Maybe sprinkle in more AF days?

You're right. I'm goings to try and not drink during th week.

Sounds like a plan.

Let us know how it goes, okay?

Well my numbers are lower this week primarily because I did more AF days during the week. Only had 1 dayduring the week that I had a few beers and that was at a sporting event. Did not even finish the last one. The weekends evenings are not a blur like they used to be. Most of my drinking is spread out over a long period. Cravings are nowhere what they use to be after the first drink. Eventually like to see the weekend numbers go down. They have not changed much after the 1st week. About a case a beer over the weekend since I started. Probably should try an AF on a Sunday eventually. Just been in the mode of not forcing myself too much at this point. Thought I'd give the NAL a chance to work. Although this could be an excuse I'm leaning on

Also keeping fluids up (non beer) and not drinking coffee. Found not as tired as I was the last few weekends. Thinking I was getting overly dehydrated.

Yeah, I think sometimes we have to push ourselves a bit. We have habits and triggers as well as the physiological addiction.

I will probably move into that phase myself soon.

Just thought I'd put a quick post. Really no significant change. Pretty much same level as week 1. Still not drinking to point of passing out on the weekends. Actually able to watch a movie and remember it. I'd probably be okay if I just kept this pace but thought id see a little more progress. I probably need to push myself a little more. Got 35 years of a habit to break. Beer does test a little better than it did at the beginning of taking NAL (got me a little worried) but still the craving that usually caused me to guzzle beers down are still in check. I'm off next week so it will be a challenge to fit in a beer free day - but I will make that a goal.

I bet if you graphed it, the downward trend in your numbers would be more obvious to you.

Keep it up!

Yeah, you're definitely on a downward trend. It's only been 1.5 months, and this is usually a 3-4 month process (longer for some), so I wouldn't worry too much if you're not having life problems and you're trending downward.

Palerider,

I'm a little further along than you (30 weeks) and I definitely started with a higher level of weekly consumption, so it's taken me a while longer to get to the levels that you are already experiencing. What I can tell you is that I kept taking the medication and recently started religiously following the golden rule (1 hour before) and it has worked very well. I too had 35 years of "practice" to overcome. We shouldn't be surprised if it takes more than a few months for this to begin to work.

My story is a bit different in that I never really had a stopping problem. My issue was frequency and wanting to drink every day. I still am having mental cravings throughout the day. I don't think the frequency of the cravings has decreased much at all. But my defenses against those cravings are getting stronger. I have also had periods where my levels dropped and then went back up. Initially I was discouraged by those setbacks, but now I know that they are temporary. At this stage I am willing to say that this medication is truly a miracle. I recently increased my dosage (62.5 MG) and that made a big difference. The hangovers are sometimes brutal. I get a headache that just won't go away until I sleep the next evening. However, as I think Ives said, those hangovers serve as a great negative reinforcement. Just keep up the great work and be patient!

Thanks appreciate the words of encouragement. Will keep up with it. I don't expect I will stop taking the Nal. The next days after moderate drinking are tough though. Not really a hangover but tired as all heck. If I was drinking this amout w/o the NAL I would feel great the next day. But I know if I was not taking it I would drink more and still feel crappy. At least I'm semi sober at nite with it.