I just finished my first week on NAL. Actually I had to do a re-boot. I started with 25 mg on June 23, but a knee injury that required pain meds and a nasty summer cold kept me off the booze for 6 days straight. I bet that’s the longest AF stretch I’ve had in a decade!

I started again on June 30th and did 25 mg the entire week because it was making my stomach a bit queasy. I didn’t experience a big drop in Units but I’m not going to start worrying about that yet. I’ve been off work all week and since the knee problem has forced me to cancel my vacation/camping plans; I’ve just been sitting around with a full fridge of beer and no real reason not to drink.

At first I thought I consciously felt the NAL at work but that may have just been the upset stomach. The last few days I’ve been sucking down the first 5-6 beers as usual. The good news is I have experienced some positive signs. I didn’t have any of my “big bender” nights where I would drink 12-13 beers and wake up with a massive hangover and ruin the next day. Also, I played a gig on Saturday night and only had 4 beers the whole night at the club, and zero when I got home.

I’m up to 50 mg now without any side effects. So far so good I guess. I know this may be a long process, but I have set some modest goals. By the time the students come back at the beginning of September I want to be to the point that I no longer ever show up at work in the morning with a hangover. There were some pretty rough Monday mornings last year, and I’m not proud of that.

It's been helpful reading about all of your experiences!

hi, moreagain!

i'm on day three so just behind you and finding this site a godsend. i got my nal online and no one knows i'm doing this. so far so good. cindi

Hi Cindi! Looks like we've got a lot in common! I'm on my 2nd. marriage too. We've been together for 25yrs.. I was married before when I was just 19.. It lasted 10yrs.. It was certainly devastating when I came home from work one day & he said "I don't want to be married anymore" I thought he was joking. We rarely fought, got along quite well. Apparently I found out later he had been seeing a lawyer a whole yr before behind my back! Also because he was due a large insurance settlement I knew nothing about til it was too late to claim anything. Needless to say, he went off to Iowa to go to Chiropractic school & WAS DATING SOMEONE. Don't ask, but I was left with almost nothing. We had a nice house that he screwed me out of. I was left with nothing. Ended up back at Mom's for the next 3yrs. That sucked!! I had ewnough money to buy a new car which I desperately needed. After I bought it I got layed off from my job. It was Hell for a while. That's when my drinking took off. I loved thgat man with all my heart. We were High School Sweethearts. It was downhill from there. And I did it all!
Long story short I met my current Husband 3yrs. later. He won my heart! He is a good guy & I've hurt him so many times I cry to think of it. Anyway we have made a good life together. We purchased a Condo last yr. in Lutz, Fl. Do you know where that is? My Brother also rents a Condo in Sarasota. We've lived in this small town 20yrs. now. But plan on living in Fl. when time comes. My Mom & Dad are still here & my Husband's Mom too. We are all they have.
So like I said, I began SM 6-11. My Dr. was very good about it & well informed. No problems. My Husband cannot accept the concept. And I will not force him. When he is ready he'll see for himself.
I notice lots of subltle changes. Hard to describe. But on a positive note.
Suffered for a long time trying to break this horrible connectiion. Binge drinker. After divorce, was every day. Have cut back on my own but still the little voice HAUNTS me.
So glad you wrote. Feels good to get some of this crap out. Hope to become good buddys & maybe some day meet when we go to Fl..Am going to check on Condo Rental in Oct. this yr.
Thanks for writing & letting me vent!
Yours in Peace JANE

I love the thing about only drinking a few beers at a gig too! I don't know how much you've looked around the site, but If you aren't already aware of the "honeymoon period", please know that you may have a strong initial effect that will wear off for perhaps months before the real extinction occurs. I might be telling you stuff you already know, but if you weren't hip to this, search "honeymoon period" and extinction burst. also its taken longer than 3 months for a lot of people here, so don't be discouraged if you still have a hangover now and again in september. it may take 9 months or more. I'm 4 months into TSM and not cured yet, but I have cut my units in half. I feel great about how well it's starting to work, but still have the occasional night where i go a little overboard.

