Went to my PCP today for a Naltrexone prescription and he wouldn't give it to me. Said he'd never prescribed it before and that I should look into a program that is overseen by an addiction specialist.

I leaned on him a bit and he said he'd do some research on and get back to me.

I may look into talking to another Dr, but not sure who to do see. My guess is most PCPs haven't heard of Naltrexone. Worse case, I'll just wait for the order I put in with River Pharmacy to show up end of the month.

Q

Medical doctors may not have heard of naltrexone or, worse, they have read that it is a not-very-effective anti-craving drug. I hope your m.d. visits this site and reads the science. Maybe we need to discuss a strategy about how to present the Sinclair Method to our m.d.'s. Thanks for posting and hang in there. Lena

The problem with "addiction specialists" is that they will nickel and dime you to the poorhouse. They will insist on counseling and other voodoo at $150 a pop. It's a scam and they should be ashamed of themselves.

The COMBINE study clearly showed the voodoo is unneccessary and one of the project's lead researchers even said that naltrexone treatment was appropriate for a general practitioner to oversee. Withholding treatment in the face of scientific research that shows its effectiveness is malpractice, plain and simple.

I was a little bummed out when I left his office, but at the same time I understand where he's coming from. My Dr. had never even heard of Naltrexone. He wouldn't be doing service to his patients if he prescribed treatment without knowing if, for example, it conflicted with another medication I'm taking.

It's unfortunate, but one way or another I'll get started. It just may take a bit longer than I'd hoped.

That's what the PDR is for. No doctor can possibly know all the drugs that are out there but except in the case of specialty drugs (chemo drugs, for example), all doctors should be prepared to prescribe any drug appropriate for the condition for which you need treatment. Looking up things like interactions take only moments.

Yes, but the PDR still shows naltrexone as anti-craving drug which is why N101CS suggested elsewhere that you might consider telling your m.d. you want it to help you abstain (even though it's not very effective at all for supporting abstinence).

Just got a call from my Dr.'s office. He filled my Naltrexone prescription. Looks like he did his research in a hurry!!

Q -

Did you leave him with information and if so, what was it? Also - do you mind posting your doctor's info in the area of the forum set up for that? If not it's okay, but it might help others in your area.

Thanks!

RV

Hi Q -
So happy for you your Dr was willing to go forward and was so quick to respond. This "addiction specialist" I saw will be, I think, a joke. Documenting our meetings and rewriting my prescription month by month, until...who knows what. Probably my "mental health" care aspect of my insurance runs out. Hope your experience is better. I was really sort-of hoping for a medical professional to help guide me...not counseling, but just support in a general sense.

There aren't too many aware of this yet, I don't think. Surely not with the obsession and passion we are all pursuing it with. I think we are starting a new group of research fodder right here. It could be Oprah or Dr. Phil (ugh - he rackles me) material, but I, for one, cannot see myself on Oprah. I whole-heartedly agree with SpingerRider in another post where he compared a non-smoker saying "I am addicted to nicotine" w/ a moderate/non-drinker saying "I am addicted to alcohol"...the public perception is apples & oranges. I hope this method does eventually rock our addicted world. At the very least, that it rocks ours at every corner...

In the meantime, a few thoughts:
N101CS, you MADE feta cheese?? Hmmmm- sounds yummy - homemade feta?! Start a new thread: Cheese & the Cheesy?? LOL

Also...is anyone else having "nightmares"? It is weird - my sleep patterns have been off since Friday night. Just waking every few hours with HUGELY vivid dreams...weird, scary ones. Not exactly nightmares - but enough to wake me up with heart palpitations & that sudden shock of "OH! WHEW - just a dream!" Seriously - Fri & Sat I woke up several times with just weirdly vivid & unpleasant dreams. I sort-of dismissed them, but I had to get up & go to school this morning and it happened again. Slept fitfully...(don't ask me about the alligator w/ the snout that glowed before he was about to attack!! I woke up just when he lit up!!!! GAWD!!! LOLOL) I about died of a heart attack and who wants to wake up like that! Not a pleasant side effect, but one I will deal with if it means continuing the mostly subtle positives I feel. Fewer drinks - better mornings if only for that.

The other good thing is I share funny stuff like that w/ my students and they get a kick out of it. They reminded me we had seen a film about the culture of India & some rare long-snouted alligators were on it...what I'm thinking is "you guys don't know the half of it"...where the "glowing" comes from?? Dunno - perhaps our own noses sometimes...LOL

At any rate - I can already tell something...not the "honeymoon" some of you described, and perhaps it is the power of hope & suggestion, but I had less this weekend & tonight. No hangovers. The dream nonsense??I can deal with...

I need to find the post again from Q how to chart progress in our signatures...I would like to do it personally & am int'd in others. Not real good following instructions to "pull down this/right click that..." but will try as I like the info.
Thanks all - g'nite.

Yup, homemade feta cheese. It's pretty easy but does require some special stuff like the cheese cultures (bacteria), rennet and calcium chloride solution. But all easily 'gettable' over the internet. 3 gallons of milk (on sale for $2 gallon) makes 3 pounds of cheese.



I didn't have nightmares but had some weird dreams the first week or two.