Yogagirl--Fantastic. That's what we are all looking forward to! What great numbers and your story about the "binge" and not feeling guilty--well that's what the "normal" people do. Good for you, it has to feel so good to be moving in such a positive direction, and so close to grabbing that goal. Keep it coming!

Hi All,

I finished Week 33 of TSM on Sunday with 16 units and 4 AF days. Overall a good week, with the exception that I totally overdrank one night when I had a packed schedule the next day. I suffered immensely and wondered for the millionth time "Why do I do this to myself?!?" Oh well, I'll take that as another reminder of what not to do. In my TSM experience, these brutal reminders end up leading to lower numbers in the coming weeks. So instead of beating myself up, I'll just try to remember how bad that felt the next time my addicted brain tries to hijack me!

Here's the latest chart. Ignoring my feelings on that one rotten day, the trend is still downward and overall I am much better than 33 weeks ago. I couldn't call myself a "normal" drinker yet, but I am enjoying life much more and wasting far less time on hangovers these days.

Have a great week everyone!

YG

WOW!!! Fantastic! I'm so excited for you and looking so forward to being there, too.

YG - Amazing progress. I am still at no AF per week and my units have not yet dropped significantly, but your chart gives me great hope. It is hard to imagine only having about 16 glasses of wine in a week and 4 AF days. However, I am noticing the extinction process that many of you who are six months or more in talk about. It is subtle but has something to do with not caring about alcohol so much anymore. Thanks for your post as it helps me stay on track.

Thanks for posting your graph YG--I see smoothly descending lines like St V's & mlb's and get bummed, but you have a beautiful set of up and down points that I can relate to! You must feel really good about how much better life is now than is was 33+weeks ago

Hi Yogagirl, that is an impressive graph. Certainly looks like TSM is working for you, Congratulations! Just wanted to say thanks again for a reply to one of my very first posts. You don't seem to have been posting much recently, hope everything is going A OK for you, Warrenjames

Hi YG - We haven't heard from you in awhile. Give us an update when you get a chance. As you know you inspire many of us in this forum.

Yoga Girl - Where are you? Have you regained control! Let us know if you have time. I keep wondering about you and how you are doing. When I joined, you were one of the first to say hello and give me encouragement along with St. Jude and MLB, so I do follow your progess.

Hi Everyone,

I am back ... and I apologize for the long absence. I will explain. Bottom line, I thought TSM wasn't working, I quit, I realize now that it was working, and I am starting again. So, here's the longer story.

I started TSM on June 1, 2010. Looking back at my chart, it is clear that TSM WAS working. I didn't have that magical cure that some people have, but my units were slowly trending downward, and I had much more control that I had pre-TSM. But I just got so tired of tracking units units and obsessing over the process. Then we had pipe burst and a flood in my basement in early February, 2011. The subsequent insurance claim and major remodel took a lot of time and attention, and I stopped tracking units and checking in on this board regularly

After a few months, I felt like I was drinking more - getting back to pre-TSM levels, although I wasn't tracking to know for sure. I started thinking the drug had no impact, that it was a placebo and that the mere act of tracking is what was really working.

So on April 23, 2011, when I was out of town for a wedding, I just decided to quit. The difference was immediate, but I chose to ignore it. I drank way more than I should have at the wedding, and continued a downward spiral until today - June 13, 2011. I have been back to all the old behaviors - sneaking more drinks when I am already hammered, hiding drinks under the sink when I am cleaning the kitchen, taking a glass of wine upstairs to read stories to the kids, etc. - all things I had stopped doing when I was taking Naltrexone.

So now I realize that even though I was looking for that "I'm Cured!" moment that never came, I was greatly improved. Maybe I will never be completely cured, but I will have more control. I think going off the rails for a month and a half will end up being good for me - now I know it was working all along.

YG

Hi YG - I'm so glad you are back. I have often wondered how you were doing.

I'm like you. I am trending downward still, but it is slow going for me. I still notice that TSM has given me so much more control over my drinking but no miraculous cure yet. So, although I stopped tracking formally, I still track in my head and take the Nal faithfully. I can easily see that if I stopped taking it my numbers would go back up.

So, welcome back, and hope you see rapid improvement this time around.