So, I officially started TSM last week and would like to start documenting my experience and progress.

Week 1:
AF 5 days - 7 drinks total.
Took 25 mg (1/2 pill) Nal Friday because I wanted some wine while relaxing. Effect was dramatic. The wine tasted different to me. I drank very slowly, which is not my norm. Usually, I drink wine way too fast and can consume a whole bottle easily myself. Will then continue with one or two mixed drinks or beer on a weekend night. Had 4 drinks over a 4 hour time period. Did not get the usual high or feel drunk. Did not sleep as well as normal. Woke up with nausea, terrible headache. Took ibuprofen - did nothing. Tried running and felt terrible. Had to walk the second half.

Took only 12.5 mg Saturday (1/4 pill). Had three total drinks over 4 hours. Really did not even feel the desire to drink. Did more so out of habit. Still had mild headache in the morning and slight tummy trouble. Slept better. I will stick with 12.5 mg for awhile because I simply can't tolerate more. Maybe that will change?

I definitely feel like this will work for me, but it is HARD. It's strange to drink and not feel the euphoria. I definitely missed that feeling and felt a little bummed. Right now don't feel the desire to drink at all. I need to work on my psychological dependence. I was never physically addicted, thank God. But getting rid of the crutch of alcohol to deal with stress, boredom, etc. will be challenging. I need to do this for me and my family, but it is going to be harder than I thought. I only hope the side effects of Nal will lessen, because they are terrible for me.

And just for a little history, I am a binge drinker. Do well during the week when working and busy. Weekends forget it. My binges got longer and was drinking more and more. Every Friday and Saturday, and began adding Sundays. Friday and Saturday at the worst I could consume around 10 - 12 drinks each night. Would add Sundays sometimes to feel better after being hungover. Would drink maybe 5 or 6 on Sundays. Husband and kids were noticing and not happy. I simply have no stop button. Once I start, I can't stop at two or three. Nal is definitely putting an end to that.

hi JanCan,

well done, it sounds like you've made a great start. sorry to hear you're suffering SE's - if you stick with 12.5mg the next few times then they do tend to pass quite quickly for most people, then work your way up through 25 to 50

keep up the good work

-badger

I hope the SE's will diminish as well. The thought of taking Nal and drinking right now makes me feel sick, so I guess it's working in the sense that my thinking about what drinking will do for me is changing. I will keep on going and see what happens. I also binge eat and the Nal stops that as well so far. Benefits definitely outweigh the bad.

Two weeks down. Friday I did well with 2.5 drinks total. Saturday went out with husband and ended up with 6 total drinks for the day. I only took 12.5 mg of Nal, so I am thinking it is time to increase it a little. The side effects have decreased, so I think next time I will up it to 18-19 mg. I know this is very conservative, but I need to be able to function and don't want the side effects to deter me.

I have learned a few things as well. I love wine, but when I drink it I can easily drink a whole bottle. I have been drinking Miller 65 which has 2.8% alcohol, and this works well for me. I am able to keep my total down and can quit after 3 - 4 beers. I am planning on having only one glass of wine when I do drink it, then have light beer the rest of the time to see how my number look. I also don't do well if I start drinking early. Saturday I had my first glass at 4:00. When I wait until after 6:00, it is much easier for me.

I am also training for a half marathon which is literally kicking my butt. I am very tired most of the time and it makes me more irritable. Working out is supposed to make you feel better, but I have felt horrible the last two weeks. I am committed to doing at least a month of training because I know it can take awhile to see improvement. I plan on at least 5 days AF this week.

That's cool! I'm planning on doing a half marathon in September. Having to get up and go running is pretty good motivation to not get wasted, huh?

Maybe I should try your technique and get some really gross light beer instead of the craft IPA's and saisons that I like so much......

My husband asks me why I don't just drink water! I find it tolerable in the summer when the beer is really cold. I actually sometimes add ice to it It's working for me, but I bet in the winter I will want something different. Yes, having to run in the morning certainly makes me think twice about drinking the night before, especially for those long runs coming up!

Ha! You made me laugh (though it wasn't funny at the time...). Before TSM I played the clock game for decades. Guess what?

-I lost!

I probably started like you aiming for 6:00pm. In the end my goal was no drinking until I sat down for lunch. I lost that one too. Just before TSM it was a shot or two before sitting down with a bottle or two of wine with lunch. Thank God I found TSM before I progressed to regular (I certainly did on occasion) drinking for breakfast!

Hi JanCan, I can see from your numbers you are making progress and really drinking small amounts to begin with. Going AF for 5 days would be a great accomplishment. Also awesome job training for the half marathon! I have done many 5K and 10K races and would love to do a half marathon sometime.

Week 3 in the books. I seem to be holding steady, although the effect of the Nal seems to be waning a bit. My side effects are almost gone, so next week I will bump up from 12.5 to 25 mg. Ideally, I would like to drink 3 or less on a given day. More than that and I feel crappy the next day.

A little history - I am a binge drinker, mostly weekends. However over time my numbers and days per week were slowly creeping up. Also, when I had time off from work, vacations or holidays, my drinking really took off. On a week where I would drink Friday, Saturday and Sunday I could easily consume 15 - 25 drinks. I found myself drinking an entire bottle of wine in an evening and then going for more. Sometimes I would drink two bottles by myself. And when I had a week off during holidays I would go on a major bender. I can't even tell you how much I could drink, but it is frightening.

That is what prompted me to seek help. I found whenever I drank, my numbers were getting higher and higher. I just could not get enough. My family was noticing and not happy about it. It was affecting my kids. I started being hung over at work. My weight was going up. My work outs were tanking. It would take me until Wednesday to actually feel good again. If I let it progress, I don't know where I would end up. So far, it seems to be working, but I still find myself craving a drink and drinking more than I would like. We will see how it goes when I up the dose. I just hope the side effects don't come raging back.