As well as TSM is working for me, I have to tell you that a month or so ago I was frustrated and thinking it wasn't working for me. it's been a lot of ups and downs, but the downs get fewer and further between as I go.
Godspeed my fellow TSM'er!

Thanks for the encouragement Joe-

I'm going to try and maintain a long-term outlook and hopefully I can ignore the ups and downs. It helps to be able to read about everyone's experience here.

Thinking long term, I am a bit concerned about having to rely on the on-line pharmacies, but that's the only option I have right now.

I had another gig last night; this time in a non-alcohol venue. 2 beers when I got home and then off to bed. Feels good this morning!

Good luck!

Week 2 in the books. 44.7 units US and 0 AF. Considering I'm on vacation and my knee injury has me sitting around the house all day, I'm not discouraged. The only way I'm moderating my drinking at all is to stay on the light beer and to wait until 5-ish to take the NAL. The most encouraging sign seems to be a ceiling on the amount I want to drink in one session. Granted, 10 beers is a pretty high ceiling, but at least I'm not drinking until the fridge is empty or I pass out.

Thanks for listening!

PS- What's with the movie download thread? Is this just SPAM or a member sharing?

GOod stuff. stay with it and be patient. The movie download must be spam. I've seen a lot of it lately. unless it's Bentsm and his awesome youtube sinclair videos, its safe to say it's spam. especially the japanese scat porn one I saw the other day. who would click on something like that?

Week 3 was not very encouraging. It’s been extremely hot this past week and on a whim I picked up a bottle of vodka to make some fruity, summer cocktails. No big deal; I never had more than 1-2 drinks, but I still guzzled the beer as normal so the vodka was just extra. My weekly total is HIGH. I even adjusted my pre-TSM numbers up a bit because I think I estimated low to start.

I have to admit that I didn’t feel the NAL working at all this week. I think I understand why the TSM is a tough sell for as a treatment. If it wasn’t for the success stories and support of this board I can imagine myself thinking that the NAL doesn’t work for me. I’m committed to this for at least a year and I’m trying to remain confident and hopeful.
I’ll try to just imagine myself as one of those alcoholic rats and let the medication do its stuff.

One more reflection I had is, who knows how much I would have drunk w/o the NAL? This summer has been rough! I’m a school teacher and although I know I’m a good, hardworking teacher, I must admit I don’t always get a ton of personal satisfaction from it. I really count on the summers to get recharged while I pursue some of my passions. I normally spend much of the summer outdoors camping, hiking, exercising, fishing etc. This summer I’ve been dealing with a knee injury and have spent the last month sitting around the house. Trying to get treatment with my HMO is depressing and slow! Had I known it would be like this I would have taken some classes or something. As it is, there really isn’t much of a reason not to drink. Anyway, I’m going to hang in there and try not to worry. I’ll just take my NAL one hour before.

Stick with it! You are very early on in the process. It can be frustrating as hell and there are times when I don't think it's working for me. but overall my numbers are lower than pre-TSM I think I'm spiking again though. stayed up too late and drank a little more than I would''ve liked. but still didn't go crazy like I used to. it's a damn rollercoaster for sure.

Not much progress to report. The past two weeks felt pretty much like I'm not on medication at all. I guess the urge to get the first one down is a little less. I also notice that I feel a little bloated after the first beer or two. Unfortunately that usually has meant just delaying dinner while I drink right through the feeling. I had every reason not to drink lately. My non-drinking in laws were staying with us and I had oral surgery which was very painful. I chose to drink instead of taking the pain medication.

In the meanwhile, I'll just stick with the program and try not to think about it. I know it's way too early to draw any conclusions.

It's great to see all the activity on the board. Thanks for sharing everyone, and good luck on your journey!

Andy