I'm in to my third week now. I've found that taking the Nal an hour before drinking hasn't been a problem. There has been a time or two where it was all I could do to wait that hour, but I don't want to screw this up, so I did.

The first two weeks I was really happy to see my numbers going down. I started measuring out my vodka at the beginning of the evening which really seemed to help me slow down (thanks Saint Vincent!). With my lower numbers I was also thrilled to not wake up hung over or jittery!

The last few nights, though, my numbers are heading up again and I'm getting a little worried. It started Friday after I spent an afternoon in family court finishing up my divorce. That night I came home and drank more than I measured out. Since then, my numbers are going up from 8 to 10 to 12. This morning I'm hung over and worried that I'm going to continue drinking more and be right back where I was.

Is this normal on Nal? After the first two weeks I was thinking I would just keep drinking less and less but that doesn't seem to be true. Any thoughts on when I'll know if this is working for me??

Your sharp initial drop (the "honeymoon") is proof Naltrexone is impacting you. The spike in your drinking is called "the extinction burst" and happens all of the time: your body gets acclimated to the Naltrexone, wants the old high and your drinking increases. This is very typical. Search "extinction burst" on this board -- it happens all of the time and almost always tapers off.

Just keep taking the pill one hour before and look to regain control in 6-12 months, not 3-4. It's a roller coaster but it does work for the vast majority who try it. I have seen very few, if any people, have a sharp reduction like you, only to claim later that TSM did not work for them. Patience is key.

My best,

Nick

Hey Away - Listen to the wisdom of Nick who's been through it. I'm in week 13 and I can tell you my numbers in the first 5 weeks were all over the place. I had to hang onto the little successes not to give up on this. Keep tracking your numbers....it all helps in the end. I think around week 6 you will start to see some more more major changes, but for now just notice the little changes like alcohol not tasting as good, some nights not drinking as much, some nights not craving as much, and some nights walking away from alcohol that you simply had to have in the past. Those were my experiences in the beginning and they gave me hope. Track those experiences too. Write them down here and you will reinforce your progress. Also, when I get really discouraged I read through the posts of those who succeeded or are succeeding again and that really helps.

Awayout, don't worry these first 3 months anything goes numbers wise. I started out with a strong initial response and increased control and then spiked a couple of times in the early months. At almost 8 months on TSM now I'm just settling in for good control and lessened thoughts of drinking as my new normal. I'm in the process of a divorce right now too and I understand how you could come home from court and tie one on. Don't dwell on it or beat yourself up. Your body needs to make sure it's not going to get a reward for drinking so it's looking for the rush and you're drinking more to try and find it. Nick described it well as an "extinction burst" and it's part of the process. Hang in there.

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate your responses.

What worried me was feeling the drug for the first two weeks, and then not feeling it. I'm glad to hear that's a normal response. Patience has never been my strong point, but I know I can stick to "the program".

I'll keep posting my numbers and trying to stay hopeful this is going to work!

awayout-
yo-
i am one week ahead of you and had the same experience. indeed, the compulsion to keep consuming drink after starting has definitely returned but not to the level before taking naL. (think train wreck vs. bicycle collision)
it's weird to try and trust this process when you have a hard time consciously feeling the naL but that is why this board is cool- we get to look into our probable future!

yeah- patience hasn't been my thing either- i doubt it is for most alcoholics. that said- it took awhile to get to this place and it will take some time to get out of the deep addiction.

i'm going to keep posting and i hope you do too.