Fantastic!

You are doing everything right. Enjoy your clarity, have patience and don't freak out if you have a bump. The clarity and control will not leave you.

Congratulations.

Woo Hoo!! So happy for you & apologize for slow response. I am sooooooooooooo happy you are seeing and feeling some changes. That's what we're hoping for - and striving for! It's all a good sign this is working for you. Hang in there & keep posting.
XO

Thank you, houtx and MN! It's really nice to have support from people who know.

Week 3

Pre-TSM: 50-70 units
Week 1: about 20 units, 2 AF
Week 2: about 30 units, 4 AF
Week 3: 38 units, 2 AF (note: Week 4 has started off with 2 more AF)

In the third week, I noticed lethargy and a feeling of being "flat," disconnected from those around me. Pretty sure it was the Nal -- I've started Week 4 with 2 AF, meaning 2+ days with no Nal, and my spirits are up. Planning on exercise today to reinforce good endorphins. Remaining 10x more productive than I was when hung over all the time (for example, got some of my art accepted into a major gallery and cleaned out drawers and closets I've been meaning to tackle for about two years). Still drinking waaaay less than I used to and feeling clarity through most of drinking times. Still seeing 1/2-full bottles when I get up in the morning (that would never have happened before).

Still at a couple of Unisom plus about 5-7.5 mg Temazepam for sleep on AF nights. The Temazepam (benzo) is taking longer to get off of than I thought, but I'm still happy about being down from 60+ mg on every AF night.

I can see my units going up from Week 1, and I'm still anticipating a bigger spike. But I'm really, really happy with the progress.

You're hitting the time when I spiked after my honeymoon. It will suck and be discouraging, but you are definitely on the right path. Have patience.

My best,

Nick

Pre-TSM: 50-70 units
Week 1: about 20 units, 2 AF
Week 2: about 30 units, 4 AF
Week 3: 38 units, 2 AF
Week 4: 23 units, 4 AF

Drank only 3 days this past week. 8 units, 8 units, 7 units.

Definite feeling of alcohol tasting bad/having to choke it down this week. Actually forcing down more than I'd like because I'm afraid I won't sleep (old habit). Still on small amounts of sleep meds on AF nights. Food tastes better this week, but appetite still feels off.

Continue to feel "flat" emotionally on Nal. But the other results so clearly are worth it. Still waiting on/wondering about a spike....

.

DOMD, I've never been clear on calculating units in any system, so I just made up my own. I figure about one glass of wine/ one beer/ one shot = one unit. My calculation is that a bottle of wine = 5 units. That's my usual poison. I see some calculating a glass at 1.5, others discussing levels of pour.... So my units may look inflated or deflated to some. I'm not going to overthink it. What I do know is that my units have gone down significantly since I started TSM! Just know (you and whoever else is tracking my progress) that I am trying to keep my base "unit" consistent each week so that even if you're not calculating a unit the same way I am, you are seeing actual trends in my numbers.

PS (Edit): I'm in the US.

Okay, so I've been thinking that my calculation of pre-TSM units/week may have been a bit high because I was still figuring out how to calculate units the "right" way (finally gave up and just went with one glass of wine/one beer/one shot (alone or in a drink) = one unit). My usual poison is wine, and I think there are about five glasses (my pours) in a bottle. So I think I should recalculate my pre-TSM units/week at 40-55 rather than 50-70. As I noted above, this isn't the way everyone's calculating, but (other than my original pre-TSM calculation) you should be able to see trends in my numbers regardless as I am keeping my own "unit" pretty consistent. I thought I should make this note about my pre-TSM adjustment as it makes my progress look less dramatic (don't want to mislead anyone or give false hope).

Pre-TSM: 40-55 units/week (NOT standard TSM calculation, see above), 0-4 AF

Week 1: about 20 units, 2 AF (definitely honeymoon)

Week 2: about 30 units, 4 AF

Week 3: 38 units, 2 AF

Week 4: 23 units, 4 AF

Week 5: 28 units, 4 AF

A few notes:

-- My units seem to be staying pretty low (compared to pre-TSM). Week 1 was definitely the honeymoon, and Week 3 was a spike. It's now Week 6. I've yet to go back to pre-TSM levels or above. I'm still drinking quite a bit in each session -- Note that there are sometimes 4 AF days in a week, so the Nal + Al days are contributing lots of units each.

-- I can barely drink red wine anymore. It used to be my drink of choice. It tastes pretty bad now, and I have to choke it down when I choose it. I've found myself drinking white wine and vodka/cran.

-- Craving: Seems more "habit" now (e.g. looking forward to wine with dinner) than overwhelming desire. It will take a while to understand what's what, I'm sure.

-- Definitely still having way more control when I drink. Remembering most or all of my evenings, drinking each drink slower. My husband frequently "laps" me now when we are out for drinks, which was unheard of before. (He is not an alcoholic and usually stops drinking on a given evening long before I do.)

-- Nal continues to have a very flattening effect on my mood. I think that this is because a) without endorphins, the days after drinking I feel way more letdown and b) endorphins in general are lower.

-- Hangovers have become brutal. Many others report this -- just want to say that I hear you.

-- Still needing sleeping pills on AF days. I was doing a good job titrating down but then noticed a spike in need for them last week (not a desire for a "high" -- just unable to sleep without a bit more each time). So I think I may go cold turkey (my dose isn't high enough that this is medically dangerous) and just get off of them. That's not fun as it means two or three nights with no or very little sleep.... But I've done it before, and once they're out of my system, I'm able to get sleep normally again, usually, on AF nights.

I've noticed that some here have long periods of no AF days/nights. Everyone's drinking pattern is different.... In the past, I've had whole weeks that were binges. More recently (pre-TSM), it's been more likely that I'll alternate drinking night/AF/drinking night/AF. This has definitely become a more noticeable pattern on TSM -- possibly because the hangovers are so bad. More on this as I figure it out....

Pre-TSM: 40-55 units/week (see above for my calculation of units), 0-4 AF

Week 1: about 20 units, 2 AF

Week 2: about 30 units, 4 AF

Week 3: 38 units, 2 AF

Week 4: 23 units, 4 AF

Week 5: 28 units, 4 AF

Week 6: 31 units, 3 AF

Units continue to be lower than pre-TSM.