HG,

Amazing is right--and I really never expected this kind of success. Turns out I am one of the subjects that THE CURE cited- apparently I am one of the NAL super-sensitive lucky ones. I dropped to half a NAL three weeks ago to see what happened after weeks of success on the full 50mg and the half a tablet works exactly the same for me as the full tablet.

Add in that my personality is a basic "rule follower" and that helps with TSM because I just naturally abide by the "law". So it turns out I'm a good subject for TSM (or any behavioral modification program). That means it works fast for me, but this forum shows it works for anyone who adheres to it. Some of us take longer than others, but ....Success is success--slow or fast, and we are all looking for the success however and whenever (fast or slow) it comes our way. I honestly believe that a "cure" (e.g. behavior change) means months at the goal rate, so success is on the way for me and many others, but it will take real time to become the new reality.

I really admire your perseverance and it is obvious it will pay off for you.

Last night I drank 3 glasses of wine and I'm paying with a background headache today--geeze! just 4 months ago it would have taken 7-8 glasses of wine to cause a headache. Amazing, indeed!!

Awesome!

I would simply add that both the studies (the book) and this board confirm that Naltrexone does not work for everybody who try it. We've had several people here who it did not work for, although lately it has been nothing but success stories. HouTx was one of several other early members who were here for over a year and did not regain control. BUT, they appear to be in a small minority -- the studies estimate about 20% are not impacted in the brain by Naltrexone.

You are on your way to getting your name on our new "regained control" list! Congrats!

Hi GC - Thanks for the tip on dehydration. I didn't know that. I'm still not very good at drinking water when I'm drinking my wine, but I suspect that is going to change as I noticed last week that even one glass of wine makes me feel like I'm in a desert looking for water.

Hope your week is going well.

Hi GC

Your progress is absolutely amazing.Well done! Like HG I found the tip on dehydration interesting. So far my attempts to drink a glass of water between wines have been abysmal, but I will perservere. Wish me luck for "behaving" at my 50th this Sat- my friend & I have 130 people coming!

Cheers
Sticky

We're back from vacation and into the re-entry period. We were gone for a month, so it does take some time to reorient. Drinking on vacation was good--like a normal person. I actually wanted to drink less, but it didn't happen. Now, after a month of "normal" -- about 2 - 2.5 per day, I am still into that routine. It's too much (my goal is a maximum of 14 units per week), so I need to get myself back on track. But, that will take time, like getting back on track doing housework, grocery shopping, mail, work, etc etc! The TSM wine reduction is a new change, and those new changes are awfully easy to lose, so I know I must be diligent.

Oh, yeah, then there are the 6 pounds of "new me" I brought home! Well, 4 days home and I'm down to 4 pounds of new me!! Yikes-- a souvenier I don't need!

I just got the unpacking done and haven't even emailed my spreadsheet from my laptop to my PC, so don't have my current numbers on this computer, but I know I'm doing no more than 2.5 a day, most days 2. I miss the AF days and feel like those are what makes this really happen, so will do what I can to get back there, just twice a week AF seems to work miracles and will be wonderful.

Vacation's over--back to TSM business!! I read lots of posts and it looks like TSM AND YOU are doing your work and making progress!

Update on units to follow.

Hi GC, I'm new to TSM and actually just took my first pill today. I've been reading the forum and "mentally preparing" for a couple of weeks though. I've really enjoyed catching up on your posts and your progress- your progress and your motivation is really inspiring!! I agree that effort must be made to break the habit part of alcoholism. Thanks for the pointers on things to do to drink less- I will definetly try the mints (totally tastes bad with wine), measuring amounts, and switching to red wine. I can totally chug white wine, but I just don't enjoy red so much.
I look forward to following your progress and reading your informative posts! Keep up the great work!

Dear Gaincontrol,
your progress and figures are astounding! I wish you the best of luck. I'm hoping the same kind of progress for myself - like you, I am a big "rule follower" and a diligent patient. I'm also very receptive to medications, which is both good and bad (half an aspirin cures all my headaches, but a single sudafed makes me into a paranoid schizophrenic with heart palpitations lol!). I think your attitude is right on. Onwards and upwards!
EL

Some notes on my TSM progress....

I've gotten off track, for sure. Not only am I drinking more than I was, but I'm distracted with other activities. 'Know what? You can't change a habit unless you focus on it! Just like losing weight! I did much better when this was front and center.

One thing I did that I want to "warn" about is taking half a NAL. NAL was working so well, and I was doing so well, I dropped to half a tab. It was fine at first (probably because I was mid-habit change). But, slowly, I believe it stopped working and those dang neuorpathways were not being blocked--and I was still drinking.

I caught myself after a few weeks. Not only were my numbers creeping up, but worse, I was back to LIKING the wine too much! I'm back on the full NAL, but I believe I've taken a step backward and now have to rebuild some of the hard earned roadblocks. So, my advice to all--don't drop your NAL intake! Maybe after you are well cured and new habits are entrenched, but even then....proceed with caution.

A big step--I DID talk to a cardiologist about taking NAL and she was VERY supportive. She told me that as an intern all the docs took the drugs for alcohol control to try them out and some of them got kinda' sick on on NAL, but they thought it was good....I should have asked where she went to medical school!

It's nice to see all the enthusiastic new members on the board! Welcome and good luck. I'm going to try to get back on the forum--it really did help to have the regular input and reminders. And, also good to see the progress of we "regulars". Half-a-glass, wow--you are down from 50+ to 33. Fantastic! St Vincent, you are still my hero!

Although I'm drinking more than I was a month back, my overall progress is good. I have decided to redefine my goal...14 units a week is low for my lifestyle, so I think 18 will be a better maximum number for my goal. And, gosh darn it, I need to get those AF days back up and running. I can see that they are the "magic wand" that makes a huge difference in habit change and getting numbers down. (Sometimes I have 1 drink days, which I think are as good as AF, but I don't record AF unless it is truly zero.)

Back to business! Good luck to all.

GC, glad to see you back posting. At 19 weeks your drinking is down over 50% and that is a great accomplishment. You are now expecting more from yourself and that's exactly how I felt around 5 months. You get glimpses of excellent control and you think, "why can't I do this all the time?" It's coming you're doing great.

Thanks for the update GC! It is helpful for me as I ponder moving into a new phase of my life. I've lost about 45 lbs since Jan 24th on my way to losing 100 so I haven't been drinking much but I know that as lose more weight I'll be out socializing more. Even though my units have been down I don't feel ready to declare myself as having "regained control" because I know how my mind works. I'm glad to see you are doing so well, and seem to be taking everything in stride. i wish you continued success and appreciate your honest reflections on your journey