I just finished my 5th week since starting nal, and was somewhat shocked to see I consumed roughly 50 units in the last week. I definitely think my honeymoon period ended after week 2 or 3, and my drinking has gone back to pre-nal levels, or more (probably because I am allowing myself to drink on more days now that I am taking nal.) In the past two weeks, I have had 3 binges which began with drinking in mid-evening on day one, then drinking in a bar until bar closing (2 am), then coming home (via cab or car service) and staying up all night, drinking at home (booze and coffee), and then taking another cab/car service to a bar at opening time while still drunk (6 or 8 a.m., depending on whether I stay in Minnesota or go to Wisconsin.) Then I drink until bar closing that day - again, 2 a.m. I take no other drugs aside from nicotine and caffeine. On the last binge, my mom got word of my drinking and called me in tears, pleading for me to stop. I have also drained my bank account quite rapidly in the past few weeks, have missed a couple days of work (though I did call in "sick"), and I'm pretty well scared to pick up again, for fear of another embarrassing binge. Plus, I look like crap and feel sweaty/jittery for a couple days after a binge, but that's nothing new.

In addition to welcoming feedback and advice, I guess my only question is whether I should wait until I really, really want to drink again before doing so. I have been drinking most every Friday and Saturday (and a couple ill-timed week (work) nights) because I want to make nal work as quickly as possible. But after reading again last night about the alcohol deprivation effect (I have read Eskapa's entire book), perhaps I should slow it down until the craving is strong. I have been drinking alcoholically for 20 years and do not want to give up on nal after only 5 weeks. Any feedback is most welcome; thank you all.

Hi SPS

As you will know it is quite normal to go back to pre-TSM drinking levels, however if it's causing serious life issues then I'd encourage you to do whatever you can do to either go AF or seriously control your drinking. So long as you either don't drink, or only drink with Nal you shouldn't do any harm, and it's obvious your current level is doing you plenty of harm.

Have you had any success with being AF in the past, if so what tools did you use and how did you do that?

You might want TSM to work quickly but you cannot speed up the process as such, habits and mindsets can be broken using other told and in my experience that can help at least as well as bunging more alcohol at the problem!

I agree with a lot of what UKB says. It just can't be rushed.

I know after my first few days, I too had a feeling of, "oh well I'm superman now so I can drink like there's no tomorrow!" And that got me in bed sick for a couple days, and missing work because of it.

I would suugest some abstinence and then really think about the next drink and why you want it. Dropping any habit ( smoking, drinking, even things like spending all day playing video games): along with not doing the habit, what to do with all that new free time comes into play too. As well as why were you doing it to the point it became such a habit? These are things no pill can help you with.

So, I haven't posted my intake lately, mostly because I was embarrassed and lost count of drinks. I have FAITHFULLY taken TSM 1 hour before drinking and have been a complete mess with strong alcohol cravings. 3.5 months in. I am very dismayed.

Listen to yourself: You've been a drunk for 20 years, you stay out drinking around the clock and piss away all your money, you've got your poor mother in tears, you drink too much to work (when presumably they need you there) so you call out, -and you are dismayed that TSM hasn't given you a miracle cure after 3.5 months...

Easy fella. Virtually no one walks away cured in 3.5 months. And at some point, you're going to have to do a little lifting on your own if you want to see this through. Try setting a modest goal like maybe stay out of bars for a while. If you don't ever walk in one, you won't ever spend all night in one. Drink at home. NAL is not a Get Out Of Jail Free card. You have to participate in your cure. You want more than alcohol when you go in those bars, and NAL won't help you with that.

StPaulS,

Not sure I would have said it the exact way clarion did but I would agree that TSM has never been sold as a quick cure. We took years to get into this despicable place we are and have spent countless months, dollars and brain cells being addicted to the demon alcohol - so there should be no expectation of a quick cure. Read some of the cured posts. Yes there have been those lucky ones who are quick responders - but the true story is after 6-8 months or longer.

hang in there and keep following the golden rule.

Hi there - I am just going to reiterate what the others have said - I started Nal in January and am still not cured ! Nal is not a magic pill - once things settle down after the honeymoon period and then the intake starts going back up again, is when YOU need to start helping yourself. Aim for some AF days - try and be more mindful when you think about taking that next drink - the Nal is a tool - and if used correctly will eventually effect a cure - of that I am sure - so just keep plodding on !!!

Hugs, Maggie

Thanks for everyone's comments this week. I had it stuck in my mind that 3-4 months was the norm for most people. I read some of the "cured" posts, and I now realize I need to be much more patient. I had been drinking more frequently on Nal than I had in any previous period in my drinking history, with the hope that the more I drank with Nal, the more quickly I would be cured. I agree that drinking at home will be better than drinking in bars, though often when I attempt only at-home drinking, I eventually make my way to a bar (via cab/Uber only.) I also agree there is something I seek in bars that Nal cannot address, but I'm not sure how to put my finger on that. Perhaps some sort of therapy would be a good idea, though I'm not convinced that can help, based on previous experiences with therapy. At any rate, this is my 4th AF day in a row, and I will not drink again until Friday at the earliest, which will bring me to 9 AF days.

DON"T give up, St Paul Steve. This really does work, but it is subtle and it takes time. I am five months in, was really only a moderate drinker but losing control, and I am JUST NOW starting to see progress. Others on the board have taken a year, even two, but it is amazing when you finally feel it kick in. Do what you need to do to keep safe, ALWAYS follow the Golden Rule, and try to have patience. It is not easy to do it, but we are all here to help you as much as we can.

XOXO Newlife