Hi, I have been following the forum and want to enter and share my experiences with Naltrexone.

I have been taking it for at least 2- 1/2 months, using it as a deterent to drinking, and it was working that way for me.

Now having read The SM, and recently started having major cravings, I am drinking with the intake of daily naltrexone.

What I find very wild is that I did not have any urges at all for drinking, but suddenly I can not stop drinking!

But I am not drinking as much as I was. I think I used to drink a lot, daily but usually not to the point of drunkenness. Maybe once a month I would get out of control. Not blackout, I have maybe blacked out 5 times in my life. Unfortunately I do not have the unit formula down yet.

I drink and I eat. I am not overweight. I just am saying I eat and drink, not only live for drink alone.

I do not need to have stress to drink, I just like the way I feel with alcohol in my system.

I am worried though since I had been doing well without the drink, and now I feel I am going the other way. Well I will Whoops running out of power!

Hi ART

Welcome to the board!

I was wondering are you following the Sinclair method exactly- ie. Taking 50mg an hour before your first drink, and only taking it on the days you drink?

I am worried if you do not follow it to the letter, it could be detrimental because you were previously using it for abstinance?

Marabella, I was thinking about the same thing and I may write a ? to the Dr. but after thinking about this a little more, I realize although I am drinking, my drinking is 1/2 of my prior habit. Yesterday I drank some wine (1/2 bottle) and some other liquor, (21%), and did not continue after about 5pm. I seemed to be satisfied and did not need anymore. It was a good feeling.

I will try to compose a question for the Dr. maybe he can help me with an answer, but as I read this forum, his answers seem to always be a formula without deviation, and for us as drinkers, there always will be deviation, that is the nature of the drug and personality.

Thanks for the input. Wish me luck!, as I do for you, art

ps I will attempt to be more careful and watch my intake time and consumption time. That's a good observation.

I see you have posted your question to Dr. Eskapa, I look forward to his answer.

I think if you begin tracking your daily progress you will probably notice a difference- I began from day 1 and am glad I did because if I hadn't I think I would still be noticing the heavy days and not realising how many days there are when I drink very little at all.

It is good that you are able to stop and not want more- I have had days like this and pre-Sinclair it was unheard of. If you are now drinking about half, that sounds like you are making fantastic progress- it is supposed to take about 4 months, and you sound like you started around the same time as me, I am just coming up to the end of my 5th week.

So it's early days yet

I know, before in my drinking I would definitely drink all day until I went to sleep, not fall down drunk but passing out to the sleep stage. Then awaking at 2 or 3 and needing more, and needing the sugar addition.
Yes, I will try to start to log and I did just get up and first thing I did was take my Nal pill.
Off to the day......

So four days have gone by since my last post and I have been drinking and craving wine. I have been drinking about 1 bottle of wine per day and threw in a small flask of vodca. I have never felt like going to far into the bottle of either one.
The day starts with a little nip of wine and I seem to be continuing through the day, but around five pm the craving seems to stop. Not a bad feeling.
It is good to go to sleep and not be drunk and not to wake up in the middle of the night lost and scared.

I think I am having good results with this method. If I reduce my drinking from this point forward, as the program works for me, I would be happy. I just do not feel the need to get drunk and I have some control over how much I drink. That is amazing. I feel very hopeful.

Sorry I am not logging the drinks and cravings, I just can not seem to think that way. But I am aware of my progress. We shall see.
Looks like I am up from 1/2 bottle per day to 1 bottle.

I have had a very successful day in my book. I drank about 1/2 bottle of wine and then went to a dinner party. I had two drinks with vodca, two normal drinks. I was totally fine and did not need to drink anymore than that. It was a big drinking crowd and the Al was flowing freely.

I am home now, and I just had a small glass of wine and that's it. I feel no need for more.

I am most amazed, and satisfied. Thank you naltrexone.

Way to go, ART! Good progress report, and very encouraging for the rest of us. My SO and I have partied, one way or another, every night this week. I'm realizing that much of our drinking stems from the pleasure we both have in entertaining. We hosted two dinner parties last week, went out to hear a good band last night, and are joining a group of our friends for our traditional Sunday potluck at a little local bar.

I'm going to have to re-think which friends we associate with regularly. I do have a number of friends who are only moderate drinkers - but haven't seen them as much as I did b/4 the alcohol took control of my life.

I am not feeling well. I am struggling with the idea of this method.

I am having strong cravings round the clock again for wine. I am now drinking again all day as I had in the past. And it is making me depressed. I do not know if it is psychosomatic, or if the wine is physically and mentally affecting me. It would help me if I knew. I also am depressed about something serious in my life.......so it is complex.

Maybe that's not correct. Yesterday I did not have any wine until about 4 pm when I went to the store. Then I drank a bottle and 1 glass.

How many units are in 1 bottle of wine? I know it is somewhere on the forum but I will try to figure out so I can start logging it. I want to be successful, please, please, please.

So friends, I am struggling with the concepts of this method, and I need to have assistance to get me through so I am not beating myself up. I am so depressed I can not even get out of bed.

Courage there !
Of course you're depressed after your recent heavy drink . But the post before that was positive . I know it's hard to lift out of alco depression but
this is all going to be wiped away , imagine that , just thing of what you can expect should lift your spirits some for now . You may have noticed how although there is mention of 3 or 4 or even six months to the programme
it is often the case that people report positive changes at all different point
it may be just more torturous for the heavier consumers . Courage !