i honestly feel myself again for the first time in months. I am so happy. Tomorrow is my christmas dinner and a huge party, probably should take the full dose, as this is my biggest trigger...