Just gonna get a thread up and running as I'm about to start my second stint at TSM. I followed it for around 6 months in 2012 with what was looking back now, very good success. Below is my progress thread from then.....

viewtopic.php?t=3033

After I stopped posting, at around Christmas time for a number of reasons I started to backslide. Ran out of Nal... Started missing days.. Benzos. Whatever it was, I was back to square one around the beginning of March. What followed was a crazy 2013. My drinking has got worse. I tried Baclofen in the summer of last year with some success but the SEs got too much and I came off it.

My average week as of late goes like...

Thursday to Sunday.. 4 litres of 5% beer each night then another night during the week with the same. So an average of 4-5 nights on and 2-3 nights off. Some weeks when I have money it can turn into an all day binge for 3-4 days.

Lately I've been finding it hard to go more than 3-4 days due to terrible anxiety and my insides feeling like they're gonna fall out of my arse. I had a binge on vodka last weekend and I really thought I'd done myself some damage. It scared me a bit if I'm being honest. (Not a big shorts drinker)

Anyway.. I received my meds on Tuesday but I'd been taking Codeine so wanted to be on the safe side and get it out of my system before starting back. (I learnt the hard way about taking Nal with opiates in your system.)

I've 6 beer in the fridge and will probably start tonight. I'll get back with an update.....

Thomas

Good luck Thomas!!

Please keep posting often so we can see how you go, and cheer you on.
Babs

Will do Babs.

I'm gonna hold of till Monday. I just don't want to risk it. Its been nearly 6 days and the opiates are probably well gone but I'm not risking it. I had a horrible time last time I did it. I just can't remember how long I waited. Its recommended to wait 7 days so I'm gonna follow orders for once. Another couple of days won't hurt. I'm not gonna go overboard anyway tonight I've only got 6 light beer.

Hi. I don't think we've met. I'm Melissa, and I hang out here a lot for no apparent reason.

Did you reach "cured" the first time? I ask because, if the learned behavior was extinguished, the re-extinction usually happens more quickly than the original.

I only learned this recently, and was surprised (but pleased). I sort of assumed that re-extinction would be slower, a la selective reinforcement, but in fact it's faster if the extinction was complete. We re-learn faster if we go back to the addiction, but also re-extinguish faster once we go back to the cure.*

If you weren't cured, on the other hand, then you can probably expect a longer road to true cure. If the addiction was still there, and you went back to feeding it, then you encouraged it to hang on.

From the previous thread, it looks like you never called yourself cured. Welcome back, and we're here for you.


[*]I don't think that means it's safe for cured people to drink on the assumption that we can always re-cure, though. Some really bad stuff can happen during active addiction.

Hi Mellisa...

I've learnt ALOT since my first go at TSM and looking back, with a bit of work I probably could have called myself "cured" although I don't really think its the right word to use. "Under Control" is the term I've came to like most and I was certainly that first time out. As you can see from my units. I was probably under control by 3 weeks in. Back then I just kept on going out of habit waiting for some magical switch to happen and for me to wake up one morning and be totally indifferent to alcohol. Although this might happen to some, I don't think this was going to happen with me. A bit of work, willpower, whatever you want to call it might have helped more.

I see TSM as a tool, the same as with Baclofen. A lot of people over on Mywayout who have reached "indifference" with Baclofen still have 2-3 beers or a few glasses of wine maybe 2-3 time a week. They still have to put a bit of effort into going AF. I believe its the same with TSM.

I just want to get my drinking under control again. I've been drinking a fair bit more than the last time out but I'm confident I'll get there again. I see no reason why not. I've a few more tools in my tool box so to speak this time round.

The best way I could describe my first experience was that I felt like this was what it must feel like to be a "normal" drinker. I could have a beer or 2 (or 3) and then just couldn't stomach any more as I was drinking that slow I wasn't getting a buzz. Therefore I seem point in continuing. That to me is what I'd call cured. The next stop towards abstinence would probably take me using some coping skills and not to just relie on TSM magically taking the craving totally out of the picture.

Sorry for rambling, I got carried away there. Hope that all makes a bit of sense

Does it really take that long for codeine, tramadol etc to get out of your system?

Your really meant to give it 7 days to be on the safe side but you could probably get away with 3 days. It all probably depends on the amount and the duration you'd been taking it. Theres no way in hell I want to feel the way I did last time. It was nasty, basically sending me into acute opiate withdrawl. I was taking opiates a bit more regularly back then though. This time round I only had 150mg of DHC on Sunday so I'm probably in the clear. I'm gonna pop a Nal later and hope for the best ... wish me luck

Well all went ok last night. Popped a Nal at around 4pm and off I went. I felt some nausea an hour later when it was really taking effect. This lead me into a bit of a panic as I though it might be the opiates still insise me but it was nothing to worry about.

I'm glad to say that the Nal did its thing just like I remembered first time out. I had 4 beer over the space of 5 hours with the 4th being half full this morning and going down the drain. I hope this is sign of things to come. That little pill really does block any joy.

I think I'm also a bit wiser this time round. What I mean by that is I think I now know that its time to really really knock the booze on the head. I can only see health problems ahead if I keep up at the rate I've been going. I've been drinking at higher levels than 2 years ago. I also think I'm going through a bit of a mid life crisis These kind of things make you really look at your life.

You're older and wiser this time round and you have more tools in your toolbox. You've learnt lessons from your past experience with TSM which will help you with it this time. It worked before and based on yesterday it seems as though it will work again. I think you're right about needing some extra willpower along the way, especially once the Nal has done it's job and extinction has occurred. I too was waiting for total indifference to magically happen, but it didn't and I had to work on changing things up a bit...there can be a lot of ingrained habits and associations with drinking that need work to change.
Wishing you all the best.

I'm considering coming off the nal for a week to see if the tramadol (opiod) will really help with my back pain. I'm in such a dilemma, as I don't know if I can trust myself not to drink whilst not on the nal!

I am waiting for a nerve root block which is a steroid injection and that can be taken with nal.

Thomas what do you take the opioids for, and what do you use instead?